NORMAL, Ill. - Coming off a decisive 62-0 win over Mississippi Valley State in the season opener last week, Illinois State (1-0) will host in-state rival Eastern Illinois (0-2) at Hancock Stadium in the 103rd meeting of the Mid-America Classic.
Saturday's game will be broadcast live on Comcast SportsNet Chicago, as part of the Illinois State Television Network and will also be streamed live on ESPN3.com. Below are channel listing where the game can be found:
- Comcast Cable - Channel 56 or 522 (HD)
- ATT Uverse - Channel 740 or 1740 (HD)
- Comcast Xfinity - Channel 37 or 200 (HD)
- DIRECTV - Channel 665
- DISH Network - Channel 429 or 5429 (HD)
- DISH Network Hopper Channel - Channel 412-19
- MEDIACOM - Channel 40 or 732 (HD)
THE SERIES
The game renews the oldest FCS football rivalry in the state of Illinois and the 13th-oldest at the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) level. ISU and EIU have played 102 times, with the first game being played in 1901. The Redbirds have won eight of the last 12 games against the Panthers and lead the series, 52-41-9.
THE COACHES
Illinois State: Brock Spack (Purdue, 1983) is in his sixth season as the head coach at Illinois State (34-24). Spack led the Redbirds to their first playoff victory since 2006, just the third nine-win season in school history and was a finalist for the Eddie Robinson Award during the 2012 season.
Eastern Illinois: Kim Dameron (Arkansas, 1983) is in his first season as the head coach at Eastern Illinois (0-2). An experienced defensive coach with more than 15 years as a defensive coordinator, Dameron spent the 2013 season as the defensive coordinator at Louisiana Tech.
THIS WEEK'S OPPONENT
- Eastern Illinois University is located in Charleston, Illinois, and has an enrollment of 9,775 students. The Panthers are members of the Ohio Valley Conference and play their home games at O'Brien Field (10,000).
- The Panthers finished the 2013 season with a 12-2 overall record, ranked No. 4 nationally and advanced to the quarterfinals of the FCS playoffs, where they eventually fell to Towson by a score of 49-39.
- EIU returns 43 letterwinners and 15 starters from that squad, with key losses including 2013 Walter Payton Award winner, All-American and NFL 2nd round draft pick Jimmy Garappolo (QB) and All-American Erik Lora (WR).
- The Panthers are off to an 0-2 start to the 2014 season, with losses at FBS foe Minnesota (42-20) and at home last week to Missouri Valley Football Conference and in-state rival Southern Illinois (38-21).
- Quarterback Andrew Manley leads the way on offense for the Panthers. The redshirt senior transfer from New Mexico State has completed 37-of-64 pass attempts for 440 yards and thrown three touchdowns, while also rushing for a pair of scores. His favorite target has been senior wide out Adam Drake, who has 20 receptions for 48 yards with one touchdown through the first two games.
- Defensively, the Panthers are led by senior linebacker Adam Gristick, who has 14 tackles and a sack early in the season. Fellow senior linebacker Robert Haynes leads the Panthers with two sacks and 4.5 tackles-for-loss.
THE LAST TIME THEY MET (9/14/13)
Eastern Illinois set three records, as the Panthers picked up a lopsided 57-24 victory over the Redbirds in the 102nd playing of the Mid-America Classic. The 57 points were the most scored by the Panthers in the rivalry game and Jimmy Garappolo set a school record with seven touchdown passes and 480 yards through the air. Redbird wide receiver Cameron Meredith hauled in a pair of touchdowns in the loss for the Redbirds.
TEN TALES OF A 112-YEAR-OLD RIVALRY
- Oct. 27, 1906 – Illinois State's six-hour bus drive to Charleston, Illinois, was only made worse by an 11-6 defeat.
- Nov. 3, 1915 – Both teams fumbled inside each other's 10-yard line in this 0-0 game.
- Nov. 11, 1916 – EIU visited Normal, Illinois, for the first ever Homecoming game on ISU's campus. ISU scored its only points on a 45-yard blocked punt return in a 24-7 loss.
- Nov. 14, 1959 – Illinois State linemen wear gloves for the first time on a snowy, icy day, as Dave Babcock scored the only Illinois State touchdown in a 6-6 tie.
- Sept. 30, 1961 – Illinois State's Keith Reiger's touchdown pass to Bill Monken "probably set an IIAC record for the shortest TD pass: 18 inches" in the Redbirds' 18-0 win.
- Sept. 29, 1962 – Paul Whitmore's 91-yard punt return was the only score in this 6-0 Redbird victory. It still remains the longest punt return for a touchdown in Illinois State history.
- Oct. 10, 1981 – ISU reserve Andy Fladung came off the bench to intercept a school-record four passes in the Redbirds' 25-3 win.
- Sept. 16, 2006 – Marked the first time in the history of the Illinois State-Eastern Illinois series where both teams were nationally ranked. The Redbirds entered the game No. 7 and the Panthers were ranked No. 18. ISU trailed, 10-0, after the first quarter, but a 23-point second quarter put the 'Birds in control of a 44-30 win. Pierre Jackson had a career-high 132 receiving yards on six catches.
- Nov. 25, 2006 – Two months after facing each other in the regular season, ISU and EIU met each other in the first round of the 2006 NCAA Division I FCS Playoffs. ISU's Jason Tate (41 yards) and Jesse Caesar (45 yards) each returned interceptions for touchdowns in the 24-13 Redbird win.
- Sept. 15, 2012 – A 25-yard touchdown pass from Matt Brown to Tyrone Walker sealed No. 15 ISU's come-from-behind 54-51 double-overtime victory over EIU. The 105 combined points scored were the most between the two teams in the 103-year history of the rivalry. Brown set the Illinois State single-game records for passing yards (473) and completions (42), and tied his career high with five touchdown passes in the game.
SUPER TRE
Redbird junior quarterback Tre Roberson wore a Superman shirt under his pads in the win against Mississippi Valley and one could say it gave him special powers against the Delta Devils. The transfer from Indiana accounted for four touchdowns and 245 yards of total offense in the 62-0 victory and helped ISU amass 622 yards of total offense against the Delta Devils. Roberson was dangerous with his arm and legs, as he was 10-for-15 for 204 yards and two scores through the air and added a pair of scores and 41 yards on the ground in two-plus quarters of work.
FIRST TIME FOR EVERYTHING
Junior tight end Joe Farmer has been a consistent contributor for the Redbirds throughout his career, but one thing that had eluded him was his first catch or touchdown. He checked both of those items off his to-do list on one play last Saturday when he hauled in a 40-yard bomb from Tre Roberson in the third quarter against Mississippi Valley State to record his first catch and touchdown of his career.
GETTING DEFENSIVE
Over the past five seasons, the Redbird defense has scored 10 touchdowns, including a pair in 2013. Redshirt freshman linebacker Jalen Battle added to that number last Saturday, when he intercepted a pass late in the game and returned it 12 yards for a touchdown. With that score, Illinois State has scored at least one defensive touchdown each year under head coach Brock Spack.
BALANCED EFFORT
One look at the team stats from Saturday's win and it is apparent that the Redbirds want to be balanced on offense. In fact, the team's total rushing yards (322) and total passing yards (300) were nearly identical, but the number of carries (41) nearly tripled the number of completions (15) by the Redbird quarterbacks.
TOTING THE ROCK
Illinois State set the tone early up front in the team's 62-0 victory over Mississippi Valley State and came away with some impressive numbers on the ground. Led by running back Marshaun Coprich's career-high 169 yards and two touchdowns, the Redbirds amassed 322 yards on the ground against the Delta Devils. It marked the first time ISU had rushed for over 300 yards as a team since Sept. 1, 2012, when the Redbirds racked up 318 yards on the ground against Dayton at Hancock Stadium.
OFFENSIVE OUTBURST
Heading into the season, ISU head coach Brock Spack thought his team might be more explosive on offense than it was in 2013. Based on the performance of his team in a dominating 62-0 win in the season opener against Mississippi Valley State, Spack knows his team very well. The Redbirds amassed 322 yards on the ground and threw for 300 yards in the air for 622 yards of total offense, the most for ISU since Nov. 12, 2005, when they racked up 708 in a win over Indiana State. The 62 points scored were also the most since the Redbirds scored 69 in a win over the Sycamores in 2007.
DOMINATING THE DEVILS
Illinois State dominated Mississippi Valley State on both sides of the football in its 62-0 shutout win Saturday in the Redbirds' 2014 season opener. The shutout was the first for the Redbirds since a 42-0 win against Murray State in 2005 and the 'Birds allowed just 36 yards passing to the Delta Devils. The 62-point margin of victory was the largest for ISU since a 75-10 win over West Virginia Tech in 2000 and the team's nine touchdowns scored were one short of a school record.
WELCOME ABOARD
The Redbirds' game against Mississippi Valley State not only started the 2014 season, but it also began the careers of 14 new players on the Illinois State roster. That included FBS transfers Tre Roberson and Oshay Dunmore and four true freshmen, including safety DraShane Glass who recorded his first career interception in his first play from scrimmage in Redbird uniform.
