NORMAL, Ill. — For the third-straight week, Indiana State football battled a nationally ranked team, falling to No. 8 Illinois State 24-13, in front of a sellout crowd at Hancock Stadium Saturday night. 
 
The Sycamores reeled off 13 unanswered points in the second half to close the gap but a 24-0 Redbird lead was too much to overcome as Indiana State fell to 0-4 on the season and 0-1 in the Missouri Valley Football Conference. 
 
"We came out and we kept fighting and battling," head coach Curt Mallory said of his team. "Illinois State is too good of a football team to put ourselves in a hole like we did but I'm proud of our guys for the way they battled in the second half. They never gave up."
 
"We're going back to Terre Haute, we're going back to work and we're going to prepare to win the next one."
 
It was the defense that sparked the Sycamores' resurgence in the second half as freshman Mekhi Ware intercepted his second ball of the season and returned it 47 yards for the touchdown to put Indiana State on the board four minutes into the second half.
 
Five minutes later, Cade Sparks connected with Michael Thomas for a four-yard touchdown to make it a 24-13 contest. 
 
Big plays proved costly for the Sycamores though, as Illinois State managed a 24-0 lead heading into the locker room while not converting a third down (0-for-5). 
 
Illinois State (4-0, 2-0 MVFC) scored a pair of passing touchdowns in the first 30-minutes; the first on a 54-yard pass from Jake Kolbe to Christian Gibbs before Kolbe connected with Gibbs again in the second quarter for a 77-yard touchdown. 
 
The Redbirds scored their first touchdown on a fumble in the endzone on a sack by James Graham. 
 
Illinois State netted 401 yards of total offense led by Jake Kolbe who finished 18-of-30 with 345 yards and two touchdowns. Christian Gibbs had five receptions for 189 yards and two touchdowns in the game. 
 
Indiana State's rushing defense was nearly unbreakable in the game, allowing just 56 rushing yards on 36 attempts. Jonas Griffith finished with two of the teams' three sacks while Raymo Clifford picked up the other. 
 
In total, Illinois State went for 302 first half yards while holding the Sycamores to just 120 yards. LeMonte Booker rushed for 54 yards on 12 carries in the 30 minutes for the Sycamores as the ISU offense struggled to put drives together, going 1-for-8 in the half and closing the game out 3-for-15 on third down.  
 
Jacquet McClendon led the Sycamore receiving core with six catches for 74 yards while Booker finished with 57 yards on 19 carries. Both Sparks and Isaac Harker took snaps at quarterback. Sparks finished his day 7-of-20 with 108 yards and a touchdown. Harker went 4-for-10 for 46 yards and an interception in the second half.
 
The Sycamore defense allowed just 99 yards in the second half of play, forcing the Redbirds into a pair of redzone turnovers.
 
Indiana State looked to jump out to a quick start as redshirt freshman Cade Sparks connected with Bob Pugh for 45 yards on the second play of the game, but the Illinois State defense held strong to force an opening drive punt. It marked the fifth connection of 40 or more yards between the duo in four games. 
 
Indiana State will return home for the first time in four weeks as the team plays host to No. 2 ranked North Dakota State Oct. 7. Kickoff is slated for 1 p.m. ET from Memorial Stadium. 
 
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.