SETTING THE SCENE
Date: September 25, 2021
Time: 2 p.m. CT
Site: Carbondale, Illinois
Stadium: Saluki Stadium
Capacity: 15,000
Series: SIU leads 41-38-3
Last: ILS won 21-7 (Oct. 12, 2019)
Stream: ESPN+
Listen: WJBC 1230 AM / 102.1 FM / 93.7 FM / The Varsity Network
THE GAME
For the second week in a row, Illinois State will make a trip to face a familiar in-state foe in Southern Illinois as the Redbirds (2-1) open Missouri Valley Conference play against the No. 7 ranked Salukis (2-1) Saturday in Carbondale at Saluki Stadium.
THE SERIES
The Redbirds and the Salukis will meet for the 83rd time on the gridiron, with SIU holding a 41-38-3 advantage in the series which dates back to 1929. The two teams last met during the 2019 season, with the Redbirds winning 21-7 in Carbondale. The win was the second-straight for the Redbirds in the series and fifth in the last six contests overall. ISU head coach Brock Spack stands at 6-5 overall against SIU including a 3-3 mark in games played at Saluki Stadium.
THE COACHES
Illinois State: Brock Spack (Purdue, 1983) is in his 13th season as the head coach at Illinois State (87-54). Spack guided the Redbirds to back-to-back shares of the MVFC title in 2014-15 and an appearance in the 2014 FCS Championship. He has led the ISU to eight playoff appearances overall and recently became the program's all-time wins leader.
Southern Illinois: Nick Hill (Southern Illinois, 2007) is in his 6th season as the head coach of his alma mater (25-33). Hill guided the Salukis to their first FCS playoff appearance since 2009 during the spring 2021 campaign, as SIU ended the year with a 6-4 record and finished the season ranked No. 8 in the nation.
THIS WEEK'S OPPONENT
- Southern Illinois University is located in Carbondale, Illinois, and has an enrollment of 11,366 students. The Salukis are members of the Missouri Valley Football Conference and play their home games at Saluki Stadium (15,000).
- The Salukis are coming off a 6-4 record during the spring 2021 season, as they made their first playoff appearance since 2009. SIU picked up wins over No. 1 North Dakota State and No. 4 UNI during league play and then took down No. 3 Weber State in the playoffs, before falling to fellow MVFC foe No. 2 South Dakota State. Southern Illinois finished the season ranked No. 8 in the final FCS polls.
- Southern Illinois was picked to finish fourth in the preseason Missouri Valley Football Conference poll of league coaches, media and sports information directors. The Salukis led the league with 13 players named to the preseason team, including six first-teamers: WR Avante Cox, G ZeVeyon Furcron, DE Jordan Berner, S Qua Brown, CB James Ceasar and RB Javon Williams Jr.
- SIU is off to a 2-1 start to the season, with dominant wins over SEMO and last week against Dayton. Their lone loss of the season came at Kansas State, a hard-fought 31-23 loss. They are currently ranked No. 7 in the FCS Top 25 poll by STATS FCS.
- The potent Saluki offense is led by quarterback Nic Baker who earned MVFC Offensive Player of the Week honors in Week 1. Baker set the school passing record with 460 yards through the air in a 47-21 win at SEMO and threw touchdowns. On the season, he is completing nearly 70 percent of his passes and has passed for 871 yards and seven touchdowns.
- Brown and Anthony Knight front the SIU defense each with 14 stops on the season so far. Knighton leads the team with four TFLs and has added a sack and Bryce Notree leads the team with 17 total tackles.
LAST TIME VS. THE SALUKIS (10/12/19)
A 75-yard opening scoring drive resulted in a quick lead for No. 13 Illinois State against Southern Illinois and the Redbirds never looked back, as they picked up a tough 21-7 road win in Carbondale. Running back James Robinson finished the game with 150 yards and a touchdown, marking his third 100-plus yard effort of the season and fifth 90-plus yard performance through six games. The Redbird defense accumulated 9 sacks and 12 TFLs in a dominant defensive effort, with Jason Lewan, Tuvone Clark and Romeo McKnight each tallying two sacks.
SPACK SETS THE RECORD
Illinois State head coach Brock Spack led the Redbirds to their 87th win in his 13 seasons courtesy of a 31-24 gritty victory over Eastern Illinois. With the that win, Spack became the Redbird Football all-time program wins leader, topping the previous mark of 86 held by Edwin Struck. The win for Spack was particularly important because it came in Charleston, where he started his collegiate coaching career under EIU legendary head coach Bob Spoo.
WINNING WITH WARING
Freshman quarterback Jackson Waring has seen limited action during his young Redbird career, but an injury to starter Bryce Jefferson early in the contest against Eastern Illinois forced him into action. Waring controlled the game for ISU and led the Redbirds to the 31-24 victory in the 109th Mid-America Classic, completing 5-of-7 passes and running for a crucial touchdown late in the third quarter to put the 'Birds up by a score.
DEMING EARNS VALLEY FOOTBALL WEEKLY HONORS
Defensive lineman Braydon Deming made a huge impact for the Redbird defense in their 31-24 against Eastern Illinois in the Mid-America Classic. For his efforts, Deming was named the Missouri Valley Football Conference Defensive Player of the Week by the league office. The transfer from Montana tied for the team lead with 10 tackles, added a crucial sack late in the game and tallied four tackles for loss in the victory over the Panthers. Starting at defensive tackle for the Redbirds, he got pressure all night and made big stops late in the game, as the defense forced a pair of turnovers on downs in the fourth quarter that set up the game-winning touchdown.
BREAKING LOOSE
Freshman running back Cole Mueller has found a way to make things happen with the ball in his hands in the open field so far this season. The Wentzville, Missouri, native broke loose for an 80-yard touchdown run in the opener against Butler on way to 111 yards rushing and followed that up with a career-high 144 yards rushing to help the Redbirds pick up a rivalry win over Eastern Illinois. He's currently averaging 9.3 yards per carry and currently ranks second in the MVFC with 261 yards on the ground.
GETTING DEFENSIVE
The Redbirds have become accustomed to finding the end zone on the defensive side of the football in recent years, and they kept that streak alive at Eastern Illinois thanks to an impressive pick six by Jarrell Jackson. The 95-yard interception return for a touchdown was the first of the season for the Redbirds and the first since Kenton Wilhoit's 26-yard pick six last spring at UNI. ISU has now scored a defensive touchdown in each of the last 13 seasons under the leadership of Brock Spack.
