No. 2 Seed Redbirds Host Leathernecks In FCS Playoff Second Round

SETTING THE SCENE
Date: Dec. 5, 2015
Location: Normal, Illinois
Kickoff: 1 p.m. CT
Stadium: Hancock Stadium
Stadium Capacity: 13,391
Series: WIU leads 50-44-3
Watch: ESPN3

THE GAME
No. 2 seed Illinois State (9-2, 7-1 MVFC) will face off against a familiar foe in the second round of the FCS playoffs, when they host MVFC and in-state rival Western Illinois for the second time this season at Hancock Stadium. The match up is the second for the Redbirds against a conference opponent in the playoffs in the past two seasons, after the Redbirds defeated UNI in the second round in 2014 at home.

THE SERIES
This will be the 98th meeting all-time between the Redbirds and the Leatherneck in a series dating back to 1904.  Western Illinois leads the all-time series 50-44-3, but Illinois State has been victorious in the past five meetings overall and have won the last four meetings at Hancock Stadium.  The Redbirds defeated the Leathernecks by a score of 48-28 earlier this season on Homecoming at Illinois State.

THE COACHES
Illinois State: Brock Spack (Purdue, 1983) is in his seventh season as the head coach at Illinois State (55-28). Spack led the Redbirds to their first Missouri Valley Football Conference title in 15 years in 2014, and set the school record for wins with 13 while being named a finalist for the Eddie Robinson Award.
Western Illinois: Bob Nielson (Wartburg, 1982) is in his third season as the head coach at Western Illinois (16-20) and his 23rd as a collegiate head coach (186-79-1). Nielson was named the MVFC 'Bruce Craddock' Coach of the Year, after leading the Leathernecks to their first playoff appearance since 2010.

THE @REDBIRDFB PROGRAM

• Six FCS playoff appearances (1998, 1999, 2006, 2012, 2014, 2015)
• Four-time FCS quarterfinalists (1999, 2006, 2012, 2014)
• Two-time FCS semifinalists (1999, 2014)
• The team is 35-6 at home under Spack's guidance
• ISU's current 18-game home winning streak is the longest in the FCS
• The team tied a program-record cumulative GPA of 2.94 in the Spring 2015 semester

THIS WEEK'S OPPONENT

• Western Illinois University is located in Macomb, Illinois, and has an enrollment of 11,458 students.  The Fighting Leathernecks are members of the Missouri Valley Football Conference and play their home games at Hanson Field (16,368).
• The Leathernecks finished the 2014 season with a 5-7 overall record and a 3-5 mark in MVFC play. They return 41 letterwinners and 16 starters from last year's team in 2015.
• WIU capped off the regular season with a thrilling 30-24 win over No. 5 South Dakota State to finish the season 6-5.  That was good enough to get the Leathernecks into the playoffs for the first time since 2010.  Western's six wins also marked the first winning regular season since 2010 and all of those victories came against 'Top 50' ranked teams.
• Western was picked to finish eighth in the MVFC preseason poll and finished the year tied for third with the tie-breaker over South Dakota State and UNI. That improvement from the preseason poll is the  second-biggest jump for the Leathernecks dating back to the inaugural preseason poll in 1986.
• The Leathernecks had to go on the road in the first round to face Pioneer League champion Dayton and came away with a 24-7 win to advance to the second round to face Illinois State. Nikko Watson rushed for a game-high 152 yards on 34 attempts, while redshirt freshman Pete Swenson recorded four sacks, as Western limited Dayton to just 25 yards in the second half.
• WIU has played the most games this year versus FCS playoff teams than any other program. Western has gone 4-3 against the FCS field, defeating Eastern Illinois, UNI, South Dakota State and Dayton, while losing to Coastal Carolina, Illinois State and North Dakota State.

THE LAST TIME THEY MET (OCT. 24, 2015)
ISU was able to out-battle WIU by taking advantage of a 65-yard touchdown from Tre Roberson to Anthony Warrum in the third quarter. The long pass knotted the score up at 28-28, just a few plays after Western Illinois took its first lead of the game. Warrum's six points were the first of 27 unanswered points for the 'Birds in the second half as they pulled away for a 48-28 win over their in-state rivals.

THE ROAD TO FRISCO RUNS THROUGH NORMAL
Illinois State literally had to fly from coast to coast during the 2014 FCS playoffs before securing its spot in the FCS Championship for the first time in school history in Frisco, Texas.  This year, the road to Frisco may not involve any travel at all for the Redbirds, who earned the No. 2 national seed and will host games at Hancock Stadium throughout the playoffs if they advance.  That includes a possible re-match of last year's FCS title game against North Dakota State in the semifinals, if both teams advance.  The Redbirds have never hosted more than one game at home during a playoff run, but have hosted a MVFC foe in the past two seasons at home.

HOME COOKING
In 2013, a newly-renovated Hancock Stadium was opened to the public and the Redbirds treated the fans in attendance to a 31-17 win over Abilene Christian. Little did those in attendance realize that win would be the first of many for the Redbirds, who increased their home winning streak to 18 games in a row with a 46-0 shut out win over South Dakota (Nov. 21). Illinois State's streak at Hancock Stadium is the longest in FCS football and is the third-longest home win streak in MVFC history, trailing NDSU (26) and UNI (25). 

BACK TO BACK CHAMPS
In 2014, the Redbirds broke a 15-year drought without a championship by sharing the Missouri Valley Football Conference title with North Dakota State. The wait was only 12 months for ISU to win its next MVFC title, as the Redbirds secured a share of the conference championship with NDSU after their 46-0 shutout win over South Dakota in the regular-season finale.  The conference title is the third for the Redbirds since joining the league (1999, 2014, 2015) and for the second year in a row, they finished with a 7-1 record in league play.  In addition to the back-to-back conference championships, the Redbirds will also make consecutive appearances in the FCS playoffs for just the second time in school history.  ISU advanced to the FCS playoffs in consecutive seasons in 1998 and 1999.

COPRICH IN TOP THREE FOR STATS FCS OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR 
Illinois State senior running back Marshaun Coprich has amassed a slew of awards during his illustrious career at Illinois State, but his most recent honor could be his biggest. Coprich, along with running back Kade Harrington of Lamar and wide receiver Cooper Kupp of Eastern Washington have been invited to the national awards banquet, where the offensive player of the year will be announced in Frisco, Texas, on Jan. 8 - the night before the FCS national championship game.  Coprich a 5-foot-9, 205-pound senior from Victorville, California, ranks second in the FCS in rushing yards (1,720) and rushing yards per game (156.4), and is tied for third in touchdowns (20) and points per game (11.1).

REDBIRDS WELL REPRESENTED ON ALL-MVFC TEAMS 
A total of 12 Illinois State football players were named to the All-Missouri Valley Football Conference teams, highlighted by five MVFC First-Team selections that included MVFC Offensive Player of the Year Marshaun Coprich.  Joining Coprich on the first team were senior quarterback Tre Roberson, junior center Mark Spelman, junior wide receiver Anthony Warrum and senior middle linebacker Pat Meehan. Four Redbirds were also selected to the All-MVFC Second Team. Senior defensive linemen Teddy Corwin and David Perkins were joined by junior fullback Brady Tibbits and junior offensive lineman Kyle Avaloy. Senior linebacker Alex Donnelly, sophomore safety Alec Kocour and sophomore defensive lineman Dalton Keene were also named All-MVFC Honorable Mention selections in the annual vote.

VERSATILE BARRY NAMED TO MVFC ALL-NEWCOMER TEAM 
Redshirt freshman Brannon Barry was asked to do a little bit of everything in his first season playing for the Redbirds. Barry played in all 11 games, splitting time at both tight end and defensive end, which earned him a spot on the Missouri Valley Football Conference All-Newcomer Team.  Barry led the ISU newcomers with 17 tackles, five of which went for a loss and ranked third on the team with five sacks on the year.  He also added an interception, caught one pass for three yards and was also a standout on special teams with four tackles in kick coverage.  He was  named MVFC Newcomer of the Week, after recording three sacks in a win over UNI.

DEFENSIVE DOMINANCE
Winning a game week in and week out in the Missouri Valley Football Conference is difficult enough, but to shut out a team in a victory is even tougher.  However, that's exactly what the Redbirds did in the regular-season finale against South Dakota State in 46-0 win.  ISU allowed USD just 155 yards of total offense, the lowest output for an ISU opponent this season, and held South Dakota to just 33 yards passing.  The shutout for the Redbirds was their first over a conference opponent in 15 years, with the last a 21-0 win over Indiana State on Oct. 14, 2000.

REDBIRD TRIO AMONG NATION'S BEST 
The three-headed monster of the Redbird defense has been terrorizing opposing defenses all season and in doing so the trio have cemented themselves high in the FCS national rankings:

Marshaun Coprich - RB
Rushing Touchdowns - 2nd (20)
Rushing Yards - 2nd (1,720)
Rushing Yards Per Game - 2nd (156.4)
Scoring - 3rd (11.1)
All Purpose Yards - 5th (169.0)

Tre Roberson - QB
Passing Yards Per Completion - 1st (20.51)
Passing Yards Per Attempt - 2nd (9.85)

Anthony Warrum - WR
Yards Per Reception - 1st (23.98)
Receiving Touchdowns - 4th (13)
Receiving Yards - 11th (1,031)

MINIMIZING MISTAKES AND PENALTIES KEY TO SUCCESS
Illinois State head coach Brock Spack has preached focus and attention to detail in his seven seasons as head coach and stressed the importance of not beating yourself to his teams. The 2015 Redbirds seemed to have embraced this concept, as they rank among the FCS leaders in fewest penalties and turnovers.  ISU ranks No. 5 in the country in fewest penalties with just 48 total and No. 7 in turnovers lost with just 12 total.