ST. LOUIS, Mo. – Five Indiana State players were recognized on the Missouri Valley Football's 40th Anniversary Team as announced by the conference office on Tuesday afternoon.
 
Shakir Bell (RB), Robert Tonyan Jr. (TE), Richard Moss (LB), Alex Sewall (DB), and Lucas Hileman (P) were all voted on by fans from across the country to celebrate the league's 40 years, fans voted for 40 days to recognize the league's all-time best players. More than 2,000 ballots were cast overall.
 
Shakir Bell was the 2011 Missouri Valley Football Offensive Player of the Year and five-time All-American over his collegiate career. The former Sycamore running back posted 21 career 100-yard rushing games including a program-record 349 yards against Drake on September 15, 2012. He holds the Indiana State single-season rushing record with 1,760 yards and 14 touchdowns in 2011 and is the program's all-time leader in rushing yards per attempt at 6.27.
 
Robert Tonyan Jr. holds the Indiana State career record for touchdown receptions (20), single-season touchdown catches (10), and is tied for the school record with three receiving touchdowns in two separate games over his career. The former Sycamore tight end led Indiana State's receiving efforts from 2014-16 including posting a career-high 747 yards in 2014, while adding 56 catches for 699 yards and 10 scores in the 2016 season.
 
Richard Moss was Indiana State's tackling leader in both the 1993 and 1996 seasons on his way to finishing second all-time in the Sycamore record books with 426 career tackles. The former Sycamore linebacker was a four-year starter at linebacker, cracking 100 tackles in three of his four seasons, including a career-best 114 tackles in the 1996 season. He wrapped up his collegiate career earning Third Team Associated Press All-American honors in his senior season.
 
Alex Sewall was a Second Team All-American in the 2011 season highlighting a career that saw the defensive back post 358 career tackles from 2008-11. He recorded a career-high 114 tackles over the 2011 season. He led Indiana State's punt return efforts in 2010 with six returns for 84 yards.
 
Lucas Hileman holds Indiana State's career record for highest punt average (43.4) and highest average yards per punt in a single season (44.1). He remains the Sycamores' all-time leader in punt average and is one of just two Indiana State punters to average over 40 yards per attempt over his career. He wrapped up his time at Indiana State in earning All-Conference recognition in 2012.
 
About the Missouri Valley Football Conference
Founded in 1985, the Missouri Valley Football Conference is the nation's premier NCAA FCS conference.  

Last season, the MVFC extended its FCS-record to 14-straight title game appearances as North Dakota State defeated No. 2 seed Montana State in Frisco, Texas, for the crown.  Notably, the 2024 season marked the 20th title appearance for a league team. The league is 14-6 in title games, although Youngstown State (1991, 1992, 1993, 1994) and Southern Illinois (1983) both played in the championship prior to joining the league.  All 20 of the league's title-game appearances have occurred since 1997.

There's not much that has eluded the Missouri Valley Football Conference in its first 40 seasons of competition.  The league's first four decades have included national championships, national players of the year, national coaches of the year, No. 1 national rankings, and countless All-Americans.  League member North Dakota State earned five-straight national championships from 2011-15 and three-straight from 2017-19.  The league also has NCAA titles in 1997 (YSU), 2002 (WKU), 2021 and 2024 (NDSU), and 2022 and 2023 (SDSU).

Strong coaching and great players have helped make the league a national force, but the stability and leadership of Commissioner Patty Viverito -- the only commissioner the league has ever known -- has helped make the Missouri Valley Football Conference a standard bearer on the FCS scene.  

The Gateway Conference football division was born on August 21, 1985, when the Gateway Conference President's Council voted to add an FCS football division for six of its members to the previously all-women's athletics organization.  Founding members of the football division were Eastern Illinois, Illinois State, UNI, Southern Illinois, Southwest Missouri State (now Missouri State), and Western Illinois.  The creation of the football division marked the first time in college annals that football was added to a women's conference.  In June of 1986, Indiana State became the seventh member of the conference.

In the 40 years of the football division, league membership has been relatively stable.  Eastern Illinois left the league to join the Ohio Valley Conference in 1996, while Youngstown State joined the conference in 1997 to return league membership to its original seven-member status.  League membership reached what was then an all-time high of eight members for the start of the 2001 season with the addition of Western Kentucky.  The Hilltoppers left the league after six years to join the Sun Belt (FBS).  North Dakota State and South Dakota State joined for the start of the 2008 season, giving the league nine members for the first time.  And the league expanded to 10 members in 2012 after the University of South Dakota was admitted.  The University of North Dakota joined the MVFC for the start of the 2020 campaign to expand league membership to 11 institutions.  Murray State University joined the league for the start of the 2023 football campaign, bringing league membership to an all-time high of 12 schools. Western Illinois played its final MVFC season in 2023 after departing for the Ohio Valley Conference for the 2024 campaign. And Missouri State finished its final MVFC season in 2024 as it joins Conference USA (FBS) for all sports of the 2025-26 season.
 
2025 Indiana State Season Tickets On Sale Now
Season ticket membership renewals and new season ticket memberships remain on sale online for the upcoming 2024 season. Season tickets for the six ISU home football games will start at $60 for adults and $30 for youth. Faculty, staff, seniors, and members of the I-Club can purchase tickets for $55.
 
Additionally, anyone who renews or buys a reserved seat in Section F will have the option to rent a seat chairback for the season. Chairback rentals are available for $20. Access to Touchdown Corner is available with Varsity Club status starting at just $125. Contact the Sycamore Athletic Fund at 812-237-6134 for more information.
 
Indiana State will employ mobile ticketing as the default option for all home games during the 2024 football season, enabling contactless entry into athletics venues. Offering greater convenience and safety, fans can access their ticket online and transfer to family and friends. Fans will also have the option to get their tickets printed for an additional $5 charge.
 
For more information on season tickets, fans can contact Assistant Manager of Athletic Ticketing Grant Manning by phone at 812-237-8972 or via email at Grant.Manning@indstate.edu. Fans can also call 877-ISU-TIXS or email ISU-Tickets@indstate.edu. Fans have the opportunity to also buy or renew season tickets online by clicking HERE.
 
Follow the Sycamores
For the latest information on Sycamore Football, visit GoSycamores.com. You can also find the team on social media, including Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube. Fans can also receive updates on Sycamore Athletics by downloading the March On App from both the App Store and the Google Play Store.