2019 Illinois State Redbirds football team
The 2019 Illinois State Redbirds football team represented Illinois State University as a member of the Missouri Valley Football Conference (MVFC) during the 2019 NCAA Division I FCS football season. Led by 11th-year head coach Brock Spack, the Redbirds compiled an overall record of 10–5 with a mark of 5–3 in conference play, placing in a three-way tie for third in the MVFC. Illinois State received an at-large bid to the NCAA Division I Football Championship playoffs, where the Redbirds beat Southeast Missouri State in the first round and Central Arkansas in the second round before losing to the eventual national champion, North Dakota State, in the quarterfinals. The team played home games at Hancock Stadium in Normal, Illinois.
2019 Illinois State Redbirds football | |
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NCAA Division I Quarterfinal, L 3–9 vs. North Dakota State | |
Conference | Missouri Valley Football Conference |
Ranking | |
STATS | No. 7 |
FCS Coaches | No. 7 |
Record | 10–5 (5–3 MVFC) |
Head coach |
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Offensive coordinator | Kurt Beathard (4th season) |
Defensive coordinator | Travis Niekamp (2nd season) |
MVP | Ty DeForest, James Robinson |
Captain | Brady Davis, Luther Kirk, JT Bohlken |
Home stadium | Hancock Stadium (capacity: 13,391) |
Conf | Overall | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Team | W | L | W | L | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
No. 1 North Dakota State $^ | 8 | – | 0 | 16 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
No. 5 Northern Iowa ^ | 6 | – | 2 | 10 | – | 5 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
No. 7 Illinois State ^ | 5 | – | 3 | 10 | – | 5 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
No. 10 South Dakota State ^ | 5 | – | 3 | 8 | – | 5 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Southern Illinois | 5 | – | 3 | 7 | – | 5 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
South Dakota | 4 | – | 4 | 5 | – | 7 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Indiana State | 3 | – | 5 | 5 | – | 7 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Youngstown State | 2 | – | 6 | 6 | – | 6 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Missouri State | 1 | – | 7 | 1 | – | 10 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Western Illinois | 1 | – | 7 | 1 | – | 11 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Preseason
MVFC poll
In the MVFC preseason poll released on July 29, 2019, the Redbirds were predicted to finish in third place.[1]
Predicted finish | Team | Votes (1st place) |
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1 | North Dakota State | 392 (32) |
2 | South Dakota State | 348 (4) |
3 | Illinois State | 289 (3) |
4 | Indiana State | 279 (1) |
5 | Northern Iowa | 266 |
6 | South Dakota | 176 |
7 | Youngstown State | 153 |
8 | Western Illinois | 128 |
9 | Southern Illinois | 89 |
10 | Missouri State | 80 |
Preseason All–MVFC team
The Redbirds had four players selected to the preseason all-MVFC team.[2]
Offense James Robinson – RB Drew Himmelman – OL |
Defense Luther Kirk – DB Devin Taylor – DB |
Schedule
Date | Time | Opponent | Rank | Site | TV | Result | Attendance | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
August 31 | 6:00 p.m. | at Northern Illinois* | No. 15 | ESPN+ | L 10–24 | 14,568 | |||
September 7 | 6:30 p.m. | Morehead State* | No. 16 | NBCS CHIC+/ESPN+ | W 42–14 | 11,256 | |||
September 14 | 2:00 p.m. | at Eastern Illinois* | No. 13 | ESPN+ | W 21–3 | 6,119 | |||
September 21 | 6:30 p.m. | Northern Arizona* | No. 15 |
| ESPN+ | W 40–27 | 9,891 | ||
October 5 | 12:00 p.m. | No. 1 North Dakota State | No. 10 |
| NBCS CHIC/ESPN+ | L 3–37 | 13,391 | ||
October 12 | 6:00 p.m. | at Southern Illinois | No. 14 | ESPN3 | W 21–7 | 5,525 | |||
October 19 | 1:00 p.m. | at Western Illinois | No. 11 | ESPN+ | W 28–14 | 2,984 | |||
October 26 | 2:00 p.m. | Indiana State | No. 8 |
| ESPN3 | W 24–7 | 8,510 | ||
November 2 | 12:00 p.m. | No. 9 Northern Iowa | No. 7 |
| NBCS CHIC | L 10–27 | 6,705 | ||
November 9 | 2:00 p.m. | at No. 4 South Dakota State | No. 11 | ESPN+ | W 27–18 | 7,211 | |||
November 16 | 12:00 p.m. | Missouri State | No. 7 |
| NBCS CHIC/ESPN+ | W 17–12 | 5,701 | ||
November 23 | 11:00 a.m. | at Youngstown State | No. 7 | ESPN+ | L 3–21 | 9,190 | |||
November 30 | 1:00 p.m. | at No. 12 Southeast Missouri State* | No. 13 | ESPN3 | W 24–6 | 3,274 | |||
December 7 | 2:00 p.m. | at No. 9 Central Arkansas* | No. 13 |
| ESPN3 | W 24–14 | 5,127 | ||
December 14 | 11:00 a.m. | at No. 1 North Dakota State* | No. 13 | ESPN | L 3–9 | 14,132 | |||
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Game summaries
At Northern Illinois
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
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No. 15 Redbirds | 0 | 3 | 0 | 7 | 10 |
Huskies | 3 | 0 | 7 | 14 | 24 |
Morehead State
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Eagles | 0 | 0 | 7 | 7 | 14 |
No. 16 Redbirds | 21 | 14 | 0 | 7 | 42 |
At Eastern Illinois
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
No. 13 Redbirds | 7 | 7 | 7 | 0 | 21 |
Panthers | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
Northern Arizona
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Lumberjacks | 14 | 7 | 0 | 6 | 27 |
No. 15 Redbirds | 10 | 13 | 14 | 3 | 40 |
North Dakota State
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
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No. 1 Bison | 16 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 37 |
No. 10 Redbirds | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
At Southern Illinois
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
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No. 14 Redbirds | 7 | 7 | 7 | 0 | 21 |
Salukis | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 7 |
At Western Illinois
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
No. 11 Redbirds | 7 | 7 | 0 | 14 | 28 |
Leathernecks | 0 | 0 | 7 | 7 | 14 |
Indiana State
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Sycamores | 0 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 7 |
No. 8 Redbirds | 0 | 7 | 3 | 14 | 24 |
Northern Iowa
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
No. 9 Panthers | 7 | 7 | 0 | 13 | 27 |
No. 7 Redbirds | 0 | 7 | 3 | 0 | 10 |
At South Dakota State
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
No. 11 Redbirds | 7 | 3 | 3 | 14 | 27 |
No. 4 Jackrabbits | 3 | 8 | 7 | 0 | 18 |
Missouri State
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Bears | 6 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 12 |
No. 7 Redbirds | 7 | 7 | 0 | 3 | 17 |
At Youngstown State
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
No. 7 Redbirds | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
Penguins | 7 | 7 | 0 | 7 | 21 |
At Southeast Missouri State—NCAA Division I First Round
The Redbirds were selected for the postseason tournament, with a first-round pairing against Southeast Missouri State.[5]
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
No. 13 Redbirds | 14 | 7 | 0 | 3 | 24 |
No. 12 Redhawks | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 6 |
At Central Arkansas—NCAA Division I Second Round
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
No. 13 Redbirds | 0 | 21 | 0 | 3 | 24 |
No. 9 Bears | 0 | 7 | 0 | 7 | 14 |
At North Dakota State—NCAA Division I Quarterfinal
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
No. 13 Redbirds | 0 | ||||
No. 1 Bison | 0 |
Ranking movements
Week | |||||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Poll | Pre | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | Final |
STATS FCS | 15 | 16 | 13 | 15 | 14 | 10 | 14 | 11 | 8 | 7 | 11 | 7 | 7 | 13 | 7 |
Coaches | 13 | 16 | 13 | 10 | 8 | 6 | 13 | 10 | 7 | 7 | 12 | 8 | 6 | 14 | 7 |
References
- "North Dakota State Picked to Win Missouri Valley Football Crown". www.valleynewslive.com. Retrieved August 8, 2019.
- "MVFC Announces Preseason All-Conference Team". valley-football.org. Retrieved August 8, 2019.
- "Illinois State Redbirds Schedule 2019". ESPN. Retrieved November 29, 2022.
- "2019 Football Schedule". Illinois State University. Retrieved November 29, 2022.
- "FCS bracket revealed for 2019 Division I football championship". ncaa.com. November 24, 2019. Retrieved November 24, 2019.