Gameday

Stadium: Memorial Stadium (12,764)

Sycamore Radio: ESPN Radio AM 1130 & 1300

    Play-by-Play: Brian Fritz

    Analyst: Pete Emmert

Series Information:

    Series Record: Illinois State Leads 29-28-2

    Last Meeting: INS 17, ILS 69 (10/13/07)

    Last ISU Win: INS 41, ILS 38 (10/02/2004)

    Current Streak:  Illinois State has won three  straight games over the Sycamores, dating back to 2005, and nine out of

    the last ten meetings between the two schools.

Setting The Stage

After a tough 24-21 loss in the home opener last weekend against Southeast Missouri State, the Indiana State Sycamores (0-4, 0-0 MVFC) will play their second-straight game at Memorial Stadium when they welcome in the Illinois State Redbirds (1-2, 0-0 MVFC) for both teams' Missouri Valley Football Conference opener.  Illinois State is coming off a bye week and will be looking to rebound from a home loss in their last game to No. 20 ranked Eastern Illinois by a score of 25-21.  The Sycamores have not defeated the Redbirds  since 2004, when they picked up a 41-38 victory at Memorial Stadium, but will be looking to pick up their first win of the season and the first for head coach Trent Miles in his tenure at ISU.

An Indiana State Win Over Illinois State Would ...

* Snap the Sycamores' 18-game losing streak, dating back to a 28-22 Homecoming victory over Missouri Valley Football Conference rival Missouri State in 2006.

* Give Indiana State its first home win since 2006,  when the Sycamores defeated Missouri State, 28-22, on Homecoming in front of a big crowd at Memorial Stadium.

* Tied the all-times series between the two schools at 29-29-2.

* Give the Sycamores their first win over the Redbirds since 2004, when they defeated Illinois State 41-38 at Memorial Stadium in Terre Haute.

* Give Indiana State its first conference win since 2006,  when the Sycamores defeated Missouri State, 28-22, on Homecoming in front of a big crowd at Memorial Stadium.

* Give Trent Miles his first collegiate head coaching victory.

The Indiana State Head Coach

Indiana State is led by first-head head coach Trent Miles, a 1987 graduate of ISU as well as a native of Terre Haute, Ind.  Miles made his debut as a collegiate head football coach on against Eastern Michigan and will be looking for his first victory at Indiana State.  Prior to coming to ISU, Miles spent three seasons (2005-07) as the running backs coach at Washington under head coach Tyrone Willingham and three years at Notre Dame (2002-04) as the wide receivers coach.

The Illinois State Head Coach

Illinois State is led by head coach Denver Johnson (Tulsa ?81).  Johnson is 67-59 (.532) in his 12th season as a head coach, and 46-48 (.489) in his ninth season with the Redbirds.  At Illinois State, Johnson is 26-28 against teams from the Missouri Valley Football Conference and is 8-2 against Indiana State in his career.

Illinois State Scouting Report

Illinois State is coming off a bye week and will be well-rested when they head into Terre Haute.  The Redbirds opened the season with a loss against FBS opponent Marshall (35-10), before defeating Murray State on the road (42-23) to pick up their only win of the season to date.  ISU then dropped a heartbreaker at home to No. 20 ranked Eastern Illinois (25-21) before taking a week off.  The Redbirds feature a balanced attack on offense, with junior Geno Blow leading the way on the ground with 75 yards per game and senior quarterback Kevin Brockway averaging nearly 183 yards per game through the air.  On defense, the ?Birds are led by sophomore Kelvyn Hemphill who has collected a team-high 38 tackles on the season with 1.5 tackles for loss and a pass break up.

The Last Time Against Southeast Missouri State

NORMAL, Ill. ? The Illinois State Redbirds scored touchdowns on each of their first ten drives and did not look back, as they downed the Sycamores by a count of 69-17 on Homecoming at Hancock Stadium on Saturday afternoon.  The Redbirds were a picture of perfection on the day amassing 580 total yards. Rafael Rice, Geno Blow and Cortes Rice all went over the 100-yard rushing mark as Rice amassed 182 yards compared to Blow's 122. Cortes Rice added 104 in the second half to complete the trifecta.

A Balanced Running Attack

The Sycamores found their identity as a rushing team last Saturday against Southeast Missouri State.  ISU out-rushed SEMO 218-130 and averaged over five yards per carry on the ground.  Sophomore quarterback Chuck Dowdell led the way for ISU, as he rushed for 96 yards on 18 carries to just miss out on the 100-yard plateau.  Sophomore running back Darrius Gates also had a strong day, as he carried the pigskin 18 times for 74 yards while scoring the team's first touchdown of the season on the ground.  Senior Ryan Patrick also got into the act, as his 33-yard reverse in the first quarter set up the team's initial score.  The team's 218 yards rushing were its most since this season and more than any game from last season.

Welcome To The Endzone

Indiana State struggled to find the endzone in its first three games of the season, but the blue color of the endzones in Memorial Stadium must have motivated the Sycamores to fix that problem.  ISU scored a season-high 21 points on Saturday against SEMO, including two touchdowns on the ground (Gates and Brown) and one through the air from quarterback Chuck Dowdell to wide receiver Ryan Patrick.  ISU's 21 points scored are its most since Nov. 4, 2006, when the Sycamores racked up 40 points in a loss at Western Illinois.

Quinton Is In ... The Backfield

Junior linebacker Quinton Scott was all over the field on Saturday against Southeast Missouri State, but spent a lot of that time in the Redhawks' backfield.  Scott tied his career-high with 17 total tackles, added a half of a sack and registered two tackles for loss in the game for the Sycamores.  That performance was the best of the season for a Sycamore defender and catapulted him to the team lead on the season with 35 total tackles, including 18 solo stops.

A Family Reunion

Indiana State assistant coach Edmund Jones may be a bit torn in today's game.  He no doubt will want the Sycamores to win, but he will also be secretly hoping that one of the Redbirds has a big day ... his son E.J.  The younger Jones is a backup cornerback in his first season with the Redbirds and should see some time on defense in today's game.

Young Guns

Of the 53 players that saw action for the Sycamores in the season opener at Eastern Michigan, a total of 34 of those players were seeing their first-ever collegiate action of any kind.  ISU started five players on offense, one newcomer on defense, plus one more on special teams against the Eagles.