Redbirds Fall In Season Opener To No. 18 Oklahoma, 35-3

NORMAN, Okla. – Playing in front of the largest crowd in program history, Illinois State battled with perennial powerhouse Oklahoma on Saturday night, but the Sooners' (1-0) offense led by quarterback John Mateer pulled away from the Redbirds (0-1) in the second half to secure a 35-3 victory in the season opener at Gaylord Family-Oklahoma Memorial Stadium in Norman.

How It Happened:
•    The Sooners got on the scoreboard with under a minute left to play in the first quarter, when quarterback John Mateer ran it in from seven yards to cap off a 94-yard scoring drive to make it 7-0 with 39 seconds left in the first stanza.
•    A 27-yard touchdown pass from Mateer to Deion Burks would then extend the lead for OU to 14-0 with 11:50 to play in the first half.
•    Oklahoma made it a three-touchdown lead with under a minute left in the first half, as Tory Blaylock ran it in from five yards out to bring the score to 21-0 at the break. 
•    Following an interception by Shadwell Nkuba II, the Redbirds got on the board when Matt Maldonado connected on a 33-yard field goal with 6:26 remaining in the third quarter to cut the Sooners' lead to 21-3.
•    On the first play of the fourth quarter, Mateer connected on a 28-yard touchdown pass to Keontez Lewis to extend the OU lead to 28-3 with 14:52 left to play.
•    Mateer capped off the scoring with his third touchdown pass of the game, this one a 20-yard strike to Lewis, to bring the score to its final at 35-3 with 4:33 left in the game and that is where the score would stay as the Sooners picked up the win over the Redbirds.

Game Notes:    
•    The crowd of 83,218 is the largest crowd the Redbirds have played in front of in program history … the sellout was the 160th straight for the Sooners in a regularly scheduled home game.
•    The Redbird defense forced a pair of turnovers in the game: A forced fumble by Jack Dwyer that was recovered by Tye Niekamp and the interception Nkuba in the third quarter.
•    Wenkers Wright was the leading rusher for the Redbirds, with 50 yards on seven carries with a long run of 24 yards.
•    Linebacker Tye Niekamp led the Redbird defense with 10 tackles, including a half TFL … Nkuba finished the game with six stops, a half TFL and the interception in his first contest as a Redbird. 

Next Up:
Illinois State will open the home portion of its schedule next Saturday, when the Redbirds welcome in the Morehead State Eagles to Jay and Lori Bergman Field at Hancock Stadium. Kickoff is slated for 6 p.m. CT and the game will be broadcast live on ESPN+.

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