NORMAL, Ill. – Indiana State had its chances against No. 10/10 Illinois State, but turnovers proved costly for the Sycamores as the Redbirds held on to claim the 17-10 victory at Hancock Stadium.
The Sycamores (2-6, 0-4) trailed 17-7 at the halftime break following a Key Crowell pick-six for Illinois State that swung the momentum of a back-and-forth first-half to the Redbirds. Indiana State scored first on the
Jayden Reed eight-yard touchdown reception from
Brady Allen, while Illinois State answered with a Michael Constantino 22-yard field goal and a Victor Dawson three-yard touchdown run before the Crowell interception.
Indiana State came out of the halftime break looking to take back the momentum on the ground behind
Max McCool as the redshirt freshman took the Sycamores' first offense snap 17 yards to midfield. After the Sycamores moved the ball to the Illinois State 35 on Allen completions to
Tyler Stewart and KeShon Singleton, McCool took the ball up the middle and broke loose in the Redbird secondary. However, the Sycamore running back lost the ball and it touched the pylon before rolling out of bounds for the touchback and Illinois State ball.
Indiana State moved the ball into the Illinois State red zone on their next possession in the third quarter but turned the ball over on downs. Another Sycamore possession started at midfield on
Nic Yatsko's second interception of the game, but the Indiana State offense stalled at the Redbird 5-yard line and settled for the
Sebastian Lopez 23-yard field goal.
The Sycamores had one final possession late in the contest, moving the ball from their own 13 all the way to the Illinois State 20. A Redbird pass interference call kept the Sycamore drive alive, while KeShon Singleton hauled in a pass at his shoelaces for a 22-yard completion on a 3rd-and-2 near midfield. Indiana State was unable to score the tying touchdown as the drive ended with a pair of incompletions for the turnover on downs to give possession back to the Redbirds for the final kneeldowns.
Brady Allen was 25-of-45 for 279 yards with a touchdown and an interception in the game.
Jayden Reed was the favorite target with nine catches for 98 yards and a score, while KeShon Singleton added six receptions for 81 yards.
Max McCool finished with 19 carries for a career-high 84 yards on the ground.
Braxton Sampson had a career-high 16 tackles and added 1.0 tackles-for-loss and 0.5 sacks to lead the Sycamore defense.
Nic Yatsko recorded his first multi-interception game, while
Xavier McIntyre and
Zach Coleman both had eight tackles overall.
How They Scored
- Jayden Reed hauled in the eight-yard touchdown pass from Brady Alley to put the Sycamores ahead 7-0 with 9:11 left in the first quarter to cap a 10-play, 77-yard drive. The drive was highlighted by a 16-yard completion to KeShon Singleton, a 22-yard connection to Reed, and another 11-yard pass to Singleton as Indiana State moved the ball through the air.
- Illinois State answered with a Michael Consentino 22-yard field goal with 3:30 left in the first quarter as the Sycamore defense came through on Micah McNair's stop behind the line of scrimmage on 3rd-and-4 to put the score at 7-3.
- The Redbirds went up 10-7 with 10:04 left in the second quarter as Victor Dawson scored on a three-yard touchdown plunge to cap a 15-play, 83-yard drive that spanned 6:48 and was aided by two Indiana State penalties.
- The Redbirds made it a 17-7 game with 8:13 remaining in the first half as Key Crowell stepped in front of a Brady Allen pass and returned it 48 yards for a pick-six.
- Indiana State capped the scoring in the game on Sebastian Lopez's 23-yard field goal with 7:47 remaining in the fourth quarter to provide the final 17-10 margin.
News & Notes
- Jayden Reed continues his tear through the 2026 season as the freshman set a career-high with nine receptions, while narrowly missing out on his third 100-yard receiving effort with 98 yards.
- Max McCool set a new career-high in both carries (19) and rushing yards (84) in Saturday's contest.
- Braxton Sampson tied his career-high with 16 tackles in the game, equaling his personal-best mark set back on Oct. 18, 2025, against North Dakota State.
- Nic Yatsko became the first Sycamore to post two interceptions in the same game since Rylan Cole achieved the feat against North Alabama back on September 1, 2022.
- The Sycamores outgained the Redbirds in total offensive yardage (359-285) in the contest, marking the fourth time in the 2026 season Indiana State has accomplished the feat.
Postgame Press Conference
Up Next
Indiana State remains on the road this upcoming week as the Sycamores travel to Cedar Falls, Iowa and Northern Iowa on Saturday, October 31. Kickoff at the UNI Dome is set for 2 p.m. ET and will be carried live on ESPN+ and 105.5 The Legend.
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