SETTING THE SCENE
Date: Oct. 6, 2018
Time: 2 p.m. CT
Site: Normal, Illinois
Stadium: Hancock Stadium
Capacity: 13,391
Series: Western Illinois leads 51-46-3
Watch: NBC Sports Chicago / ESPN+
Listen: WJBC 1230 AM / 93.7 FM / TuneIn
THE GAME
Following their first setback of the season, the No. 14/15 ranked Redbirds (3-1, 0-1 MVFC) return home to Hancock Stadium to host long-time in-state foe Western Illinois in the first of three home games for ISU in the month of October.
THE SERIES
The Redbirds and the Fighting Leathernecks will meet for the 101st time on the gridiron, with WIU leading the all-time series 51-46-3. WIU picked up a come-from-behind win over ISU in 2017 to snap a seven-game winning streak by the Redbirds. Overall, ISU has won eight out of the last ten contests in the series and four out of the last five games at Hancock Stadium.
THE COACHES
Illinois State: Brock Spack (Purdue, 1983) is in his 10th season as the head coach at Illinois State (71-41). Spack has led the Redbirds to four FCS playoff appearances, including three-straight from 2014-16 and guided the Redbirds to back-to-back shares of the MVFC title in 2014-15. His 2014 team advanced to the NCAA FCS National Championship game, the first in the program's history.
Western Illinois: Jared Elliott (Miami Ohio, 2008) is in his first season as the Western Illinois head coach (2-2). Elliott previously served as the Fighting Leathernecks' assistant head coach and co-offensive coordinator, before taking over as head coach following the departure of Charlie Fisher after the 2017 season.
THIS WEEK'S OPPONENT
- Western Illinois University is located in Macomb, Illinois, and has an enrollment of 10,373 students. The Fighting Leathernecks are members of the Missouri Valley Football Conference.
- WIU started out the season with a pair of road losses at Montana State and against in-state FBS foe Illinois, before picking up its first win of the season at home against No. 15 Montana State.
- The Leathernecks (2-2, 1-0 MVFC) opened league play last Saturday with a 45-38 victory over Youngstown State on Homecoming at WIU. The Leathernecks didn't commit a turnover and forced three (two interceptions and a fumble) to come away with the victory over the Penguins.
- After putting together his second-straight 300-yard passing game of the season to go along with five total touchdowns, WIU quarterback Sean McGuire was named the MVFC Offensive Player of the Week. He finished last week's MVFC opener against Youngstown State 22-for-34 with four passing touchdowns and one rushing to help the Leathernecks improve to 2-2 on the season.
- WIU is the only school in the FCS to have a pair of linebackers ranked in the top-15 in solo tackles per game. Quentin Moon leads the nation with 7.3 stops, while Zach Glisan ties for 11th with 6.5. Moon also ties for eighth in the FCS with a pair of forced fumbles.
LAST TIME VS. THE LEATHERNECKS (11/4/17)
Despite a two-score lead at the half, No. 12 Illinois State could not maintain the lead over No. 15 Western Illinois as the Leathernecks scored 31 unanswered points in the second half to defeat the Redbirds by a score of 31-14 at Hancock Stadium. Illinois State quarterback Jake Kolbe completed 19 passes for 223 yards with two first-half touchdown passes to pace the ISU offense and Christian Gibbs finished with 113 yards on five receptions.
INTERCEPTIONS MOUNTING
Through four games, the Illinois State defense has become accustomed to recording interceptions. ISU forced a pair of interceptions for the second-straight week and upped its season total to eight at Missouri State, one shy of the nine the Redbirds recorded all of last season. The first one came right before halftime, as Devin Taylor intercepted a pass down the sidelines to stop the Bears from driving late in the first half. The other came after the Redbirds cut the lead to 10-7, then Luther Kirk intercepted a pass at the Bears 31-yard line that he returned to the 19-yard line to put the Redbirds in the red zone that scored a go ahead touchdown early in the third quarter.
REDBIRD DEJA VU
The Redbirds scored their first touchdown of the game against Missouri State in the third quarter, when quarterback Brady Davis found Spencer Schnell in the corner of the end zone for a five-yard touchdown. After a Luther Kirk interception gave the Redbirds the ball right back in great field position, Davis and Schnell connected for another touchdown on the same exact play with the same exact result, as Schnell made the grab in the same corner from four-yards out to put the Redbirds up 14-10 at the time. With his two touchdowns, Schnell upped his season total to four to lead the team and Davis has now thrown 10 touchdowns on the season to six different receivers.
QUEST FOR A STATE CHAMPIONSHIP
Four teams from the Land of Lincoln appear on the 2018 Illinois State football schedule, and the Redbirds would like to bring home a 'state championship' with solid performances against their in-state foes. The Redbirds have already defeated a pair of in-state opponents this year, as they opened with a 46-0 victory of Saint Xavier and then beat Eastern Illinois by a score of 48-10 the following week in the annual Mid-America Classic. Over the next two weeks, Illinois State will battle two more long-time rivals, when they welcome Western Illinois this week and host Southern Illinois.
MATHEWS MAKING HIS MARK
After spending the majority of his time as a practice squad member and a special teams contributor for the Redbirds, senior linebacker Zackary Mathews has made the most out of his starting opportunity in 2018. The Rockford, Illinois, native leads the team with 39 total tackles with 3.0 TFLs this season and ranks fourth in the MVFC with 9.8 tackles per game. Against Missouri State, Mathews smashed previous career-bests with 16 total stops and 10 solo tackles against the Bears to lead the way defensively for ISU.
REDBIRDS RANK AMONG THE BEST
Illinois State ranks No. 14 in the most recent AFCA Coaches' Poll and sits near the top of the FCS in several categories. ISU boasts second-best turnover margin in the country (2.25), the seventh-best scoring defense (13.3 ppg) and is 12th in the FCS in scoring offense (37.5 ppg). The Redbirds also sit in the top ten in the FCS at No. 4 in passes intercepted (8) and No. 9 in team red zone defense (.636).
THE FIRST AXIOM OF WINNING
ISU head coach Brock Spack tells his team often that "the first axiom of winning is not beating yourself." Turning the football over is the easiest way to kill a game's momentum and send your team into a spiral in the loss column. So far, the Redbirds have heeded that warning and only turned the ball over once in 2018, while forcing 10 takeaways on defense for a +9 mark in the turnover column and +2.25 turnover margin (No. 2 in the FCS).
FEAR THE BIRDS
Heading into the game at Colorado State, six other FCS teams had picked up wins over FBS opponents in 2018. With the hashtag #FearTheFCS at the ready, Illinois State increased that number to seven with a big 35-19 win over the Rams at Canvas Stadium. The victory was the second-straight for the Redbirds against a FBS foe, following a 9-7 win at Northwestern in 2016, and the third for the Redbirds since a 2012 win at Eastern Michigan. Overall, the victory was the sixth over a FBS foe for the Redbirds in program history.
ROBINSON AT THE READY
Heading into 2018, James Robinson was on many pre-season lists and was expected to be one of the better backs in the FCS. Through four games, he is proving just that and his dominant effort helped the Redbirds pick up a big win over Colorado State. The junior from Rockford, Illinois, averaged 8.4 yards per carry and totaled 184 on the ground with a pair of touchdowns vs. CSU. Also adding a first-down grab for 11 yards to show his versatility, Robinson finished the day with 195 all-purpose yards. The 100-plus yard effort was the second in a row for Robinson, who now has 436 yards rushing (7.4 per carry) and six total touchdowns for the Redbirds.
EDGAR BREAKS OUT
Redshirt freshman Andrew Edgar has shown that he is someone to keep an eye on in the potent Redbird offense. The Chicago native recorded his first touchdown in a Redbird uniform and finished with 82 yards in a win over Eastern Illinois. He followed that up with his first career 100-plus yard receiving effort with 111 yards on five receptions in the 35-19 win over Colorado State. Through four games, Edgar is averaging 16.5 yards per catch and is second on the team with 248 receiving yards.
ROMEO, ROMEO, WHEREFORE ART THOU ROMEO?
Defensive end Romeo McKnight's performance at Colorado State was worthy of a Shakespearian sonnet. The Iowa transfer was a thorn in the side of the Rams' offense all day in a big 35-19 win for the Redbirds. McKnight recorded six tackles, two sacks, two TFLs and was credited with a quarterback hurry in the victory for ISU. His two sacks were the only ones for the Redbirds, who held a 538-391 advantage in total offense thanks to a stout effort up front by the Redbird defense. After adding two more TFLs at Missouri State, McKnight leads the Redbirds with five on the season and is tied for fifth in the MVFC in that category.
PETKO PLAYING WITH A PURPOSE
Tight ends have to do a lot on the field as critical parts of not only the protection of the quarterback and as a blocker in the running game, but also as a receiver option in the passing game. Senior Tylor Petkovich played in his 40th game as a Redbird at Missouri State, and may be playing the best football of his career. Heading into the 2018 season, Petkovich had recorded 32 receptions and scored just one touchdown in three previous seasons. Through four games in 2018, he's already doubled his touchdown haul with two for the Redbirds on just four receptions. The two receiving touchdowns by a tight end are the most for the Redbirds since 2014, when current Jacksonville Jaguars tight end James O'Shaughnessy caught nine during ISU's run to the FCS National Championship game.
SPREADING THE FOOTBALL AROUND
At the end of spring camp, the Redbirds had three healthy wide receivers and a lot of question marks at the position. Impressive performances during fall camp alleviated some of those worries, and performances through the first four contests have led head coach Brock Spack to call the position a strength. Led by senior Spencer Schnell (23 rec., 353 yds. 4 TD), the group also features redshirt freshman Andrew Edgar (15 rec., 248 yds., 1 TD) and transfer Braxton Haley (9 rec., 119 yds.) who have both played well in their first games as Redbirds.
