Redbirds and Panthers Set To Square Off In Crucial MVFC Matchup

SETTING THE SCENE

Date: October 28, 2023

Time: Noon CT

Site: Normal, Ill.

Stadium: Hancock Stadium

Capacity: 13,391

Series: UNI leads 23-15

Last: ILS won at UNI, 23-21 (Oct. 8, 2022)

Stream: ESPN+

Listen: WJBC 1230 AM / 102.1 FM / 93.7 FM / The Varsity Network

THE GAME

Another week, another huge game with playoff implications for Illinois State as it hosts Northern Iowa on Saturday at Hancock Stadium. The Redbirds (4-3, 2-2 MVFC) and the No. 23 ranked Panthers (4-3, 3-1 MVFC) both sit in the middle of the crowded MVFC standings needing to stay near the top to keep their playoff hopes alive.

THE SERIES

Illinois State and Northern Iowa will meet for the 39th time on Saturday, with UNI leading the all-time series 23-15 which dates back to 1972. The Redbirds have on the previous two meetings against the Panthers, including a thrilling 23-21 win at the UNI Dome last season. Overall, the Redbirds are 7-6 against the Panthers under the leadership of head coach Brock Spack but have won four of the last five meetings against UNI at Hancock Stadium including an overtime win in 2021.

THE COACHES

Illinois State: Brock Spack (Purdue, 1983) is in his 15th season as the head coach at Illinois State (99-68). Spack guided the Redbirds to back-to-back shares of the MVFC title in 2014-15 and an appearance in the 2014 FCS Championship game. He has led the ISU to five playoff appearances overall and became the program’s all-time wins leader in 2021.

Northern Iowa: Mark Farley (UNI, 1987) is in his 23rd season as the Northern Iowa head coach (178-101). Farley is the winningest coach in UNI and Missouri Valley Football Conference history with 178 wins, which includes 17 playoff victories. Under Farley’s leadership, the Panthers have won at least a share of seven MVFC titles and have made 13 playoff appearances.

THIS WEEK’S OPPONENT

• The University of Northern Iowa is located in Cedar Falls, Iowa, and has an enrollment of 8,949. The Panthers are members of the Missouri Valley Football Conference and play their home games at the UNI Dome (16,324).
• The Panthers head into the game with an 4-3 overall record and a 3-1 mark in Missouri Valley Football Conference action. UNI is ranked No. 23 this week in the STATS Perform FCS Top 25.
• Defense and a dominant running performance was the name of the game for the Panthers last weekend, as they recorded their first shutout of the season in a 27-0 victory against the No. 11/9 North Dakota inside the UNI-Dome. UNI tallied two takeaways to bookend the matchup with UND, claiming their first victory over the Fighting Hawks since 1978, and recording the program’s first-ever shutout against a top-10 ranked opponent. 
• The three-headed monster of Caden Houghtelling, Khristian Boyd and Canon Butler combined for four sacks, as the UNI defense allowed just 187 yards of total offense and only 15 yards on the ground.
• Running back Amauri Pesek-Hickson was named the MVFC Offensive Player of the Week for his performance against North Dakota. Making his first career start at running back, Pesek-Hickson recorded 31 carries for 180 yards and scored his first career touchdown.
• UNI quarterback Theo Day leads the way for the UNI offense, with 1,863 yards and 10 touchdowns on the season. He currently leads the MVFC in four offensive categories including: passing yards (1,863) [11th nationally], passing yards per game (266.1) [13th nationally, passing yards per completion (13.8) [16th nationally] and total offense (255.7) [22nd nationally].

DYNAMIC DUO

The tandem of quarterback Zack Annexstad and Daniel Sobkowicz has become of the most prolific in recent memory for the Redbirds and one of the best in the Missouri Valley Football Conference. The pair connected for three touchdowns and 170 yards against Youngstown State, with Annexstad targeting his No. 1 wideout a season-high 19 times. Through seven games, the two have connected 45 times for a team-leading 649 yards and seven touchdowns for Sobkowicz, who has set career highs in every category this season. As if that was not impressive enough, Sobkowicz has even thrown a touchdown pass to Annexstad this season. Overall, Sobkowicz ranks No. 4 in the country in receiving touchdowns (7) and No. 7 in receiving yards (649) and yards per game (92.7).

BLAKEMORE BACK AT IT

Two games into the season, transfer running back Mason Blakemore had a breakout performance in the MVFC opener at Western Illinois with 170 yards and three touchdowns. However, the following game he suffered an injury that kept him out of the following game and since that time he had not been able to have another 100-plus yard performance until the Redbirds took on Youngstown State. Blakemore averaged 7.5 yards per carry and ran for a total of 128 yards on 17 carries against the Penguins. He had several long runs on the day, but his longest of 40 yards set up a 7-yard touchdown pass from Zack Annexstad to Daniel Sobkowicz early in the second quarter.

ANNEXSTAD IN THE ZONE

Sixth-year senior quarterback Zack Annexstad is playing some of the best football of his career in the past two weeks for the Redbirds, which bodes well for the remaining four games of the season. In the past two week, Annexstad has completed 64 percent of his attempts for 404 yards and an eye-popping nine touchdown passes. To put that in perspective, Annexstad had just 11 touchdowns through eight games last season, but now has 14 through seven games in 2023. He has been affective by distributing the ball, as seven different receivers have combined to catch the nine scores for the Redbirds in those two contests. He ranks No. 9 in the FCS in completion percentage (.692), No. 13 in passing touchdowns (14) and points responsible for (96).

NIEKAMP NAMED TO JERRY RICE AWARD WATCH LIST

Illinois State redshirt freshman linebacker Tye Niekamp is one of 22 FCS players who been named to the midseason watch list of the 2023 Stats Perform Jerry Rice Award, which honors the national freshman of the year in college football’s Division I subdivision and is presented by FedEx Ground. Through seven games the 6-foot-3, 230-pound linebacker from Normal, Illinois, native is tied for the team lead in total tackles with 49 (including 26 solo stops) and is tied for fourth on the squad with 4.5 tackles for loss. He has also added 1.5 sacks to the ledger to go along with four quarterback hurries and six pass breakups.

SPACK NEARING THE CENTURY MARK

Now in his 15th season at the helm of the Illinois State football program, Brock Spack is nearing a significant milestone in his coaching career. Already Illinois State’s program wins record holder, Spack is rolling through the 2023 campaign one win away from the century mark in his career. With an overall record of 99-68 (.593), Spack would become just the fourth head coach in Missouri Valley Conference history with 100 wins at a member school. With three more league victories, Spack would also move into a tie for third in MVFC history for most wins by a MVFC head coach.

WELCOME HOME REDBIRDS

The annual ISU Homecoming game is always a festive time and one that most Redbird fans mark their calendar with every year. Following the big 44-7 win over Indiana State, the Redbirds are 11-3 overall on the annual alumni reunion weekend under the leadership of head coach Brock Spack. Since the stadium renovation in 2013, ISU is now 8-2 with both of the losses coming to Top-25 ranked teams in No. 13 Youngstown State (2016) and to No. 3 North Dakota State (2022).

DUAL THREAT?

In the postgame press conference Redbird quarterback Zack Annexstad admitted that he would certainly not consider himself a dual threat type signal-caller, but he certainly fooled many in the stands and the Sycamores in Illinois State’s 44-7 win. Not only did he complete 63 percent of his passes in extremely challenging weather conditions in Normal, but he also set career highs with four touchdown passes and 79 yards rushing. He threw touchdown passes to four different receivers, but also picked up several key first downs with his legs including a career-long 41-yard run that set up a Redbird score.

CONTROLLING THE GROUND GAME

On a day when wind gusts eclipsing 25 miles per hour and consistent light rain made throwing the ball difficult for Illinois State, the Redbird rushing attack returned to form albeit with a surprising leader. For the third time this season, the Redbirds racked up over 200 yards rushing on the ground finishing the day with 244 on 41 attempts with one score. Illinois State quarterback Zack Annexstad did throw for four touchdown passes, but all were set up by strong runs by Mason Blakemore, Cole Mueller and Annexstad himself. The lone rushing score came on a 13-yard TD run by Blakemore, his team-leading seventh of the season and he finished with 74 yards on the day, five short of the rushing leader for the ‘Birds in Annexstad.

DEFENSE POSTS ANOTHER SHUTOUT

A quick look at the final score and it may look like the Redbird defense was responsible for giving up a touchdown to the Sycamores, however the lone touchdown for the Trees cannot be credited to the defense as it came on an interception return for a touchdown on tipped pass at the line of scrimmage. The defense was dominant all day, allowing just 95 yards rushing and 73 yards passing for a total of 168 on the day while also recording a pair of interceptions, three sacks and eight tackles for loss. It marks the second time the defense put up a zero this season, following the 41-0 season-opening victory over Dayton at home.

FEAR AMIR

Linebacker Amir Abdullah has been a nightmare for opposing offenses through four games this season, and shined once again for the Redbird defense against Indiana State. The junior from Chicago recorded four (five solo), 2.0 sacks and 2.0 tackles for loss for the Redbirds against the Sycamores. Abdullah now leads the team with 8.5 sacks on the year and 11.0 tackles for loss. He currently ranks third in the FCS in sacks per game (1.21) and No. 10 in TFLs per game (1.6).

MR. EFFICIENT

A new offensive attack for Illinois State is certainly paying dividends for quarterback Zack Annexstad, who is completing passes at a record rate for the Redbirds. His performance against South Dakota State was particularly eye-opening, as he completed 26-of-33 pass attempts (78.7 percent) for 162 yards with a touchdown. His season completion percentage has increased to 69.2 percent, which would rank first in school history if it holds and currently ranks him No. 9 in all of FCS football. 

COOL UNDER PRESSURE

A young and inexperienced Redbird defense headed into the season with a lot of question marks, however through five games they have not been the ones feeling the pressure: opposing quarterbacks and ball carriers have. Against Eastern Illinois, ISU racked up eight sacks and 12 tackles for loss and also picked up a pair of interceptions while forcing two fumbles with one recovery. All of that pressure finds them high in national rankings again this week, as the team has 25 sacks on the year and 52 tackles for loss. The Redbirds rank No. 2 in the FCS in team sacks per game (3.57) and No. 10 in team tackles for loss per game (7.4). ISU also ranks No. 15 in scoring defense (19.6 points per game) and No. 19 in total defense (315.9 yards per game).