In front of 8,294 people at Memorial Stadium the Sycamores (3-2, 1-1 MVFC) scored their second straight Homecoming win in convincing fashion 59-24 over the Redbirds of Illinois State (3-3, 2-2 MVFC).

The first half was a showcase of offense by both teams and the Sycamores took little time in showing off its offense as junior quarterback Ronnie Fouch threw a 40-yard pass to senior wide receiver Bryant Kent less than four minutes into the game.

Senior running back Darrius Gates then extended the Sycamore lead to 14-0 off a three yard run.

The Redbirds began to threaten the Sycamore lead, however, the drive stalled out and the Redbirds had to settle to for a 50-yard field goal to cut the lead to 14-3.

The offense of the Sycamores then took over and never looked back as the Sycamores scored four more touchdowns and a field goal to end the first half and set a new school record for first half yardage with 448 yards of total offense.

At half time the Sycamores held a commanding, 44-24 lead over the Redbirds.

The 44 first half points were the most against ISU in a conference game in a half. 59 points are the second most points scored against a conference school.

In the Second half, the Sycamores defense began to show its strength as it shutout the Redbirds in the second half.

Junior tight end Alex Jones added to the Sycamores lead in the second half with a 5-yard reception from Fouch.

The Sycamore defense then added points for the Sycamores when sophomore defensive lineman sacked Illinois State quarterback Matt Brown in the end zone for a safety.

Sophomore running back George Cheeseborough then extended the Sycamore lead with a 28-yard rush into the end zone en route to a 59-24 win.

The Sycamores finished the game with 579 total yards of offense.

Fouch led the team with four touchdowns to three different receivers and went 16-22 for 250 yards.

Kent led the Sycamore receivers with seven catchers for 118 yards and two touchdowns.

On the ground, Gates scored two touchdowns for the Sycamores while freshman running back Shakir Bell ran for 146 yards and a touchdown and averaged 10.4 yards per carry.

This was also the first time in school history the Sycamores have had 200 yard passer, 100 yard receiver and 100 yard rusher in two consecutive games.

On the defensive end, sophomore linebacker Aaron Archie had 12 tackles while junior safety Alex Sewall added 10 tackles for the Sycamores.

The win also marks the first time since 2004 that the Sycamores have won back-to-back games and the first time the Sycamores have started 3-0 at home since 2004.

The 3-2 start by the Sycamores is the best start since 2004 when they started 4-1.

The Sycamores will continue its home stand next Saturday at Memorial Stadium when they play host to Missouri State. Kickoff is scheduled for 4:05 p.m.