Ace Hunt
GoSycamores.com
GAMEDAY CENTRAL PRESENTED BY: TOYOTA OF TERRE HAUTE
SETTING THE STAGE
Year one of the Mike Sanford era at Indiana State continues Saturday, September 14, as the Sycamores open the home portion of the schedule against Quincy. Saturday's game is set for a 3:05 p.m. (ET) kickoff at Memorial Stadium (12,764). The game will be broadcast live on a pay-per-view basis on Sycamore Vision with Brian Fritz (pbp) and Tom James (color) on the call. The game will also air live on WIBQ (98.5 FM), with Fritz and James calling the action for the Nelligan Sports Marketing Radio Network. Action can also be heard live worldwide on GoSycamores.com. Sycamore Vision is a pay-per-view web stream service available on GoSycamores.com.
THE QUINCY SERIES
Indiana State leads the all-time series against Quincy by a 2-1 margin, with all games coming in Terre Haute. The Sycamores have won each of the last two meetings against the Hawks, including a 44-0 victory last season.
THE COACHES
INDIANA STATE: Mike Sanford (Southern California, 1978)
— Overall: 16-45 (6th Season)
— at Indiana State: 0-2 (1st Season)
— vs. Quincy: First Meeting
— vs. Missouri Valley Football Conference: 0-0
QUINCY: Tom Pajic (Bloomsburg, 1991)
— Overall: 3-9 (Second Season)
— at Quincy: 3-9 (Second Season)
— vs. Indiana State: 0-1
— vs. Missouri Valley Football Conference: 0-2
QUICK HITS
— Indiana State is opening the 2013 home portion of the schedule against Quincy just as they did in 2012 with a 44-0 victory over the Hawks. The Sycamores have won each of their last three home openers. All-time ISU is 59-35-3 in home openers.
— Senior tailback Shakir Bell enter Saturday's game with 3,907 rushing yards for his career which is third on the Sycamore all-time list. He needs just 429 yards on the ground during his senior campaign to become Indiana State's all-time leading rusher and eclipse the total of 4,335 yards set by Vincent Allen from 1973-77. His 3,907 career rushing yards ranks 10th all-time in the history of the Missouri Valley Football Conference and he needs 840 to top Herb Donaldson's record of 4,746 set from 2005-08 at Western Illinois. Additionally, with 93 more rushing yards, Bell will become just the ninth MVFC player all-time to rush for at least 4,000 career yards.
An Indiana State Win Over Quincy Would …
• Give the Sycamores three consecutive victories over Quincy and four consecutive victories in home opening contests to improve to 60-35-3 all-time in home openers.
• Give Indiana State six consecutive home non-conference victories dating back to 2009.
• Be the first victory for the Indiana State program under first-year head coach Mike Sanford.
The Indiana State Head Coach
Indiana State head coach Mike Sanford (Southern California, 1978) is 16-45 (.262) overall in his sixth season as a head coach, and is 0-2 in his first season with Indiana State. He is 0-0 all-time in MVFC games, including an 0-0 mark at home and a 0-0 mark on the road. During his career, he is 13-18 in all home games, 3-27 on the road and 5-5 in games decided by three points or less. Sanford is 0-0 all-time against Quincy, and is 0-0 against the Hawks at home. With the Trees, Sanford is 0-0 in overtime games, and 0-0 in shutouts. Saturday's game is Mike Sanford's third as Indiana State head coach and his 62nd as a collegiate head coach.
The Quincy Head Coach
Quincy is led by second-year head coach Tom Pajic who is 3-9 at the helm of the Hawks program. Pajic is 0-1 against Indiana State, dropping a 44-0 decision to the Sycamores inside Memorial Stadium last season.
Scouting The Hawks
Quincy opened the 2013 campaign with 34-6 loss at the hands of Missouri Valley Football Conference member Western Illinois on September 7 on the road.
A Little History
This marks the 109th 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 358-480-22 and is competing for the 28th consecutive season as a member of the MVFC.
Television Particulars
The Quincy game will be televised on Sycamore Vision, which is a pay-per-view web stream service provided on GoSycamores.com. Fans should visit GoSycamores.com and click on the live events tab at the bottom of the screen for login and subscription information. Monthly, quarterly and annual subscriptions options are available.
Tanner Riley Leading Receiver For Sycamores At Indiana
Indiana State senior Tanner Riley had four pass receptions for a team-high 63 yards, including a long of 31 yards in the Sycamores' narrow 20-14 defeat at the hands of Purdue, of the Big Ten Conference. Riley caught a 17-yard pass mid-way through the game's third quarter which kick started an eight-play drive which led to the Sycamores' first touchdown of the game. His 31-yard reception also moved the Sycamores into the red zone early in the fourth quarter which set up a 17-yard scoring strike from Mike Perish to Demory Lawshe which got the Sycamores within three points of the Boilermakers.
Strong Thurman
True freshman linebacker Jameer Thurman made seven total tackles, all solo stops as the Sycamores staged an impressive comeback that just ran of time against the Purdue Boilermakers. Thurman tied for the team lead in solo tackles with seven. He was credited with one tackle for loss as he made a key stop on third and short in the third quarter which led to the Sycamores' first score of the game. Thurman also made back-to-back tackles on the goal line in one of three separate Indiana State goal line stands inside the one-yard line which netted just a pair of field goals for Purdue.
Calvin Burnett Part Of Stellar Sycamore Defensive Outing
Calvin Burnett had seven total tackles and one pass breakup as the Sycamores were just one score short of pulling an upset over Purdue of the Big Ten Conference in the second week of the season. Burnett had six solo tackles and one assist. Burnett made a key stop at the goal line late in the second quarter as part of a stand at the one-yard line in which the Boilermakers saw time run out on them and keep them off the scoreboard right before halftime. He also had a key pass breakup in the game's fourth quarter which forced a punt and helped setup the final Sycamore touchdown of the contest. The Sycamore defense limited Purdue to just 284 yards of total offense.
Defense Rebounds Against Purdue
Indiana State's defense returned to 2012 form in a narrow 20-14 loss to the Purdue Boilermakers in Week Two of the 2013 season as they limited the Boilermakers to just 134 rushing yards and 150 yards through the air while limiting Purdue to only 284 yards of total offense. The Sycamores had 256 yards through the air as Indiana State outgained Purdue on their home turf by a 295-284 margin. The difference in the game proved to be a 99-yard kick-off return for a touchdown by Purdue's Akeem Hunt to open the contest.
Back In The Quarterback Sack Game
The Sycamore defense was held without a quarterback sack in the season opener against Indiana, but got back in the swing of things in the second game of the campaign against Purdue with two sacks. The first was credited to the team as Purdue had a high snap which forced the quarterback to fall on the ball instead of throw while true freshman Lonnell Brown, Jr., had one for a loss of eight yards in the game's third quarter which helped to stop a Purdue drive in its tracks. Additionally, the Sycamore defense had four tackles for loss in the game.
Don't Perish The Thought
Indiana State junior quarterback Mike Perish completed 29-of-45 passes for a career-best 256 yards through the air and two touchdowns against Purdue. Perish found George Cheeseborough for a 36-yard touchdown strike on the game's third quarter and then found Demory Lawshe for a 17-yard scoring strike in the fourth quarter to draw the Sycamores within a field goal of the Boilermakers. More impressive yet is that Perish found 11 different receivers over the course of the game, including seven of his 29 completed passes to first-year Sycamores. True freshman Kyani Harris, who had a TD reception in the opener at Indiana led the newcomers with five receptions for 32 yards while Buck Logan and Miquel Jones had one reception reach. Sophomore Logan Buske had a five-yard reception on third-and-short to keep a scoring drive alive in the game's fourth quarter.
In 2012, Shakir Bell Became Quickest To 1,000 Rushing Yards At Indiana State (Again!)
Indiana State junior Shakir Bell went over the 1,000 rushing yard mark in 2012 in just the seventh game as he put up 96 yards on the ground as the Sycamores downed No. 1 North Dakota State in front of a near capacity crowd at the Fargodome 17-14. Bell rushed 26 times in the game for 96 yards as he broke his own school record set last year for being the fastest Sycamore to reach 1,000 yards rushing in a season. Bell now has 3,907 yards for his career which is third on ISU's all-time list. Bell has reached 100 yards rushing in 20 of his 34 career games. Vincent Allen (4,335 yards from 1973-77) and David Wright (4,181 yards from 1992-95) are the only two players to sit ahead of Bell on the ISU all-time career rushing list. Additionally, Bell is less than 1,000 yards away from reaching Herb Donaldson at the top of the Missouri Valley Football Conference record book for career rushing yards. Donaldson had 4,746 rushing yards at Western Illinois from 2005-08 and Bell is just 840 yards away from reaching his career total.
Shakir Bell Named To 2013 Walter Payton Award Watch List
Indiana State senior Shakir Bell is one of 20 FCS student-athletes nationally to be named to the 2013 Walter Payton Award Watch List by The Sports Network. The Walter Payton Award is given annually to the top offensive player in FCS Football. This marks the third consecutive season in which Bell has appeared on The Walter Payton Award Watch List. Bell finished tied for second in the voting back in 2011 when he became the first Indiana State Sycamore to be invited to the FCS Awards Presentation in Frisco, Texas. Last season, Bell finished 12th overall and was the second leading vote getter representing the Missouri Valley Football Conference. Bell has already earned First Team Preseason All-America honors from The Sports Network this summer and last season he was named to the Associated Press All-American Third Team after picking up four different first team honors in 2011. He was named First Team All-Missouri Valley Football Conference in 2012 and finished third in the MVFC Offensive Player Of The Year balloting. He was also named to The Sports Network FCS All-American Team last year and is the first Sycamore to earn back-to-back All-America honors since Richard Harris did it in 2000 & 2001.
Sycamore Trio Earns Preseason All-MVFC Plaudits
A trio of Indiana State seniors Shakir Bell, Calvin Burnett and FN Lutz have been named to the 2013 Preseason All-Missouri Valley Football Conference Team as announced by the league office. Additionally, the Sycamores were picked to finish sixth in this season's 10-team MVFC race. The Preseason All-MVFC Teams as well as the predicted order of finish were determined by a vote of the league head coaches, media and sports information directors. Bell, a member of the Preseason All-MVFC First Team, is a two-time All-MVFC selection and has already been named to numerous Preseason All-American Teams as well this summer. He was the MVFC Offensive Player of the Year in 2011 as well as a finalist for that season's Walter Payton Award. Burnett, a senior defensive back, is also a member of the Preseason All-MVFC First Team. He was a Second Team All-MVFC selection in 2012 and was an honorable mention pick as a freshman in 2010 when he also was named to the league's all-newcomer team. Lutz, a senior offensive lineman, is a member of the Preseason All-MVFC Honorable Mention Team. He sat out the 2012 campaign after a knee injury in the spring game forced him to miss the entire season. Despite his injury and based on the hope that he might be ready to play last year, he was named to the Preseason All-MVFC First Team and was a candidate for the Lowe's Senior Class Award.
Bell Sets MVFC & ISU Rushing Records In Victory Over Drake
Indiana State junior running back Shakir Bell etched his name in both the Missouri Valley Football Conference and Indiana State record books yet again on September 15, 2012 when he gained 349 yards on the ground to set both the school and conference single-game rushing record against Drake. For his efforts, Bell was named both the MVFC Offensive Player Of The Week and The Sports Network National Offensive Player Of The Week. His 349-yard rushing effort is the highest single-game total so far this season for both FBS and FCS and is the eighth-highest total ever in FCS history.
Indiana State Football With Third Consecutive Winning Season
The Indiana State Sycamores were 7-4 overall and 5-3 in Missouri Valley Football Conference play last season. The Sycamores secured their third consecutive winning campaign which is the first time ISU has enjoyed that many winning seasons in a row since the 1967-69 years under Jerry Huntsman when ISU posted six consecutive winning seasons.
Sycamores Against The Missouri Valley Football Conference
Indiana State is in its 28th 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 51-118 in MVFC contests and have won 12 of their last 22 league matchups, marking the first time since the 2002 season that an ISU team has won multiple league contests over a similar stretch.
In Overtime
The Sycamores have played in 12 overtime contests since the rule was established for regular season games in the NCAA FCS Subdivision in 1996. The Sycamores are 7-5 in games that have used an extra period. ISU's last overtime contest came in the form of a 38-35 victory against Missouri State in the sixth game of the 2010 season.
Up Next
The Sycamores will enjoy an open week on September 21 before returning to action on September 28 at Tennessee Tech of Ohio Valley Conference. Kick-off is set for 8:00 p.m. (ET). The game against Tennessee Tech represents the first road non-conference game for Indiana State against a FCS member since a 2008 contest at Eastern Illinois.
