Road Contest At Northern Iowa Next Up For Redbird Football

SETTING THE SCENE
Date: October 8, 2022
Time: 4 p.m. CT
Site: Cedar Falls, Iowa
Stadium: UNI Dome 
Capacity: 16,090
Series: UNI leads 23-14
Last: ILS won 17-10 in OT (Nov. 6, 2021)
Stream: ESPN+
Listen: WJBC 1230 AM / 102.1 FM / 93.7 FM / The Varsity Network

THE GAME
After completing a three-game homestand, Illinois State will hit the road for the first time since September 3 when the Redbirds (2-2, 0-1 MVFC) head to Cedar Falls, Iowa, to take on the UNI Panthers (2-3, 2-1 MVFC) at the UNI Dome.

THE SERIES
Illinois State and Northern Iowa  will meet for the 38th time on the gridiron. UNI leads the all-time series 23-14, which dates back to 1972. The Panthers have won three out of the last four contests overall, after dropping four of the previous five games in the series to the Redbirds. UNI has had particular success in the UNI Dome, winning eight of 10 games on their home turf since 2000 witht the Redbirds wins coming in 2002 and 2012. Overall, ISU head coach Brock Spack is 6-6 against the Panthers in his time in Normal.

THE COACHES
Illinois State: Brock Spack (Purdue, 1983) is in his 14th season as the head coach at Illinois State (91-62). Spack guided the Redbirds to back-to-back shares of the MVFC title in 2014-15 and an appearance in the 2014 FCS Championship game. He has led the ISU to five playoff appearances overall and became the program's all-time wins leader in 2021.

Northern Iowa: Mark Farley (UNI, 1987) is in his 22nd season as head coach as the winningest coach in UNI history (170-96) but he also holds the record for the most MVFC wins with 108. With Farley at the helm, the Panthers have won at least a share of seven MVFC titles and have made 13 playoff appearances, including an appearance in the national title game in 2005.

THIS WEEK'S OPPONENT

• The University of Northern Iowa is located in Cedar Falls, Iowa, and has an enrollment of 8,949. The Panthers are members of the Missouri Valley Football Conference and play their home games at the UNI Dome (16,090).
• The Panthers are 2-3 on the year, starting the year with three-straight losses to Air Force, at North Dakota in an early season conference tilt, and to Sacramento State. However, UNI has rallied to win two straight against Valley football foes at Western Illinois and against Indiana State to improve to 2-1 in conference play.
• UNI leads the Missouri Valley Football Conference in total offense with 409.2 yards, which also ranks No. 33 in the nation. The Panther offense has been energized by quarterback Theo Day, who has completed 65 percent of his passes on way to throwing for 1,330 yards and nine touchdowns in five games for UNI.
• Wideouts Deion McShane and Sam Schnee are just two of eight MVFC players who have recorded 100-yard performances so far in 2022. McShane has two 100+ yard games and is No. 4 in the MVFC for receiving yards per game with an average of 70 yards. 
• Linebacker Spencer Cuvelier returns to lead a stout UNI defense. A 2021 First-Team All-MVFC  selection and preseason All-American pick, Cuvelier leads the Panthers with 40 tackles on the year to go along with a pair of sacks.

LAST TIME VS. PANTHERS (11/6/2021)
The Illinois State defense came up with big stops time and time again against No. 13 ranked Northern Iowa, as the Redbirds took advantage of a pick six and nine tackles-for-loss to come away with a 17-10 win over the Panthers in overtime at Hancock Stadium. UNI tied the game at 10-10 with 2:35 left on a four-yard touchdown pass to Sam Schnee, which sent the game into overtime. ISU had the first possession and two plays in, Jackson Waring connected with Austin Nagel on a 27-yard touchdown pass in the right corner of the end zone to put the Redbirds up 17-10. UNI picked up a first down on its ensuing possession, but the ISU defense forced the Panthers into a 4th-and-7 and the pass went incomplete as the Redbirds secured the overtime victory.

GETTING DEFENSIVE
The Redbird defense has typically been strong under the leadership of ISU head coach Brock Spack, and this year's unit is proving to be particularly strong with defensive coordinator Travis Niekamp calling the shots. The Redbirds rank third in the conference in total defense behind South Dakota State and North Dakota State, and ranks second in interceptions (6) and sacks (15). The Redbirds have allowed just 10 touchdowns on the season and are allowing just under 300 yards per game to its opponents to start the year.

ZEKE THE FREAK
For the third time in just four games played, Illinois State senior linebacker Zeke Vandenburgh was named the Missouri Valley Football Conference Defensive Player of the Week following his performance against Southern Illinois. Vandenburgh tied his career high with 14 tackles against the Salukis and finished the game with a sack and 3.5 tackles-for-loss. The double-digit tackle effort was his third in four games for the Redbirds and he extended his streak of games with three or more tackles-for-loss to three straight. He now leads the Redbirds in tackles (44), sacks (6) and tackles-for-loss (10.5) on the season, all of which rank first in the MVFC, and he currently ranks No. 1 in the FCS in sacks and tackles for loss per game.

A FIRST FOR LAMPKIN
Injuries to the top two tailbacks for Illinois State have opened up opportunities for other running backs to make contributions, and against Southern Illinois it was Rashad Lampkin who came up big. Down 19-0, the Redbirds needed a score and it was Lampkin who put the 'Birds on the board, as he hauled in a 6-yard touchdown pass from Zack Annexstad out of the backfield to kickstart the Redbird offense. Lampkin also carried the ball seven times, as four different backs shared carries against the Salukis.

SOBKOWICZ ON SCHOLARSHIP
Former walk-on wide receiver Daniel Sobkowicz earned a scholarship prior to the start of the season and he is proving why Coach Spack made that decision. In an offense where seven different players have at least eight receptions on the year, Sobkowicz has stood out as he leads the team with 137 yards and two touchdowns on the year and is tied for second with nine receptions. He has caught a touchdown in each of the last two games for the Redbirds and is quickly becoming one of quarterback Zack Annexstad's go-to guys.

PICK SIX VS. THE PANTHERS
The Redbird defense has been very opportunistic in its last two meetings against the Panthers, returning an interception for a touchdown in each of the last two meetings versus UNI. During the COVID shortened 2021 spring season, it was linebacker Kenton Wilhoit who scored on a 29-yard pick six at the UNI Dome. Last season, safety Clayton Isbell put points on the board for the defense as he returned an interception 40 yards for the touchdown. With two pick sixes already on the board in 2022, the Redbird defense would love to extend the streak against the Panthers to three and up their season total to three this weekend.

FINDING THE ENDZONE
The Redbird receiving crew came into the season with a lot of question marks and several young players who had not seen a lot of action. Through three games, several of those young receivers have stepped up in big ways, including a pair in the win over Eastern Illinois. Sophomores J'Kalon Carter and Daniel Sobkowicz each recorded their first career touchdowns in the victory over the Panthers and led the team as the top two receivers in the contest. Carter led the Redbirds with four catches for 56 yards, and Sobkowicz had three grabs for 49 yards, both of which were career highs.

TURNING TAKEAWAYS INTO POINTS
The swarming Redbird defense didn't need much help from the ISU offense in defeating Eastern Illinois. The defense forced five turnovers, which it turned into 21 points in the victory over the Panthers. 14 of those 21 points came on a pair of interception returns for touchdowns by Jeff Bowens and Deandre Lamont, and the other seven came after a recovered punt by Matthew Wedig resulted in a 2-yard touchdown run by quarterback Zack Annexstad late in the third quarter. ISU nearly had another defensive touchdown on a long fumble return by Lavoise-Deontae McCoy, but the fumble call was reversed, and the points were taken of the board.