NORMAL, Ill. – After an impressive first drive that led to a touchdown for visiting Morehead State, the Illinois State defense regrouped to record six sacks, nine tackles-for-loss and three turnovers the rest of the contest as the No. 7 ranked Redbirds (1-1) flew away with a 41-13 win over the Eagles (1-1) Saturday night on Jay and Lori Bergman Field at Hancock Stadium in front of a home-opening crowd of 9,671 Redbird fans.
How It Happened:
•   Morehead State took the first lead of the game, as a 1-yard touchdown run by Craig Cunningham capped off a 14-play, 86-yard drive for the Eagles to put them up 6-0, after the extra point attempt failed.
•   The Redbirds cut the Eagles lead in half with 1:58 to play in the first quarter, as Matt Maldonado connected on a 27-yard field goal to make the score 6-3.
•   ISU then took the lead, when Daniel Sobkowicz hauled in a 25-yard touchdown pass from Beckham Pellant with 11:53 left in the second quarter to put the Redbirds up 10-6.
•   The final score of the first half was set up on a 28-yard pass from Sobkowicz to Luke Mailander which put the ball on the MSU 1-yard line, before Tommy Rittenhouse came into the game and ran it in for the touchdown to make it 17-6 with 6:47 left before the break.
•   Illinois State widened the lead to 20-6 with 8:20 left to play in the third quarter, when Matt Maldonado connected on a career-long 45-yard field goal to cap off a 6-play scoring drive for the Redbirds.
•   Mailander came up big once again for ISU, as he connected with Rittenhouse on a 32-yard touchdown connection to increase the Redbird advantage to 27-6 with 6:29 left in the third quarter.
•   Morehead State would cut into the Illinois State lead early in the fourth quarter, as Montez Green caught a 14-yard touchdown pass from Carter Cravens to trim the ISU lead to 27-13.
•   Illinois State later extended the lead to 34-13 on a 3-yard touchdown pass from Rittenhouse to tight end Nick True with just under five minutes to play in the contest.
•   The final score of the game came from the Redbird defense, as Solomon Oduma forced a fumble, and Cam Wilson scooped up the football and returned it 27 yards for a touchdown to bring the score to its final at 41-13.
Game Notes: Â Â
•   The touchdown pass by Pellant was the first of his Redbird career. He finished the game 4-for-9 with 61 yards and a touchdown in his first career start at quarterback for ISU.
•   With his touchdown reception, Sobkowicz now has 23 in his career and sits alone in fourth place on the career receiving touchdowns list, breaking a tie with Rickey Garrett (22).
•   After finishing the game with a team-leading 87 yards receiving on five receptions, Sobkowicz now sits at 2,502 receiving yards to move him into fifth place on the all-time career receiving yards list moving past Clarence Collins (2,498).
•   Shadwel Nkuba II recorded his second interception in as many weeks with his pick in the third quarter.
•   The touchdown reception by Mailander in the third quarter was the first of his career at ISU.
•   True's touchdown was his first as a Redbird and came on his first reception at Illinois State.
•   With this two field goal makes, Maldonado is now 3-for-3 in field goal attempts early in the season.
•   Transfer safety La'Shavion Brown led the team with eight total tackles on the night, while Patrick Bauer added seven stops, with a sack and 2.5 tackles-for-loss.
•   With Wilson's fumble return for a touchdown in the fourth quarter, the Redbirds have now scored a defensive touchdown in all 17 seasons under the leadership of head coach Brock Spack.
Next Up:
The Redbirds will renew one of the longest rivalries in FCS football next Saturday, when they travel to Charleston, Illinois, to take on the Eastern Illinois Panthers in the 113th meeting of the Mid-America Classic. Kickoff is set for 2 p.m. at O'Brien Field.
GoRedbirds.com and the Illinois State Redbirds App: Â Your sources for Illinois State tickets, Weisbecker Athletic Fund gifts, multimedia, Redbird merchandise, photos and more.
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