NORMAL, Ill. – The Illinois State football players and coaches had a lot to cheer about Sunday morning inside the Aaron Leetch Club at Hancock Stadium, as the Redbirds were selected to participate in the 24-team 2025 FCS Playoff field. ISU will have a first-round road matchup at No. 16 seed Southeastern Louisiana (9-3, 7-1 SLC) at Noon CT on Saturday, November 29, in Hammond, Louisiana.
The Redbirds (8-4, 5-3 MVFC) will be making their tenth appearance in the FCS playoffs (1998, 1999, 2006, 2012, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2019, 2024, 2025) and seventh under the leadership of head coach Brock Spack. ISU is 11-9 all-time in playoff games and will be making a second-straight appearance in the playoffs for the first time since three-straight berths from 2014-16. Last season, the Redbirds picked up a first-round playoff win at Southeast Missouri State, before falling in the second round on the road to No. 5 seed UC Davis.
Illinois State finished the regular season as winners of four of its last five contests. After falling to FBS foe Oklahoma in the season opener, the Redbirds won five-straight FCS road games to improve to 11-3 overall on the road over the past two seasons. The eight-win season for ISU is the sixth for the Redbirds under the leadership of head coach Brock Spack and the eighth in school history. Spack is 8-6 in the playoffs as the ISU head coach, including the team's magical run to the FCS National Championship game against North Dakota State in 2014.Â
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