TERRE HAUTE, Ind. – The
Curt Mallory era at Indiana State begins this coming Thursday night as the Sycamores host their first night game in seven years against Eastern Illinois. Kickoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. under the lights at Memorial Stadium on Aug. 31.
QUICK HITS
• Indiana State has not hosted a night game at Memorial Stadium since Sept. 4, 2010 (vs. St. Joseph's), and it has not hosted a Thursday night game since Aug. 27, 2009 (vs. Quincy).
• Mallory brings with him a brand new coaching staff to Indiana State: assistant head coach and defensive line coach
Mark Smith; offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach
Jeff Hecklinski; defensive coordinator and secondary coach
Brad Wilson; special teams coordinator
Kevin Abrams; run-game coordinator and offensive line coach
Darrell Funk; cornerbacks coach
Deon Broomfield; tight ends coach
Tyler Funk; linebackers coach
Grant Olson; wide receivers coach
Roy Roundtree; and running backs coach
Sam Sewell.
• Saturday's game will be broadcast live on ESPN3. On the call will be ISU students
Chase Eyrich (play-by-play) and
Andrew Gearhart (color).
• Indiana State also sports a brand-new radio station and broadcast crew, with
Luke Martin (play-by-play) and
Brian Fritz (color) calling the games during the 2017 season on WIBQ 97.9 FM (1230 AM).
• This marks the 113th season of football at Indiana State, which dates back to 1896. The University did not field teams from 1899 to 1900, 1908 or from 1910 to 1919. ISU owns an all-time record of 384-517-23 (.415) and is competing for the 32nd consecutive season as a member of the Missouri Valley Football Conference.
• All-time, the Sycamores are 61-148 in MVFC play.
• Indiana State is 45-59-7 all-time in season openers, but has fared better in home openers at 62-35-3. This is the third straight home opener for the Sycamores with wins coming in 2015 (52-17) and 2016 (41-25) against Butler. Prior to 2015, ISU did not have a home opener since 2010 vs. St. Joseph's (W, 57-7) -- which was both ISU's last season-opening victory prior to 2015 and the last home night game at Memorial Stadium prior to Thursday's contest vs. EIU.
• Against Eastern alone, Indiana State is 12-7 in home openers and 12-8-1 in season openers.
• Indiana State is coming off a 4-7 season that included wins against Butler (41-25), Southeast Missouri (27-24), No. 9 Illinois State (34-31) and Southern Illinois (22-14).
WHAT RETURNS
RUSHING: 57.6 percent (773 of 1,341 yards)
PASSING: 100.0 percent (2,698 of 2,698 yards)
RECEIVING: 26.2 percent (706 of 2,698 yards)
DEFENSE: 52.8 percent (446 of 845 tackles)
• Not included in the rushing or receiving totals are returning senior
RB LeMonte Booker, who missed 2016 due to injury. Booker enters his final season at Indiana State with 2,321 career all-purpose yards.
• Starting
QB Isaac Harker owns 94.8 percent of the returning passing total after putting up the third-best passing season in school history with 2,559 yards as a sophomore in 2016.
• ISU's top returning receiver in yards from 2016 is senior
WR Bob Pugh, who recorded 276 yards in just eight games played.
SYCAMORES IN THE NATIONAL POLLS/VS. RANKED TEAMS
• Indiana State has ranked nationally in some variation 52 times since joining the Valley in 1986.
• ISU was ranked a school-record 20 straight weeks from Sept. 19, 2014 until Nov. 2, 2015.
• Since joining the Valley, the Sycamores have reached a high ranking of No. 14 three times: 1989 (Preseason), 1995 (Nov. 6) and 2012 (Oct. 29).
• Prior to joining the MVFC, the Sycamores reached an all-time high ranking of No. 1 in the nation during the 1984 Playoff season.
• The Sycamores have faced the No. 1 team in the nation 10 times since joining the Valley, going 1-9 in such games. ISU's one victory came at No. 1 North Dakota State on Oct. 13, 2012, winning 17-14 in the Fargodome.
• The Sycamores own a 16-89 all-time record against Top-25 teams, which includes a 12-69 mark against ranked MVFC schools.
• Indiana State's last win against a ranked team came against No. 9 Illinois State in Terre Haute on Sept. 24, 2016 (34-31).
• Since joining the Valley, Indiana State is 20-25 as a ranked team.
• While ranked, Indiana State is 3-10 all-time vs. other ranked MVFC schools, all wins coming in 2014 vs. No. 10 Northern Iowa on Oct. 4 (20-19), at No. 19 Southern Illinois on Oct. 25 (41-26) and at No. 15 Youngstown State on Nov. 15 (27-24, OT).
INDIANA STATE AS A RANKED TEAM
1989 (1-0)
Preseason, #14
1995 (1-3)
Oct. 9, #23; Oct. 23, #22; Nov. 6, #14; Nov. 13, #19; Nov. 20, #24; Final, #24
1996 (2-3)
Preseason, #24; Sept. 2, #25; Oct. 14, #23; Oct. 21, #21; Oct. 28, #23; Nov. 4, #21
2011 (3-4)
Sept. 26, #23; Oct. 3, #17; Oct. 10, #21; Oct. 17, #16; Oct. 24, #18; Oct. 31, #16; Nov. 7, #23; Nov. 14, #23
2012 (4-4)
Preseason, #23; Sept. 3, #23; Sept. 10, #22; Sept. 17, #22; Oct. 15, #21; Oct. 22, #15; Oct. 29, #14; Nov. 5, #18; Nov. 12, #18; Nov. 19, #23
2014 (5-5)
Sept. 29, #25; Oct. 6, #20; Oct. 13, #22; Oct. 20, #22; Oct. 27, #19; Nov. 3, #17; Nov. 10, #23; Nov. 17, #18; Nov. 24, #21; Final, #19
2015 (4-5)
Preseason, #20; Sept. 7, #21; Sept. 14, #23; Sept. 21, #22; Sept. 28, #21; Oct. 5, #19; Oct. 12., #21; Oct. 19, #18; Oct. 26, #21; Nov. 2, #23
2016 (0-1)
Sept. 26, #24
OFFENSIVE NOTES
• New offensive coordinator
Jeff Hecklinski has installed a brand new offensive system for the Sycamores, moving away from the spread system of years past toward a pro-style, run-oriented offense.
• For the second-straight season, redshirt junior
QB Isaac Harker won the starting job following a position battle during both spring practices and fall camp.
• Harker was an Honorable Mention All-MVFC member in 2016 after becoming the first Valley QB to 2,000 yards, ending with the third-best passing season in school history at 2,559 yards.
• Harker nearly broke Mike Perish's 2014 single-season record for 300-yard passing games, coming one short at five 300-yard games. Indiana State did not have a single 300-yard passer in 2015.
• Harker also nearly broke Perish's 2014 single-season passing TD record of 21, coming up two short at 19 passing scores.
• Harker ended the season 214-of-370 (57.8 %) for 2,559 yards, 19 TD, 8 INT and was ranked in the national top-50 in: completions per game (16th, 21.4/game), yards per game (20th, 255.9 YPG), total yards (22nd, 2,559), passing TD (32nd, 19 TD), and completion percentage (47th, 57.8)
• Harker had 35 passing plays of 20 yards or longer in 2016, including five 50 yards or longer. The longest of those was an 85-yard TD pass to
Miles Thompson at SIU, the longest pass play since Indiana State joined the Valley.
• Harker had at least one passing TD in nine of 10 games played, and had at least 200 yards passing in eight of his 10 games played.
• In 13 career games played, Harker has only thrown multiple interceptions in two. Harker did not throw an interception in his first 146 career pass attempts, his first INT coming late against No. 9 Illinois State on Sept. 24, 2016.
• Redshirt senior
RB LeMonte Booker returns to the field after missing the 2016 season due to injury. Booker owns 2,321 career all-purpose yards -- 979 rushing, 262 receiving, 1,079 on kick returns and one yard on punt returns.
• Booker last played in 2015, where injuries limited him to just seven games played, 437 rushing yards, 150 receiving yards and four total touchdowns.
• Booker began the 2015 season with a monster performance against Butler that included 161 all-purpose yards (137 rushing, 24 receiving) and four total touchdowns (three rushing, one receiving).
• Booker was named a Preseason Honorable Mention All-MVFC member as a running back this fall, his second preseason honor after also earning Honorable Mention as a return specialist in 2015.
• Complementing Booker in the backfield will be a deep group of redshirt junior
Jaquan Keys, true freshman
Titus McCoy and redshirt sophomore
Marlon Fleming II.
• Keys had a productive sophomore season in 2016 as a compliment to starter
Roland Genesy after missing the 2015 season due to injury. Last year, Keys rushing for 311 yards and one score.
• True freshman
Titus McCoy had an extremely productive career at Center Grove High School, which he led to the state finals twice and a state title in 2015. There, McCoy recorded an incredible 3,828 career rushing yards, 645 career receiving yards and 54 total TD.
• Also returning from injury is redshirt sophomore
Marlon Fleming II, who missed all of 2016 alongside Booker. Fleming saw the field in a supporting role as a true freshman in 2015, recording 159 yards and two rushing touchdowns for the Sycamores that season.
• Two former running backs -- senior
Dimitri Taylor (752 career rushing yards) and true freshman
Peterson Kerlegrand (5,919 career all-purpose yards at Concordia Lutheran High School -- transitioned to cornerback during training camp.
• Indiana State loses 73.8 percent of its receiving output from 2016 -- including 25.9 percent alone from
Robert Tonyan Jr.
• ISU's top returning receiver is senior
WR Bob Pugh with 276 yards and one 56-yard TD in eight games in 2016.
• ISU's next-best returning receiver is senior
TE Jacquet McClendon, who hauled in 157 yards as a junior in 2016 and is set to see an increased role both in the passing and running games under the new offensive system.
• Former walk-on and senior
WR Curtis Lee has only played in one career game on special teams, but is listed as one of three starting receivers following great showings in the spring and fall.
• Four freshmen wide receivers are also slated to see quite a bit of playing time:
Dante Hendrix, Rontrez Morgan, Hameed Oyedele and
Michael Thomas.
• Hendrix is one of the top receivers in the history of high school football in the state of Kentucky, ranking eighth in career TD (40), 15th in yards (3,107) and 17th in receptions (171). Hendrix also had SportsCenter's No. 1 play in its daily Top-10 following a diving one-handed catch on Oct. 14, 2016.
• Indiana State currently has some upperclassman leadership on the outside of the offensive line in senior left tackle
Matt Byrne (29 career games played, 19 starts) and junior East Carolina transfer
Kyle Erickson at right tackle (18 career games played at ECU). Senior left guard
Lex Sowards also has 21 career games played and 11 starts from 2016.
• On the interior, ISU has two sophomores with considerable starting experience slated for the starting spots. Redshirt sophomore center
Wyatt Wozniak nabbed three starts as a freshman in 2015, while fellow sophomore and right guard
James Lang played in 10 and started in seven at both guard and center in 2016.
DEFENSIVE/SPECIAL TEAMS NOTES
• New defensive coordinator
Brad Wilson has installed a change from the nickel set, 3-4 base of years past into a 4-3 defensive front that puts more emphasis on the front seven attack.
• Indiana State returns a veteran defensive line that includes defensive ends like senior
Kenyota Rollins, senior transfer
Evan Gill, and underclassmen with playing experience like
Inoke Moala and
Pishon Powell.
• The interior is similarly strong with seniors
Norvell McGlaun and
DeShay Mukes and juniors
Rex Mosley and
Adrian Butler.
• Rollins is ISU's second-leading returning tackler with 45 stops in 2016 (22 solo).
• Rollins was tied for the team lead in TFL with 9.0 and is the top returner with 3.0 total sacks for a loss of 25 yards.
• Gill is one of several transfers to Indiana State from Saint Joseph's College, which closed its doors following the Spring 2016 semester.
• There, Gill was a two-time All-Conference performer and a Team Captain with 78 tackles, 12 sacks and 22.0 TFL.
•
Pishon Powell was one of two Sycamores to earn a surprise scholarship this training camp, alongside backup punter and primary holder
Jeremy Patterson.
•
Norvell McGlaun owns the fourth-most tackles among Sycamore returnees with 36 total stops in 2016. McGlaun also tallied 3.5 TFL, 2.5 sacks, one forced fumble and one fumble recovery.
• McGlaun owns the most playing experience among the Sycamore defensive linemen with 25 career games played and 11 starts all coming in 2016.
• Junior
Adrian Butler has only recorded four career tackles in 12 total games played, but on Homecoming against Southern Illinois in 2015 he blocked two punts en route to a Sycamore victory.
• Indiana State sports three veteran starting linebackers: outside backers
Jonas Griffith and
Jordan Jackson, and inside linebacker
Katrell Moss.
• Moss is the top returning tackler for the Sycamores with 46 total tackles in 2016 (28 solo).
• Moss also had two pass breakups and one fumble recovery for eight yards.
• Moss was a member of the 2015 MVFC All-Newcomer Team after recording 47 total tackles -- 11 and a forced fumble coming against then-defending national champions North Dakota State.
• Senior
Jordan Jackson missed the 2014 and 2015 seasons in their entirety due to injury, but was able to play in 10 games and start in four during his redshirt junior season in 2016.
• Griffith played in 10 games as a redshirt freshman in 2016 and returns as the third-best tackler on ISU's roster with 37 total tackles last year.
• Griffith helped lead ISU to a near-upset at No. 14 Youngstown State in 2016, where he led the Sycamores with a career-high nine tackles and his first career interception at a crucial juncture in the game.
• Several different defensive backs are in the mix for playing time this season, including: corner/safety
De'Jaun Tyson; corners
Rondell Green,
Dimitri Taylor and
Corey Hicks; and safeties
Jamal Jones,
Brenton Lockett,
Kevin Scott and
Lonnie Walker II.
• Redshirt sophomore
Kevin Scott is the top returning tackler among Sycamore defensive backs after recording 28 tackles (17 solo) in 11 games played and four started during the 2016 season.
• Junior
Rondell Green was one of several heroes in ISU's thrilling 27-24 win at Southeast Missouri in 2016. Green recorded a key pass breakup on third down late in the game to give the Sycamore offense the ball back with 1:33 left to drive the field and win the game.
• Green was also a member of the MVFC All-Newcomer Team in 2014 after earning four starts as a true freshman.
• Sophomore kicker
Jerry Nunez returns as the top kicker in the Valley and potentially one of the best in the nation after leading the MVFC and ranking ninth nationally in 2016 with a 15-of-18 mark in field goals last season.
• Nunez earned Second-Team All-MVFC and MVFC All-Newcomer honors in 2016, and this fall was just honored as the Preseason All-MVFC selection for kicker.
• In 2016, Nunez was one of nine kickers in the nation to start the season 7-for-7 in field goals.
• Nunez hit a career-long 46-yard field goal against South Dakota. On the season, Nunez was 7-of-8 from 40 yards or longer and a perfect 4-of-4 from 30-39 yards away.
• Nunez's 83.3 percentage in field goals in 2016 ties a school record set by Tanner Fritschle in 2012, who also hit 15 field goals on 18 attempts.
• Senior punter
Thomas Bouldin recorded the longest punt in the Valley in 2016, registering at 70 yards at Southern Illinois.
• Bouldin finished the season ranked fourth in the Valley at 41.0 yards per punt.
• Senior kickoff specialist
Andrew Lunsford has recorded 36 total touchbacks as a Sycamore and has a career kickoff average of 60.2 yards.
For the latest information on the Sycamore Football team, make sure to check out
GoSycamores.com. You can also find the team on social media including
Facebook and
Twitter.
