Redbirds And Sycamores Set To Square Off In ISU's Annual Homecoming Game

SETTING THE SCENE
Date: October 24, 2026
Time: 2 p.m. CT
Site: Normal, Ill.
Facility: Jay and Lori Bergman Field at Hancock Stadium
Capacity: 12,440
Series: ILS leads 42-32-2
Last: ILS won 52-20 (Nov. 8, 2025)
Watch/Stream: ESPN+
Listen: WJBC 1230 AM / 102.1 FM / 98.9 FM WJEZ/ The Varsity Network

THE GAME
Coming off a much needed road win at Southern Illinois to pick up its first conference win of the season, No. 10 Illinois State (5-2, 1-2 MVFC) returns home this weekend for the start of a two-game homestand. The Redbirds will take on Indiana State (2-5, 0-3 MVFC) for Homecoming 2026, with the Sycamores still seeking their first win in conference play.

THE SERIES
Illinois State and Indiana State will meet for the 77th time in the series history on Saturday, with the Redbirds leading the all-time series 42-32-2. Overall, the Redbirds have won five of the last six matches against the Sycamores, with the lone win for Indiana State in that stretch coming at Hancock Stadium in 2021. Illinois State is 12-4 against Indiana State with Head Coach Brock Spack at the helm, and have won seven of eight meetings against the Trees at Hancock Stadium with Spack leading the way.

THE COACHES
Illinois State: Brock Spack (Purdue, 1983) is in his 18th season as the head coach at Illinois State (128-81). Spack guided the Redbirds to back-to-back shares of the MVFC title in 2014-15 and a pair of FCS Championship game appearances (2014, 2025). He has led the ISU to seven playoff appearances overall and became the program's all-time wins leader in 2021.

Indiana State: Curt Mallory (Michigan, 1992) is in his 10th season as the head coach at Indiana State (29-69). The 2025 season featured Indiana State's first win over a top-five ranked opponent since the 2012 season as the Sycamores topped then No. 4-ranked South Dakota State in Brookings, S.D. over the season. 

THE REDBIRD FOOTBALL PROGRAM

• 10 FCS playoff appearances (1998, 1999, 2006, 2012, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2019, 2024, 2025)
• 7-time FCS quarterfinalists (1999, 2006, 2012, 2014, 2015, 2019, 2025)
• 3-time FCS semifinalists (1999, 2014, 2025)
• 2-time FCS Championship game participant (2014, 2025)
• ISU is 17-2 against FCS opponents on the road the past three seasons
• The team is 72-28 in 18 seasons at home under Spack's guidance

THIS WEEK'S OPPONENT

• Indiana State University is located in Terre Haute, Indiana, and has an enrollment of 6,238 students. The Sycamores are members of the Missouri Valley Football Conference and play their home games at Memorial Stadium (12,764).
• The Sycamores head into the game with a 2-5 overall record and a 0-3 mark in MVFC action. After picking up back-to-back witn over Eastern Illinois and Valparaiso to end the non-conference slate, Indiana State has dropped three straight to start MVFC play giving up more than 40 points to their opponents in each of the losses.
• Indiana State was on a bye last week, and will head into the game against the Redbirds rested and re-charged after a 57-24 loss to No. 8 ranked Youngstown State the last time out on October 10. The Sycamores fought early against the Penguins and narrowed the gap to 22-17 in the second quarter following a 25-yard touchdown pass from Brady Allen to Torey French. However, the Penguins racked up 696 yards of total offense sparked by quarterback Beau Brungard's 386-yard, 3-TD game through the air on their way to securing the MVFC win on Saturday afternoon.
• Indiana State punter Spencer Conrad was named the MVFC Co-Special Teams Player of the Week and the Stats Perform FCS National Special Teams Player of the Week following his performance against Youngstown State. Conrad had an incredible string of punts while averaging an FCS season-high 55.0 yards over eight kicks and connected on three punts that cleared 60 yards with two punts downed inside the 20-yard line.

LAST TIME AGAINST THE SYCAMORES (NOV. 8, 2025)
A 28-point second quarter for No. 16 Illinois State propelled the Redbirds to a dominant 52-20 win over Indiana State at Memorial Stadium in Terre Haute. The 52 points scored by the Redbirds were their most since scoring 67 against Morgan State in a win on Sept. 12, 2015. It was also the most points scored in a MVFC contest since scoring 55 against the Sycamores in 2013. Quarterback Tommy Rittenhouse accounted for five touchdowns (4 passing, 1 rushing) and completed 86 percent of his passes on the day, finishing 29-for-34 for 314 yards on the game.

BIG DAY FOR BECKHAM
After playing well in the first two games of the season for Illinois State, quarterback Beckham Pellant was limited in games 3-6 as the Redbird offense continued to find a rhythm. However, in game 7 at Southern Illinois, it was once again Pellant's time to take the reigns as he started the game against the Salukis and proceeded to lead the team to their first conference win with a 35-14 defeat of the Dawgs. Pellant set career highs in completions (16), attempts (25), passing yards (191) and tied his career best with two touchdown passes in the contest against the Salukis, while also running for the first touchdown of his career in the contest.

COMPASS CHAMPS
It was a rare year for the Redbirds, with the four Illinois directional schools all on the schedule in the same campaign. The last time that happened was in 2019, as the Redbirds went 3-1 against NIU, WIU, EIU and SIU with the lone loss coming at NIU. However, the 2026 slate saw the Redbirds go 4-0 against their in-state directional counterparts with the final win coming at SIU by a final score of 35-14. It marked the first time since 1940 that the Redbirds picked up wins against the four schools in the same season.

GETTING DEFENSIVE
The Redbird offense has been potent so far in 2026, ranking third in the Valley and No. 10 in the country in scoring offense with 37.7 points per game. However, the Redbirds have put themselves in playoff contention once again thanks to dominant effort on defense, as the team ranks No. 6 in the country and No. 1 in the MVFC with just 286.6 yards allowed per game. ISU comes in at No. 10 in the country and No. 2 in the Valley with 17.1 points allowed per contest, and has been particularly strong in the red zone defense, ranking first in the league and No. 3 in the FCS (.588), and against the run ranking first in the league and No. 11 in the FCS with just 107.9 yards allowed per game on the ground. 

NIEKAMP NEARING A MILESTONE
Tye Niekamp will go down as one of the most decorated players in program history following his senior season in 2026, and he is approaching a big milestone heading into the game against Indiana State. The middle linebacker currently has 395 career tackles, which puts him just five away from 400 in his career. If he gets to that mark, he will be just the fifth player in program history to record 400 or more tackles in his career, joining Chris Stevens (443), Wilbert Brown (470), Galen Scott (579) and Boomer Grigsby (580). With his 42.5 career TFLs, Niekamp also ranks fifth in the ISU record books just one away from tying former teammate Zeke Vandenburgh (43.5) for fourth on the list.

CONVERTING WHEN IT COUNTS
The Illinois State offense is one of the top in the country this season, and a lot of that has to due with the team's ability to keep drives going. ISU currently ranks No. 2 in the FCS in third-down conversion percentage (.553) and No. 11 in fourth-down conversion percentage (.727) on the year. The team has posted 19 drives on the year of 10 plays or more, with a long of 17 plays at UNI, and posted three drives of over seven minutes in time of possession on the year that led to points for the Redbirds.

HERRERA COMES UP BIG 
Just seven games into his career at Illinois State following a transfer from Eastern Illinois, tight end Alex Herrera is already making an immediate impact for the Redbirds. Herrera caught his first touchdown in a Redbird uniform in the road win in Week 2 at Western Illinois, and then followed that up with the biggest catch of his ISU career to date in the road win at Northern Illinois. Down 24-21 with under two minutes to play, Herrera caught a pass in the flat and rumbled his way 16 yards into the end zone for what woudl be the winning score in an FBS win over the Huskies. He also added a TD catch against his former team Eastern Illinois in Week 4 and one in Week 5 at UNI to give him four in as many games for the Redbirds.

THE TROPHY STAYS WHERE IT BELONGS
In what is usually a battle between Illinois State and Eastern Illinois in the annual Mid-America Classic, this year's matchup was lopsided in favor of the Redbirds as ISU held onto the trophy for the third-straight season and have now won eight of the last nine games overall against the Panthers. ISU won the game 49-13, which was the most points scored against EIU since 2012 when it scored 54 in a win at home, and the Redbird offense racked up 556 yards of total offense. The ISU defense was particulary stingy, allowing the Panthers just 66 yards on the ground while holding EIU to just 216 yards of total offense in the contest.

LORD GOES THE DISTANCE
Not only is junior wide receiver Dylan Lord one of the most explosive receivers in the FCS, but he is also proving to be a big threat returning punts for the Redbirds. Lord is averaging 28.3 yards per return and became the first Redbird to return a punt for a touchdown since 2015, when Anthony Warrum returned one for a score, in the win over EIU. Lord tallied a 79-yard punt return for a touchdown in the win, while also leading the team with 77 yards on six receptions. That performance earned him MVFC Special Teams Player of the Week honors

FINDING THE END ZONE FOR THE FIRST TIME
Coming off one of the most memorable years in program history in 2025, the Redbirds returned with several key returners and some new faces on the offense. Through six games this year, 10 players have scored their first career touchdowns as Redbirds. Tyler Lofton has been the biggest contributor with four rushing touchdowns and one more through the air, while Chase Kwiatkowski, Anthony Hall, and Albert Gooden III have all scored on the ground. Transfer QB Gage Roy has been stellar as well, with eight TD passes in his first four games for ISU, with three of those to transfer tight end Alex Herrera. Mar'Quan Gary is the most recent addition to the list with his TD catch against Eastern Illinois.

HOMETOWN KID MAKES GOOD
Playing just across town at Normal Community High School, Mar'Quan Gary had his sights set on making big plays for the Redbirds someday. That day came against Eastern Illinois, as Gary caught the first touchdown pass of his career in the win over the Panthers. Quarterback Beckham Pellant found Gary wide open for a 37-yard TD against the Panthers, the first of what he hopes will be many in his career at Hancock Stadium for his hometown team.

ROAD WARRIORS
Over the past three seasons, Illinois State has been very comfortable going on the road picking up key victories away from home. In the past three years, ISU is 18-4 on the road with two of those losses coming to FBS foes Iowa (2024) and Oklahoma (2025). In 2024, the Redbirds won six-straight FCS road games before suffering a second-round playoff loss to UC Davis and in 2025, the Redbirds went 9-0 on the road against FCS foes. ISU's road winning streak moved to 11 in a row after the team's 28-24 road win at Northern Illinois in Week 3, but the streak came to an end with a loss at UNI in Week 5. 

THE STREAK CONTINUES
Redbird teams have been very successful scoring on defense under the leadership of head coach Brock Spack. Thanks to a 46-yard interception return for a touchdown by Jack Oliver in the road win at NIU, the Redbirds extended their streak to 18 straight seasons with at least one defensive touchdown scored.

FEAR THE FCS
Illinois State is one of five FCS programs to record a win over an FBS foe so far this season, following their come-from-behind 28-24 road win at Northern Illinois. The win was the fourth for the Redbirds under the leadership of head coach Brock Spack and their first since 2018, when ISU earned a road win at Colorado State. The Redbirds also have FBS wins over Eastern Michigan (2012) and at Northwestern (2016) since 2009.

GAVRIC MAKING AN IMPACT
After redshirting as a true freshman last season, Stevan Gavric had the opportunity to learn from one of the best wide receivers in FCS football in Dan Sobkowicz and hone his skills alongside one of the best to ever do it at Illinois State. That experience seems to be paying off for Gavric early on in 2026, as he has recorded a touchdown in each of the first two wins for ISU. He caught the first of his career in the opener against St. Francis, and then followed that up with a 36-yard touchdown catch from Gage Roy in the road victory at Eastern Illinois. He's averaging 13.8 yards per catch on the year early on and has added another weapon to the passing game that already includes standouts Dylan Lord and Luke Mailander.

IMPRESSIVE START TO THE YEAR
One of Illinois State's football's best will take his place amongst the University's all-time greats in October, as former running back James Robinson will be inducted as part of the 2026 ISU Athletics Percy Family Hall of Fame class during Homecoming festivities. A two-time FCS AllAmerican, Robinson finished his illustrious career ranked No. 2 in the ISU record books in rushingyards (4,444), rushing touchdowns (44), all-purpose yards (5,218) and total touchdowns scored (46). As a senior in 2019, Robinson was a consensus First-Team All-American and led the MVFC in rushing yards (1,899), yards per game (126.6) and touchdowns (18). He capped off his career with a pair of 200-plus yard efforts in the first and second round of the FCS playoffs, that included a school-record breaking 297-yard effort in the first-round with at Southeast Missouri. Following his career at ISU, he became the fourth undrafted player in NFL history to rush for 1,000 yards in his rookie season and finished with the record for most scrimmage yards of any rookie free agent in NFL history. Last year, he helped lead the Louisville Kings of the UFL to a championship.