Western Illinois: Don Patterson (Army, 1973) is in his 10th season at the helm of the WIU football program, his only head coaching position. He owns a 61-44 (.581) career record, but has only coached two games this season, after receiving seven weeks of chemotherapy and radiation treatments for tonsillar cancer.
- Illinois State was home to the Missouri Valley Football Conference's Defensive Player of the Year each season from 2002-06.
- The Redbirds had at least one player selected in the NFL Draft each year from 2005-07.
- In each of the past three years, ISU student-athletes have contributed more than 2,000 hours of community service to the Bloomington-Normal area.
- Redbird student-athletes posted a school-record 3.05 cumulative grade-point average (GPA) during the fall 2007 semester.
THIS WEEK'S OPPONENT
- Western Illinois is located in Macomb, Ill., and has an enrollment of 13,331. The Leathernecks are members of the Missouri Valley Football Conference.
- The Leathernecks return 18 starters, including nine each on offense and defense, from a team that posted a 6-5 record last season.
- Western Illinois was picked to finish fourth in the preseason Valley Football poll and received four first-place votes. The Leathernecks had seven student-athletes named to the preseason team, including running back Herb Donaldson, fullback Javid Milton, place kicker Taylor Rowan, defensive lineman Josh Galloway, linebacker Jason Williams and defensive back Patrick Stoudamire. In addition, defensive back Robert Hodges received honorable mention honors.
TIES WITH THIS WEEK'S OPPONENT
- Western Illinois President Dr. Al Goldfarb arrived in Macomb via Normal. Prior to taking office as WIU's 10th president in July 2002, Goldfarb served as an administrator at Illinois State for 25 years. From 1998-2002, Goldfarb was ISU's provost and academic vice president.
- Today's game will feature a pair of Chris Riley's, one from each team, in fact. Illinois State's Chris Riley hails from Wadsworth, Ill., and is an offensive lineman, while Western Illinois' Chris Riley is a native of Waukegan, Ill., and is a defensive lineman.
- Western Illinois' Ryan Waldron is from Bloomington, Ill., and attended Central Catholic High School.
- While it doesn't happen often during a collegiate football game in the Midwest, today's contest will feature two Canadians. Illinois State's Jonathan St-Pierre, a native of Longueuil, Quebec, Canada, will be blocking WIU linebacker McEachern of Calgary, Alberta, Canada, throughout the game.
- Illinois State assistant head coach/offensive coordinator Jim Williams (1998-2000) and WIU running backs coach Thad Ward (2005) both coached at Independence Community College as assistant coaches.
- Illinois State's James Hoyt (Moline HS) and Western Illinois' Andrew Briones (Alleman Catholic HS) are both from Moline, Ill.
- Illinois State defensive lineman Tom Speer is a native of Macomb, Ill., as is his older sister, Jill, who is a graduate assistant in the ISU Athletics Media Relations Office.
- The Redbirds' Tom Nelson (John Hersey HS) and the Leatherneck's Mike Garoppolo (Rolling Meadows HS) are both from Arlington Heights, Ill.
ROAD TESTED
Since 2005, the Redbirds have had reasonable success on the road. In the last 21 games away from Normal, Ill., ISU owns an 11-10 mark, including victories this season at Murray State and Indiana State.
MAKING YOUR FIRST GRAB COUNT
When junior wide receiver Warren McCarty hauled in his first-career catch late in the third quarter at South Dakota State last Saturday, it's doubtful he knew it would be one of the biggest catches of the season for Illinois State. McCarty ran the ball in 70 yards for what was not only his first-career catch, but also his first-career touchdown.
GASPING ON GRASS
During the Denver Johnson-era (2000-present), Illinois State has struggled when playing on natural-grass fields. The Redbirds own just a 3-8 record on grass fields during that time, including last Saturday's 52-21 loss at South Dakota State. The Redbirds will have a chance to better this mark on natural turf today when they play on Western Illinois' natural-grass field.
SALEM JOINS CENTURY CLUB
With a 186-yard receiving performance against Youngstown State Nov. 1, junior wideout Eyad Salem joined the 1,000-yard club at Illinois State. Salem now owns 1,108 career receiving yards and became the 17th player in Illinois State history to post 1,000 receiving yards in a career.
ALL-AMERICAN U.
ISU has produced at least one All-American player in 22 of the last 25 seasons. Over the last eight seasons, 30 players from 12 different positions have been honored. Kye Stewart was an All-America selection in 2007.
THE TRUE ICE HOUSE
Youngstown State's Stambaugh Stadium may go by the moniker "The Ice House," but for anyone at last Saturday's Illinois State game at South Dakota State's Coughlin-Alumni Stadium, they know what the true meaning of an "ice house" is. The Redbirds' Nov. 8 game in the Badlands was played in 27-degree Fahrenheit temperatures, which marked the coldest game Illinois State has played in since Nov. 11, 1995, when the Redbirds played host to Indiana State in 26-degree weather at Hancock Stadium. ISU's game last Saturday at South Dakota State was also played in a wind chill of 9 degrees, with winds at 23 miles per hour and gusting up to 30 miles per hour.
LORDY, LORDY, LOOK WHO's 40
With its last two opponents - Youngstown State (44 points) and South Dakota State (52) - each having racked up 40-or-more points, Illinois State allowed back-to-back 40-point games for the first time since 2004, when Southern Illinois (Nov. 6) and Northern Iowa (Nov. 13) each scored 41 points.
FOURTH-QUARTER POINTS = ILLINOIS STATE WINS
For the third time this season, Illinois State notched a high-scoring fourth quarter in its Nov. 1 victory over Youngstown State. In each of the three games where the Redbirds have scored at least two touchdowns in the final quarter, a win has resulted for Illinois State. ISU has scored a total of 65 points this season in the fourth quarter and 56 of those points have come in wins over Murray State (14), Indiana State (21) and Youngstown State (21).
OPPONENT FOURTH-QUARTER POINTS = ILLINOIS STATE LOSSES
Illinois State opponents have scored 90 fourth-quarter points this season, but there is quite a discrepancy in fourth-quarter scoring in the Redbird losses. In the six ISU defeats, the Redbirds have been outscored 63-9 in the fourth quarter.
MISDIRECTION AGAINST THE DIRECTIONALS
Already owning a 25-21 loss against Eastern Illinois this season, and faced with its final two games against nationally-ranked Western Illinois and Southern Illinois, the Redbirds are looking to avoid a sweep by the state's three directional schools that play in the NCAA Football Championship Subdivision (FCS). This has not happened since 1997, when Illinois State, under the direction of head coach Todd Berry, fell to EIU, 25-14; SIU, 31-29; and WIU, 37-23.
PERFECTING THE PATs
Through nine games this season, the kicking duo of Zach Kutch and Steven Fetzer have a perfect mark on point-after attempts (PATs), having knocked in all 30 of their PATs, while opponents have nailed 91 percent of their PATs, going 30-for-33. If the Redbirds' PAT success holds up through the end of the season, it will mark the first time since 2003 that Illinois State has been perfect in PATs. That year, the Redbirds nailed all 35 of their PATs.
LACK OF SACKS
Illinois State's defense ranks No. 111 in the nation in quarterback sacks per game, having recorded only eight this season through nine games (.89 per game). That puts the Redbirds on pace to record only 10 quarterback sacks this season, which would be the fewest in team history since sacks officially became an NCAA statistic in 1981. In fact, four Redbirds in team history have recorded 10-or-more sacks in a single season: Brent Hawkins (17.0 in 2005), Ray Robinson (14.0 in 2003), John Kropke (12.0 in 1986) and Tony Jones (11.0 in 1990).
BUMBLING, FUMBLING, STUMBLING
To borrow one of ESPN anchor Chris Berman's many infamous lines, the Illinois State football team has been "bumbling, fumbling, stumbling" quite a bit this season, and it has had a difficult time getting its opponents to do the same. The Redbirds' -1.33 turnover margin per game ranks No. 113 on the FCS level. Illinois State has turned the ball over 21 times this season via a fumble or interception, while its opponents have coughed the ball up just 10 times.
GRUNGE WAS JUST ON ITS WAY OUT ...
With its 52-21 loss at South Dakota State last Saturday, coupled with a 4-7 mark last season, Illinois State has secured its first back-to-back losing seasons since 1996-97, when the Todd Berry-coached Redbirds went 3-8 in 1996 and 2-9 in 1997.
 | ABOUT THE OFFENSE |
- Under head coach Denver Johnson, Illinois State has produced the single-season record holder in both rushing and receiving, along with the No. 1 career receiver, the No. 2 career passer and the No. 2 career rusher.
- Illinois State has scored at least one touchdown in every game dating back to Nov. 20, 2004 (43-straight games).
- Under Johnson, ISU has rushed for at least 200 yards 42 times, including 28 times since 2003.
- During the same time, the Redbird offense has totaled 23 games with 500 or more yards of total offense and 15 games with 300 or more passing yards.
SALEM'S LOT
The football seems to be gravitating toward junior wide receiver Eyad Salem. He has led the Redbirds in receiving in seven of the first nine games. In his last 12 games for the Redbirds, dating back to last season, he has recorded 65 catches for 963 yards, while scoring nine touchdowns. Included in this span was his Nov. 1 performance against Youngstown State. Salem hauled in eight catches for 186 yards and two touchdowns. His 186 receiving yards was the fourth-best effort in the Denver Johnson-era at Illinois State.
TRENDING UP
Wide receiver Eyad Salem finds himself on the cusp of great company. He has 45 receptions this season through nine game, which puts him just 15 catches shy of a tie for fifth-place all-time at Illinois State in single-season receptions. If his past two-game reception average holds up (7.5 catches per game), he will record his 60th catch of the season in the Redbirds' Nov. 22 season-ending game versus Southern Illinois.
OFFENSE! OFFENSE! GET YOUR OFFENSE!
This season, the Redbirds are averaging 369.3 yards of total offense per game. That figure currently ranks No. 8 in school history for offensive production in a season. If this average continues, eight of the top-10 total offense season averages will have occurred in Denver Johnson's tenure at Illinois State.
BIG GAINERS
Quarterback Kevin Brockway has followed in Luke Drone's footsteps more than just literally. Brockway, like his predecessor, has had his own successes with the big play. Of his 122 completions, 15 have been for 20-plus yards. He is averaging 6.3 yards per pass, which currently ranks No. 12 in ISU history for a season. His primary targets have been Kelvin Chandler and Eyad Salem. Chandler currently ranks No. 20 all-time in Redbird history with 13.2 yards per catch, while Salem is No. 11 with 14.6 yards per grab.
DEFYING THE ODDS
When you don't see any significant playing time until the seventh game of the season and you don't record your first start until the eighth game, it wouldn't be out of line for people to assume that you will not do much statistically during the season. Despite those odds, senior transfer tailback Walter Mendenhall has had a spectacular two-game performance that ranks him among some of the nation's best scorers. Consider the numbers below:
- Mendenhall is the Redbirds' second-leading rusher, and sits just 12 yards shy of the team lead in that category, a spot currently held by fellow tailback Geno Blow.
- Mendenhall has two 100-yard rushing games this season, tied for the team high with Blow. Included in that was his 225-yard rushing effort Nov. 1 against Youngstown State, which was the fourth-best single-game rushing total in the Denver Johnson-era.
- He has scored four touchdowns in the last two games, which gives him a team-best eight on the season and has moved him to a No. 78 ranking nationally in scoring.
WHAT A RUSH
Through nine games, the Redbirds are averaging 4.5 yards per rush attempt. The per-carry average currently ranks tied as the seventh-best average in school history.
IT ALL COMES DOWN TO THE RUN
If love makes the world go round, running the ball does the same for the Illinois State football program. In Illinois State's three victories this season, the Redbirds have averaged 291.7 yards per game. In the six losses, ISU is averaging 142.3 yards on the ground.
| ABOUT THE DEFENSE |
- Illinois State returns eight starters from a defense that ranked No. 102 last season nationally among 116 teams. The Redbirds allowed 427.9 yards per game, including 230.1 yards per game rushing. The ISU rushing defense ranked No. 110 nationally.
- Assistant coach David Ross enters his first season as the defensive coordinator at Illinois State and his third with the Redbird staff.
- In the Denver Johnson-era, the Redbird defense has held its opponent without a touchdown eight times, including once this season in the 57-6 win at Indiana State.
- This season at Indiana State, the Redbird defense held the Sycamores to 113 yards of total offense, which is the lowest team yardage allowed by the 'Birds in a Missouri Valley Football Conference game.
AIR ATTACK
Of the 35 touchdowns that opponents have scored off Illinois State through nine games this season, 20 have come in the air. Illinois State is on pace to allow 24 passing touchdowns this season, a feat that opponents have not accomplished since 2004. The Redbirds allowed 20 passing touchdowns in all last season in 11 games.
YOU CAN'T KEEP A GOOD MAN DOWN
Three weeks ago, junior cornerback Jason Tate left the North Dakota State game via ambulance after a vicious hit. Despite not practicing the entire week, Tate returned to the field seven days later against Youngstown State and intercepted a pair of Penguin passes. As if this story isn't amazing enough, the interceptions were only the second and third by the Redbirds this season.
TOMMY EVERYTHING
Not only is senior safety Tom Nelson the nation's leading punt returner, he is also a stout tackler, as evidenced by his 242 career tackles. With eight more tackles, Nelson will move into 15th place all-time at Illinois State in career tackles. Nelson racked up a game-high 13 tackles last Saturday at South Dakota State, and with a per-game tackle average of 6.3, he could hit the mark today against Western Illinois.
MORE OPPONENT PUNTS = MORE ILLINOIS STATE WINS
Over Illinois State's last five games, the Redbird defense has had a tough time forcing the opposing team's offense into a punting situation. Opponents have punted just 13 times in ISU's last five games, compared to 28 punts that were sent in the air by opposing teams over the Redbirds' first four games. Not surprisingly, the Redbirds' record has suffered during this time, as ISU has gone just 1-4 and allowed 37.2 points per game over its last five contests. In its first four games, the Redbirds went 2-2 and allowed only 22.3 points per game.
TOTAL RECALL
Over the first four games of the season, the Redbirds held their opponents to under 400 yards of total offense in each contest. Unfortunately, for ISU, that scenario has not been the case in the last five games. Every game since then, a Redbird opponent has racked up at least 400 yards total offense. It all started Oct. 11 at Northern Iowa, when the Panthers gained a then-season-high 416 yards of total offense against the Redbirds, only to be outdone by Missouri State's season-high 444 yards of total offense against ISU. Both marks were topped when North Dakota State posted 479 yards of total offense against ISU, but all totals were downed two weeks ago when Youngstown State gained 544 yards of offense against the Redbirds. Illinois State finally bucked the trend of season-best offensive totals by its opponents last Saturday, but it still allowed 436 yards of total offense by South Dakota State.
THE BUCK STOPS HERE
The Buck Buchanan Award is presented annually by The Sports Network to the nation's best NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) defensive player. When acquiring a list of potential candidates, or a watch list, Illinois State is as good of place to start as any. Since 2002, the Redbirds have had one player finish in the top-five of the Buck Buchanan Award voting in each season. Even though Illinois State hasn't been able to claim the top honor, a Redbird has finished second twice and third twice. Here is a list of ISU's Buck Buchanan Award finalists:
- 2002 - Boomer Grigsby (LB) - Third
- 2003 - Boomer Grigsby (LB) - Second
- 2004 - Boomer Grigsby (LB) - Third
- 2005 - Brent Hawkins (DE) - Second; Cameron Siskowic (LB) - 13th
- 2006 - Cameron Siskowic (LB) - Fifth
- 2007 - Kye Stewart (LB) - Fourth
| ABOUT THE SPECIAL TEAMS |
- Under head coach Denver Johnson, Illinois State has scored five touchdowns on special teams, with two punt returns, including Tom Nelson's 82-yard return this season at Murray State; two kick returns, including Chris Garrett's 93-yard return this season against Youngstown State; and one via a blocked punt. The Redbirds also have one extra-point return during that time.
- The Redbirds have blocked 24 kicks since 2000, including a blocked extra point this season by Michael Rhines against North Dakota State.
GARRETT'S GRAND ENTRANCE
Due to a roster shift, junior Chris Garrett found himself as a first-tier kick returner in ISU's Nov. 1 game against Youngstown State. Garrett probably made himself a mainstay by returning four kickoffs for 150 yards, including a 93-yard touchdown return in the fourth quarter. It was the first Redbird kickoff returned for a touchdown since LaShawn Bullock did it, also against Youngstown State, Oct. 23, 2004. It was also only the second kickoff returned for a touchdown in the Denver Johnson-era.
MAKING PR WORK FOR YOU
Entering Saturday's game at Western Illinois, the Redbirds, thanks to their PR (punt return) practitioner Tom Nelson, rank No. 2 nationally in the FCS in punt return average. The Redbirds are averaging 19.57 yards per game, and Nelson leads the team and the nation in punt returns with19.45 yards per return.
NO GOOD DEED GOES UNPUNISHED
Since the Redbirds have ranked among the national leaders in punt returns all season, ISU opponents haven't given the Redbirds and Tom Nelson a lot of chances to return punts. In the last five games, the Redbirds have three punt return for 19 yards. Despite this, Nelson has been able to uphold his stellar punt return average and ranks No. 1 nationally with 19.45 yards per return.
PRETTY GOOD WITH THE NET
Illinois State ranks No. 9 nationally in net punting with 35.82 yards per kick, which is also tops in the Missouri Valley Football Conference. Much of this can be attributed to Bobby Kelsey's 41.08 punting average, which ranks No. 24 nationally, but it also shows that the Redbird punt coverage team is getting downfield and making tackles.
IT TAKES SOMEONE SPECIAL
Illinois State has had a total of 29 players record at least one tackle this season on special teams. Those 29 players have racked up a total of 93 tackles, but it is the effort of one player that has stood out from everyone: junior cornerback Jason Tate. The Lake Mary, Fla., native has totaled a team-high 10 special-teams tackles this season, all on kickoff returns, and is seventh on the team in total tackles with 33. Just behind Tate is Clifton Gordon with nine special-teams tackles, while Ray Sankey has seven. Gordon leads the team on punt coverage with five tackles.
A FULL NELSON
Well, it was almost the full length of the field, when senior Tom Nelson returned a punt 82 yards for a touchdown at Murray State. It was Illinois State's first punt-return touchdown since Joe Walkins ran in a 52-yard punt return for a touchdown against Youngstown State Oct. 23, 2004. Nelson's punt return also marked the fourth-longest in Illinois State history and the second-longest to be returned for a touchdown.
KELSEY GETS HIS KICKS
Illinois State's Bobby Kelsey is in his final season with the Redbirds. Kelsey started his ISU career as a field-goal kicker, but has evolved into one of the conference's top punters.
- Kelsey currently ranks No. 24 nationally and No. 3 in the Missouri Valley Football Conference in punting with 41.08 yards per punt.
- Kelsey ranks No. 4 in school history with a 39.8 career punting average.
- He has accumulated 5,052 yards on 127 punts during his career, including 77 yards on one punt earlier this season at Murray State, his career-long.
- In his career, Kelsey has pinned 40 punts inside the 20-yard line, had 17 punts total 50 yards or more and had 25 called for a fair catch. He has also never had a punt blocked.
- Kelsey has also been willing to go downfield and make the tackle during his career. Kelsey has posted 25 tackles as a Redbird, including 16 solo stops.
