Birds and Bison Square Off In Top 10 FCS Matchup

SETTING THE SCENE
Date: October 4, 2025
Time: 6 p.m. CT
Site: Normal, Ill.
Stadium: Jay and Lori Bergman Field at Hancock Stadium
Capacity: 12,440
Series: North Dakota State leads 15-2
Last: NDSU won 42-10  (Sept. 28, 2024)
Watch/Stream: ESPN+ 
Listen: WJBC 1230 AM / 102.1 FM / 
98.9 FM WJEZ / The Varsity Network

THE GAME
The start of the Missouri Valley Football Conference slate for Illinois State will be a memorable one, as the No. 6 ranked Redbirds (3-1, 0-0 MVFC) host the defending national champion and No. 1 ranked North Dakota State Bison (4-0, 1-0 MVFC) at Hancock Stadium in a matchup of top FCS programs. Both programs appear near the top of the national polls, marking the first time since the 2014 National Championship game where both teams came in ranked in the Top 10.

THE SERIES
Illinois State and North Dakota State will meet for the 18th time in program history, with the Bison leading the all-time series 15-2. NDSU won the first two games in the series in 2007-08, before ISU Head Coach Brock Spack took over the program and led the Redbirds to wins in 2009-10. However, the Bison have won the last 13 games in a row in the series, including the 2014 FCS National Championship game thriller in Frisco, Texas.

THE COACHES
Illinois State: Brock Spack (Purdue, 1983) is in his 17th season as the head coach at Illinois State (114-75). 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 six playoff appearances overall and became the program's all-time wins leader in 2021.

North Dakota State: Tim Polasek (Concordia [Wis.], 2002) is in his second season as the head coach at North Dakota State (18-2). In his first season at the helm in 2024, Polasek led NDSU to its 11th MVFC championship with a 7-1 league record and the program's 10th NCAA Division I FCS national championship. 

THE REDBIRD FOOTBALL PROGRAM

• 9 FCS playoff appearances (1998, 1999, 2006, 2012, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2019, 2024)
• 6-time FCS quarterfinalists (1999, 2006, 2012, 2014, 2015, 2019)
• 2-time FCS semifinalists (1999, 2014)
• 1-time FCS Championship game qualifier (2014)
• The team is 69-24 at home under Spack's guidance
• ISU is 52-18 at Hancock Stadium since 2013 renovation

THIS WEEK'S OPPONENT

• North Dakota State University is located in Fargo, North Dakota, and has an enrollment of 11,954. The Bison are members of the Missouri Valley Football Conference (MVFC) and play their home games at Gate City Bank at the Fargodome (19,000).
• North Dakota State rolled to a 51-13 victory over 17th-ranked South Dakota in the Missouri Valley Football Conference opener last weekend to improve to 4-0 on the year and 1-0 in league play.
• The Bison offense was led by quarterback Cole Payton who went 14 of 18 passing for 273 yards and two touchdowns, including one to tight end Reis Kessel and one to Bryce Lance. Running back Barika Kpeenu also caught four passes out of the backfield for 39 yards and carried the ball 18 times for 86 yards with touchdown runs of 7 and 6 yards.
• NDSU ranks first in passing defense and second in scoring defense and total defense in the latest FCS statistics. NDSU is allowing just 111.0 passing yards, 192.5 total yards and 7.5 points per game through four contests. 

LAST TIME AGAINST NORTH DAKOTA STATE (SEPT. 28, 2024)
No. 15 Illinois State and No. 2 North Dakota State were separated by a touchdown at halftime of the Homecoming contest at Hancock Stadium, however the Bison pulled away in the second half for a 42-10 victory over the Redbirds in front of a crowd of 11,687 fans. The Redbird defense was led by senior captain Keondre Jackson, who had a team-high nine tackles including six solo stops.

A GAME FOR THE AGES
The game between No. 4 Illinois State and visiting North Alabama had a little bit of everything, including a pair of hour-plus long weather delays, turnovers, missed kicks and missed opportunities by both teams. However, it was the Redbirds who came up big in the second overtime period to come away with a two-point victory over the Lions. In total, the game lasted over six hours and had a pair of one hour and 14 minute lightning delays. ISU had all the momentum with a 17-0 lead before the first delay, but it switched after the break as UNA cut it to three in the third quarter and then tied the game with 33 seconds left before missing the extra point that sent the game into overtime.

4 FOR 4 FOR NKUBA
Transfer defensive back Shadwel Nkuba II came to Illinois State to make an impact on the defensive side of the ball, and through four contests he is certainly doing that. Nkuba II has recorded an interception in each of the first four games of the season and is currently tied for the national lead in interceptions per game. He has tied the interception high of four by Tye Niekamp from all of last season and is on pace to break the school single-season record on nine set by Doug Simper in 1974. His performance and interception against the Lions also earned him MVFC Newcomer of the Week honors for the first time in his career at ISU.

MAILANDER DELIVERING FOR THE BIRDS
Following the transfer of Xavier Loyd to Missouri, the Redbirds were needing a receiver to step up and fill the void left by the veteran wideout. Redshirt freshman Luke Mailander has made the most out of that opportunity, as he ranks second for the Redbirds with 257 yards on 12 receptions through the first four games of the year. He has also caught touchdowns in each of the past three games to give him three on the year and ranks No. 14 in the country in yards per reception (21.4).

CLIMBING THE RANKS
With his 150 yards receiving against North Alabama, wide receiver Daniel Sobkowicz now has 2,747 receiving yards in his stellar career at Illinois State. That puts him in fourth place overall on the ISU career receiving yards list, and he is just 124 yards away from tying Anthony Warrum (2,871) for third place on the all-time list. He also ranks second in career receptions (202) behind Tyrone Walker (250) and is fourth in career touchdown receptions (27) behind Laurent Robinson (29) in third place. 

THE STREAK CONTINUES
Redbird teams have been very successful scoring on defense under the leadership of head coach Brock Spack. Thanks to a 27-yard fumble return for a touchdown in the home opening win over Morehead State by Cam Wilson, the Redbirds extended their streak to 17 straight seasons with at least one defensive score. 

FINDING THE END ZONE FOR THE FIRST TIME
As can happen early in the season, newcomers to a football team can record a lot of "firsts" in a Redbird uniform. In the team's home opening win over Morehead State, several Redbirds scored their first touchdowns in the victory over the Eagles. Wide receiver Luke Mailander found the end zone for the first time in his career, when he connected on a 32-yard touchdown with Tommy Rittenhouse late in the third quarter. Later in the fourth quarter, transfer tight end Nick True caught his first pass as a Redbird and ran it in for a 3-yard touchdown. Not to be outdone, defensive back Cam Wilson scored the first touchdown of his career at ISU, as he returned a fumble 27 yards for a defensive score. In addition, quarterback Beckham Pellant tossed the first touchdown pass of his young career, finding Daniel Sobkowicz for a 25-yard TD in the second quarter.

SUCCESS IN HOME OPENERS
The Redbirds have been very good at home under the leadership of head coach Brock Spack, especially in the first home game of each season. Thanks to their 41-13 win over Morehead State to open the 2025 slate, ISU is 16-1 in the first home game of the season at Hancock Stadium under the leadership of head coach Brock Spack.

LOTS OF EYES ON THE REDBIRDS
When the Redbirds traveled to Norman to take on Oklahoma, they knew it would be a less than friendly environment for the 2025 season opener. What the crowd turned out to be was the largest the Redbirds have ever played in front of as 83,218 fans watched the No. 6 Redbirds from the FCS take on the No. 18 ranked Sooners from the FBS. The crowd topped the previous best of 73,727 at Wisconsin in 2022 and when you factor in the crowd of 69,250 set last year at Iowa, the Redbirds have played in front of their three biggest crowds in the past four seasons.

FAMILIAR FACES ALL AROUND
Fans who got to see the Redbirds in person last fall will notice a lot of familiar faces and names on the field this season for the Redbirds, particularly on the offensive side of the football. ISU returns 43 letterwinners and 12 starters (8 offense, 4 defense) from last year's team that advanced to the second round of the FCS playoffs. Many of those players saw significant action last season and with a full offseason in the weight room and work put in during spring and fall camp, this roster is expected to make back-to-back postseason appearances since 2015-16.