NORMAL, Ill. – With just a one-score lead headed into the fourth quarter thanks to strong play from the Illinois State defense once again, the Redbird offense pulled away in the fourth quarter with 14 points as ISU (7-2, 3-2 MVFC) ran away with a 35-14 victory over Murray State (1-8, 0-5 MVFC) on Halloween Saturday on Jay and Lori Bergman Field at Hancock Stadium.
How It Happened:
• After forcing a punt by the Racers on their first possession of the game, the Redbirds took an early lead on an 11-yard touchdown run by Victor Dawson that made the score 7-0 with 9:55 left in the first quarter … the touchdown was set up on a third-down completion from Beckham Pellant to Ethan Loss that went for 67 yards.
• Murray State tied the game with 13:20 left in the second quarter, as Jawaun Northington broke free for a 41-yard touchdown run to knot things up at 7-7.
• The Redbirds would regain the lead at 14-7 with 1:33 remaining before halftime, as Seth Glatz barreled his way into the end zone for a 1-yard touchdown run that capped off a 13-play scoring drive that took nearly six minutes off the clock.
• On their second possession of the second half, the Redbirds pulled out some Halloween tricks as Pellant handed off to Dawson, who tossed it back to Pellant who completed a 50-yard flea flicker touchdown pass to Ethan Loss to extend the ISU lead to 21-7 with 12:26 left in the third quarter.
• Murray State would cut it to a one-score game with 7:49 remaining in the third quarter, after Baxter Wright connected on a 6-yard touchdown pass to Trey Firestone that capped off a 9-play scoring drive for the Racers.
• A 5-yard touchdown pass from Pellant to Dylan Lord later made a two-score game, as the Redbirds took advantage of great field position after a nice punt return by Ian Willis and punched it in the end zone to make the score 28-14 with 10:42 left in the contest.
• The Redbirds got the ball back on an interception by Rico Clay and started the drive at their own 39 yard line and needed just five plays to score, as Dawson scored his second rushing touchdown of the game this one from 14 yards out to widen the ISU lead to 35-14 with 7:44 left in the game.
• A late interception by Tye Niekamp would secure the win for the Redbirds, as they moved to 7-2 on the year.
Game Notes:
• With the win, the Redbirds are now 9-1 all-time against the Racers and improved to 7-2 for the first time since the 2015 season that saw the Redbirds advance to the FCS playoff quarterfinals.
• The Redbirds controlled the game on the ground, rushing for 228 yards and three scores while holding the Racers to just 96 yards rushing on the day.
• The touchdown reception by Loss was the first of his career at Illinois State … he finished the game with a season-high 117 yards on just two receptions to lead the way for the Redbird offense … loss had catches of 67 yards and 50 yards in the contest.
• Dawson had one of his best games of the season, rushing for 99 yards on 22 carries and scored a pair of touchdowns … it was his second multiple touchdown effort on the year, matching his two on the ground in a win at Western Illinois earlier in the year.
• Pellant posted a career-high 248 yards passing and recorded his third game of the season with multiple touchdown passes with two against the Racers in the victory.
• Tye Niekamp had a stellar game for the Redbirds, posting six tackles with 2.5 TFLs, and interception and a pass breakup in the win … Wyatt Mueller led the team with eight tackles against the Racers while Dexter Niekamp also added six stops, with a half sack, 2.5 TFLs and two pass breakups.
• Clay's interception was his first in a Redbird uniform and was
Next Up:
Illinois State (7-2, 3-2 MVFC) hits the road next week to take on nationally-ranked North Dakota (6-4, 3-3 MVFC) at the Alerus Center in Grand Forks, with kickoff slated for 1 p.m.
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