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Game 10: INDIANA STATE (1-8, 1-5) at MISSOURI STATE (5-4, 3-3)
Saturday, Nov. 7, 2009 • Springfield, Mo. • Plaster Field • 2:00 p.m. ET • Radio: ESPN 1130/1300 AM

Setting The Stage
Indiana State continues year two of the Trent Miles Era on Saturday, Nov. 7, as the Sycamores travel to Missouri State. Saturday's game is set for a 2:05 p.m. (ET) kickoff at Plaster Field (16,300). The game will also be carried live on ESPN Radio (1130 and 1300 AM), with Brian Fritz and Vaso Michels calling the action for the Nelligan Sports Radio Network. Action can be heard live worldwide on ESPNSportsRadio.com, and live stats are available at GoSycamores.com. The game is also available on a pay-per-view basis on MissouriStateBears.com.

The Indiana State Head Coach
Indiana State is led by head coach Trent Miles, a 1987 ISU graduate and Terre Haute native. Miles made his head coaching debut last season against Eastern Michigan and carries a record of 1-20 into Saturday's game. Miles previously spent three seasons (2005-07) as the running backs coach at Washington and three years at Notre Dame (2002-04) as the wide receivers coach. Miles is 0-1 against the Bears and 1-13 against members of the Missouri Valley Football Conference. Miles earned his first career collegiate coaching victory on Oct. 24 with a 17-14 victory over Western Illinois.

The Missouri State Head Coach
Missouri State is led by fourth-year head coach Terry Allen, who is 17-25 at the Springfield, Mo., school. He is in his 16th season as a collegiate head coach, and has amassed a 112-84 record at Northern Iowa, Kanasas and Missouri State. He is 9-2 against Indiana State, including a mark of 2-1 against the Sycamores while serving as the head coach at Missouri State.

Scouting Missouri State
Missouri State is a member of the NCAA FCS Subdivision and competes in the MVFC. The Bears are 5-4 on the season, including a mark of 3-3 in the MVFC. The Bears are led by quarterback Cody Kirby, who threw two TD passes against Illinois State last week, giving him 36 for his career and tying Mitch Ware (1976-79) and Jeremy Hoog (1994-97) for the all-time MSU lead. Kirby threw for 248 yards in the game, marking his 13th career 200-yard output and fifth this season. Kirby also extended his streak to 7 consecutive games with a TD pass and matched a career best by not throwing an intercep¬tion for the second straight contest.

A Little History
This marks the 105th season of football at Indiana State, dating 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 339-463-22 and is competing for the 24th consecutive season as a member of the MVFC.

What's Transpired
Indiana State opened the season with a 26-20 overtime loss against Quincy at Memorial Stadium. The game drew regional attention, as 7,216 fans were in attendance. The Sycamores bounced out to a quick 17-0 lead in the first quarter against the Hawks - ISU's largest lead over an opponent since 2004 -- but Quincy came back to knot the score at 20 with 43 seconds left in regulation. Darrius Gates paced the Sycamores with 102 yards on the ground and also threw a 75-yard touchdown pass as the offense showed spark early in the game.

ISU enjoyed its closest game against a member of the NCAA Division I FBS Subdivision since 2003 with a 30-10 loss at Louisville. Santino Davis recorded a pair of interceptions in falling to the BIG EAST opponent.

The Sycamores were shut out in their third contest of the season against Eastern Illinois by a 31-0 count. It marked the first time ISU was shut out by the Panthers since 1962 and their 95 yards of total offense was the Sycamores' lowest total since the 2003 campaign.

Indiana State battled tough at No. 18 South Dakota State in the first half, but it wasn't enough, as the Jackrabbits took it to the Sycamores late in the second quarter en route to a 41-0 win over ISU. ISU trailed just 3-0 in the waning moments of the first half, but a blocked punt and a touchdown with less than a minute remaining helped SDSU to the game's momentum and the eventual victory. Senior Donye McCleskey recorded a season-best 15 tackles in defeat, plus his first interception of the season. ISU was shutout in back-to-back games for the first time since the 1999 season.

The Sycamores were shutout for the third consecutive game, falling 28-0 to Youngstown State. The Penguins owned just a 7-0 lead in the fourth quarter as the Sycamores held YSU without a score for nine consecutive possessions and did not allow a first down to Youngstown in third stanza. Indiana State went over the 100-yard mark in total offense, but were not able to reach pay dirt, falling to 0-2 in league play.

Indiana State defensive tackle turned fullback Rod Hardy got the Sycamores on the board in the third quarter of the Northern Iowa contest to break a 17-quarter streak without scoring a touchdown. The Sycamores fell to No. 3 nationally-ranked Panthers on Oct. 3 by the score of 62-7.

ISU put on its best offensive performance of the season on the road against Illinois State as it scored a season-high 21 points versus the Redbirds, but the Sycamores fell 38-21. Ryan Roberts found the end zone twice for Indiana State and the Sycamores rolled up 354 yards of total offense, including a 37-yard scoring pass from Roberts to Bryant Kent in the final two minutes of the game. Antoine Brown recorded 102 yards on the ground to become just the Sycamores' second rusher to top the century mark this season.

Indiana State then ended the nation's longest losing streak with a 17-14 victory over Western Illinois. ISU had dropped each of its previous 33 games prior to a Homecoming victory against the Fighting Leathernecks. The Sycamores' last victory prior to Saturday's was against Missouri State in 2006. ISU improved to a perfect 6-0 all-time against WIU when playing on Homecoming at Memorial Stadium.

The Sycamores fell to the No.3 nationally-ranked Southern Illinois Salukis last week by the score of 33-0. Indiana State mustered just 90 yards of total offense against SIU.

Sycamores Have Three Of Top Six Tacklers In The League
Indiana State redshirt freshman linebacker Aaron Archie ranks third in the Missouri Valley Football Conference with a 10.1 tackles per game average, which leads the Sycamores and is ranked 23rd nationally. He heads up a group of three Sycamore defensive starters, which rank in the top six league-wide for tackles per game and are in the top 64 nationally. Behind Archie is Donye McCleskey, who is averaging 8.8 stops per contest and is fifth in the league, 48th in the country. Sophomore Alex Sewall is sixth with an 8.4 tackles per game average, which is tied for 64th in all of FCS football.

Twice (In One Year) Would Be Nice!
The Indiana State football team won its first Missouri Valley Football Conference contest of the season on October 24 in a 17-14 Homecoming victory over Western Illinois. The Sycamores travel to Missouri State this week and conclude the season on Nov. 14 against North Dakota State. If the Sycamores earn a victory in either of those contest, ISU will finish the season with multiple wins for the first time since the 2004 campaign and with multiple league victories for the first time since 2002.

Ryan Roberts Named MVFC Offensive Player of the Week
Sophomore quarterback Ryan Roberts was named the Missouri Valley Football Conference's Offensive Player Of The Week following his superb showing in the victory over Western Illinois. Roberts rushed for 160 yards on the day -- the fourth-most in program history for a quarterback -- and recorded a school-record 91-yard touchdown run in the second quarter. Additionally, Roberts scored in the final five minutes of the victory from four yards out to secure the win. He was the first Sycamore since Jake Shields in to score multiple touchdowns in consecutive weeks, as he also had a pair of rushing touchdowns at Illinois State on Oct. 17. Below is a list of the top five single-game rushing totals by a quarterback.
207, Julian Reese, INS vs. Illinois St., 11/03/01
170, Sheaton Fox, INS vs. Murray State, 11/21/98
162, Sheraton Fox, INS vs. Missouri State, 11/20/99
160, Ryan Roberts, INS vs. Western Illinois, 10/24/09
140, Sheraton Fox, INS vs. Southern Illinois, 10/24/98

Roberts' Rules of Order
Ryan Roberts had a 160 yards and two touchdowns against Western Illinois. The 160 rushing yards are the fourth-most in program history for an ISU quarterback, behind recordholder Julian Reese (207 in 2001). The 160-yard game is the third-best in the past 10 seasons for an MVFC QB (13 have rushed for 100+ yards since 2000). Here are the eight rushing performances by a league QB since the 2000 campaign.
245, Donte Pimpleton, WKU vs. Illinois St., 11/3/01
207, Julian Reese, INS vs. Illinois State, 11/10/01
160, Ryan Roberts, INS vs. W. Illinois, 10/24/09
152, Matt Rycraft, YSU vs. W. Illinois, 10/11/03
150, Jason Johnson, WKU vs. W. Illinois, 8/30/01
129, Joel Sambursky, SIU vs. E. Michigan, 9/28/02
125, Jeff Ryan, YSU vs. Hofstra, 11/4/000
115, Julian Reese, INS vs. Eastern Illinois, 9/21/02

Trey Interceptions
The Sycamores recorded three interceptions against Western Illinois, including the first in the young careers of Andrew Blackmon and CJ Cook. Senior Donye McCleskey also added in a pick as well, as the Sycamore defense stood tall in the 17-14 victory over Western Illinois. Indiana State had just four interceptions on the season prior to Saturday's three picks against the Fighting Leathernecks, including the game clincher by Blackmon as time expired.

They Don't Call It A Streak ... Now
The Sycamores ended the nation's longest losing streak with a 17-14 victory over Western Illinois. ISU had dropped each of its previous 33 games prior to its Homecoming victory against the Fighting Leathernecks. The Sycamores last victory prior to Saturday's was in a Homecoming contest against Missouri State in 2006. ISU improved to a perfect 6-0 all-time against Western Illinois when playing on Homecoming at Memorial Stadium. The 33-game skid was the fourth-longest in college football history behind Prairie View (80 games), Columbia (54) and Northwestern (34) and was the third all-time in FCS football.

We Are Mostly...Young
Of the 84 players on the current Indiana State roster, a total of 65 student-athletes are underclassmen -- or just over 76 percent. There are 38 true or redshirt freshmen on the roster currently. A total of 19 student-athletes have seen their first collegiate action this season, including 18 true or redshirt freshmen.

We Are Mostly...Young (PART 2)
In research conducted nationally, it was determined that Indiana State has played 13 true freshmen this season, which is the second most in the nation behind Northwestern State. Included in that number is a nation-leading nine true freshmen who have started at least one contest during 2009.

Facing the Nation's Best
The Sycamores are 8-69 all-time against FCS nationally-ranked opponents, including a mark of 6-50 against league members that are nationally ranked.

Sycamores Against the MFVC
Indiana State is in its 24th season as a member of the MVFC. ISU's first season as a league member came in 1986 when it went 1-5 through a six-game league schedule. The Sycamores are 40-111 in MVFC contests and had lost each of their last 21 league matchups before downing Western Illinois earlier this season.

Return To Sender
Indiana State has been solid in special teams, as the punt return squad ranks 41st nationally with an 9.0 yards-per-return average. That mark is good enough for fourth in the MVFC. Individually, Darrius Gates averages 28.23 yards per kickoff return which is tops in the league and fifth-best nationally. As a team, the Sycamores average 20.49 yards per kick return, which is 51st nationally and in a league which boasts some of the best special teams in all of the FCS Subdivision, is fourth in the MVFC.

BARRELLING IN
ISU debuted a new jumbo package against No. 3 Northern Iowa in the Sycamores' last game before the open week, and the benefactor was Rod Hardy, who has started every game this season at defensive tackle. Hardy, who recovered a UNI fumble to give the Sycamores a short field offensively, plunged into the end zone to give ISU its first offensive points since the second game of the season at Louisville. Hardy was the first ISU player since 2005 to score an offensive touchdown despite starting the game on defense. Andy Jones scored on a pass reception that season against Western Kentucky in a game in which he also started at linebacker.

Few Seniors
Indiana State has just 10 players on its roster who are seniors. Of those, Mike Woods and Elliott Thomas are fifth-year seniors, while Donye McCleskey, Jeramie Gray, Jerry Calvert, Dan Millington, Pat Burke, and Bill McGrath are in their fourth year. Antoine Brown and Gabe Mullane transferred into the Sycamore program and are in their final season as well. Indiana State has the fourth-fewest seniors on a 2009 roster nationally.

Working Overtime
The Sycamores have played in 11 overtime contests since the rule was established for regular season games in the NCAA FCS Subdivision in 1996. The Sycamores are 6-5 in games that have used an extra period, including a 33-30 overtime win over Eastern Illinois in 2004.

Up Next . . .
Indiana State concludes the regular season with a contest at home against North Dakota State on November 14. Kickoff is slated for Noon.

The Last Time Against Missouri State ... November 22, 2008
TERRE HAUTE, IND. - The 2008 Indiana State football season came to an end with a heartbreaking 27-24 loss in overtime to the visiting Missouri State Bears in a Missouri Valley Football Conference game Saturday in ISU's Memorial Stadium. With the loss, ISU falls to 0-12 on the season, while the Bears improved to 4-7 overall.

"I thought our kids played extremely hard, especially in the second half," head coach Trent Miles said. "At halftime, we challenged our players and lived up to the challenge in the second half."

Indiana State got the ball first in overtime with Baulio Martinez booting a 39-yard field goal. But Missouri State came right back, as Bears quarterback Cody Kirby rumbled 19 yards for the touchdown to give Missouri State the win.

Missouri State took a 7-0 lead in the first quarter, using just four plays to go 91 yards for the first touchdown of the game on a 16-yard run by Miguel Warren with 6:03 left. Matt Hottelman booted the point after for the Bears.

In the second quarter, Kingjack Washington capped off a 12-play, 77-yard drive with a two-yard touchdown run for Missouri State's second touchdown of the game. Hottelman again booted the point after to give the Bears a 14-0 lead with 10:11 remaining in the first half.

A bad snap on a punt attempt gave the Bears an opportunity for their third touchdown, starting from the Sycamore four-yard line. But Indiana State got the ball right back when Missouri State's Washington was stripped of the ball by ISU's Jayden Everett, who also recovered the fumble at the ISU five yard line.

The Sycamores took advantage of the turnover, marching 95 yards in 14 plays to cut the Missouri State lead in half. Darrius Gates capped the drive with a seven-yard run around the right side and Braulio Martinez booted the point after as the Sycamores trailed 14-7 with 4:13 left in the third quarter.

After holding Missouri State on their next possession, the Sycamores took over at their own 18-yard line and promptly marched down the field, going 82 yards in nine plays to tie the game on a one-yard run by Gates. The touchdown was set up by a 67-yard run by Gates that moved the ball down to the Bears five-yard line early in the fourth quarter. Four plays later, Gates took the ball over the left side on fourth-and-one and stretched the ball across the goal line for the touchdown with 12:25 left. Martinez booted the extra point attempt to tie the game at 14-all.

Indiana State got the ball back with less than two minutes to play and the Sycamores needed just 42 seconds to take the lead for the first time in the game.

Starting from their own eight-yard line, Brock Lough ran 14 yards to the Indiana State 22 yard line. Gates broke free and rambled 77 yards down to the Missouri State one and then Ryan Roberts dove over the top of center Jack Byrne for the touchdown. Martinez's point after kick made it 21-14 with 46 seconds left in the game.

Missouri State came right back, scoring on a 19 yard pass from quarterback Cody Kirby to Chris Geisz on the final play of the game. Hottelman booted the point after to tie the game at 21 and send the game into overtime.

"We got after the team at halftime," Miles commented. "The first half was unacceptable. We had to challenge this team at halftime and our kids went out and played hard in the second half and had a good chance to win. Today we got beat by the better team, we got beat by a good coach."

Gates led the way for the Sycamores with a career-high 237 yards rushing and two touchdowns on the day. Gates became the first ISU runner to eclipse the 200 yard mark since 2006, when Tony West amassed 217 versus Murray State. C.J. Cook led the way for the Sycamores defense, recording a career-high 14 tackles, including three solo stops. Donye McCleskey and Jayden Everett each added 11 tackle for the Sycamores as well.