For Immediate Release Aug. 29, 2016 Mike Kern

Illinois State • Indiana State • Missouri State • North Dakota State • Northern Iowa South Dakota • South Dakota State • Southern Illinois • Western Illinois • Youngstown State

1818 Chouteau Ave. • St. Louis, MO 63103 • (314) 444-4360 • FAX (314) 444-4361

2016 Valley Football Standings (thru 8/27) • • Media Services • • MVFC Points Overall Points Players of the Week Team W-L Pct. For Opp W-L Pct. For Opp H A Stk. Each week a panel will select players of the week for offense, defense, newcomer, North Dakota St. 0-0 .000 0 0 1-0 1.000 24 17 1-0 0-0 W10 Illinois State 0-0 .000 0 0 0-0 .000 0 0 0-0 0-0 L1 offensive line and special teams. Indiana State 0-0 .000 0 0 0-0 .000 0 0 0-0 0-0 W1 Missouri State 0-0 .000 0 0 0-0 .000 0 0 0-0 0-0 L9 Valley Football Radio Report Northern Iowa 0-0 .000 0 0 0-0 .000 0 0 0-0 0-0 L1 Each week’s games are previewed on South Dakota 0-0 .000 0 0 0-0 .000 0 0 0-0 0-0 L2 the Missouri Valley Football Conference S. Dakota State 0-0 .000 0 0 0-0 .000 0 0 0-0 0-0 L2 Radio Report, produced by Jim Pow- Southern Illinois 0-0 .000 0 0 0-0 .000 0 0 0-0 0-0 L4 ers. The report can be heard on most Western Illinois 0-0 .000 0 0 0-0 .000 0 0 0-0 0-0 L1 schools’ network affiliate station. Youngstown State 0-0 .000 0 0 0-0 .000 0 0 0-0 0-0 L2

Weekly Features The league produces weekly video What’s On Tap Grid Bits segments (Two Minute Drill and The Ex- Saturday, Aug. 27 u Three MVFC coaches are making their tra Point) and an audio podcast. Each debuts this week as Charlie Fisher is available by visiting the league’s web #1 N. Dakota St. 24, #6 Chas. Southern 17 takes over at Western Illinois; site (valleyfootball.org) Thursday, Sept. 1 takes the reigns at Southern Illinois; and , previously at Western Coaches Calls Southwestern (Kan.) at Missouri State Illinois, is now at South Dakota. Teleconferences featuring the Springfield, MO • 6:00 p.m. (ESPN3) u MVFC schools have combined for a league’s head coaches are on the first #20 Western Illinois at RV Eastern Illinois 120-27 non-conference record over the Tuesday of each month during the Charleston, IL • 6:00 p.m. (OVC Net) season at 10 a.m. CT. Replays are ac- past five-plus seasons against peer RV Duquesne at #24 Youngstown State FCS schools. Last season the MVFC cessible on the league web site. Youngstown, OH • 6:30 p.m. (ESPN3) was 22-5 against FCS schools, includ- 877-393-4731 RV South Dakota at New Mexico ing a 9-4 record against ranked FCS Albuquerque, NM • 8:00 p.m. (ROOT) teams. This year, the league is 1-0 Aug. 2 • Sept. 6 • Oct. 4 • Nov. 1 overall and 1-0 against ranked teams. 10:00 am CT – Mike Sanford, INS Saturday, Sept. 3 u Dating back to a Nov. 9, 2013, South 10:06 am CT – Bo Pelini, YSU Butler at RV Indiana State Dakota 38-34 loss to Montana in 10:12 am CT – Charlie Fisher, WIU Terre Haute, IN • 2:00 p.m. (ESPN3) Vermillion and including North Dakota 10:18 am CT – , ILS RV Southern Illinois at Florida Atlantic State’s season-opening win against 10:24 am CT – Nick Hill, SIU Boca Raton, FL • 5:00 p.m. Charleston Southern, MVFC schools 10:30 am CT – Dave Steckel, MSU Valparaiso at #8 Illinois State have combined to post a 42-1 home 10:36 am CT – , SDSU Normal, IL • 6:00 p.m. (ESPN3) record against non-conference FCS 10:42 am CT – Bob Nielson, USD #8 South Dakota State at #14 TCU teams. (Illinois State’s loss to Rich- 10:48 am CT – , UNI Fort Worth, Texas • 7:00 p.m. (FSN) mond in last year’s playoffs is the only 10:54 am CT – , NDSU #4 UNI at Iowa State loss in the past two seasons.) Ames, Iowa • 7:00 p.m. (CycloneTV) u Six MVFC teams open the season www.valley-football.org ranked in the Top 25 in one or more facebook.com/ValleyFootball of the pre-season polls (FCS Coaches, Ranking is highest ranking in FCS Coaches, STATS STATS or HERO Sports). Sixteen play- or HERO Sports top-25 polls. RV=receiving votes @valleyfootball • @FCS_Insider ers are on the STATS FCS pre-season @ESPNCFB • @NCAA_FCS Times denoted are Central All-America Team and 14 are on the @FCS_STATS • @HeroSportsNews HERO Sports pre-season units. 2016 Missouri Valley Football Conference Weekly Release (Aug. 29)

2015 Vs. Non-League (24-14) This Week in the MVFC Preseason Poll, Revisited All 10 league schools are in action this Team (first-place votes) Points Last Year Home: 17-1 / Away: 6-13 / Neut: 1-0 week, with four games on Thurs., Sept. 1, 1. N. Dakota State (37) 388 t-1st NCAA FCS Teams (22-5) and five games on Sat., Sept. 3. Top-ranked 2. UNI (2) 343 t-3rd and five-time defending national champion 3. S. Dakota State 284 t-3rd Big Sky...... 8-2 4. Illinois State 274 t-1st Cal Poly...... 1-0 North Dakota State opened its season Sat- 5. Youngstown State 254 t-6th UC Davis...... 1-0 urday (Aug. 27), with a 24-17 overtime win 6. Western Illinois 176 t-3rd Eastern Washington...... 1-0 against No. 6 Charleston Southern. Montana...... 1-2 7. South Dakota 146 t-6th North Dakota...... 1-0 8. Southern Illinois 124 9th Portland State...... 1-0 Against the FBS 9. Indiana State 115 t-6th Southern Utah...... 1-0 Four games this week will be against FBS 10. Missouri State 41 10th Weber State...... 1-0 Big South...... 1-1 schools on the road, as Southern Illinois Coastal Carolina...... 0-1 travels to Florida Atlantic (C-USA); South Da- 6 MVFC Teams in Top 25 Liberty...... 1-0 kota takes on New Mexico (Mountain West); Six MVFC teams are ranked in the pre- CAA Football...... 1-1 South Dakota State faces No. 14 TCU (Big Richmond...... 1-1 season Top 25 polls. North Dakota State, Mid-Eastern Athletic...... 1-0 12); and UNI is at Iowa State (Big 12). No. 1 in all three polls (FCS Coaches, Morgan State...... 1-0 STATS and HERO Sports), is joined in the Northeast...... 3-0 Robert Morris...... 2-0 Against the FBS (All Time) Top 10 by UNI, Illinois State, and South Saint Francis (Pa.)...... 1-0 The MVFC has 38 wins against FBS Dakota State. NDSU has been ranked Ohio Valley...... 5-1 schools since 1985, including at least one in 80-consecutive top-25 regular-season Eastern Illinois...... 3-0 every year since 2010. Last year, the MVFC Jacksonville State...... 1-0 polls, the league’s longest active streak. Southeast Missouri State...... 1-1 was 1-9 against teams from FBS confer- Team FCS STATS HERO Pioneer Football...... 3-0 ences and the league has 10 total contests North Dakota State 1 1 1 Butler...... 1-0 against FBS schools in 2016 (each league Dayton...... 1-0 Northern Iowa 5 5 4 Drake...... 1-0 school has one opponent.) North Dakota Illinois State 8 10 8 State, with 5-straight FBS victories, is the South Dakota State 14 8 10 NCAA FBS Teams (1-9) first MVFC school to win as many as three- Western Illinois 24 20 20 straight contests vs. the FBS. The Bison, Youngstown State RV RV 24 ACC...... 0-1 Pittsburgh...... 0-1 who play at Iowa this year, did not play an American Athletic...... 0-1 FBS opponent in 2015. Memphis...... 0-1 5 on STATS Defensive List MVFC Wins vs. FBS Schools (last 5 years only) Big 12...... 1-2 The MVFC has five student-athletes on Iowa State...... 0-1 2010 (6) -- NDSU (at Kansas) the STATS FCS Defensive Player of the Year Kansas...... 1-0 2011 (6) -- INS (at W. Kentucky), NDSU (at Minnesota) Kansas State...... 0-1 2012 (10) -- YSU (at Pittsburgh), NDSU (at Colorado St.) Watch List -- LB Dylan Cole of Missouri Big Ten...... 0-4 ILS (at Eastern Michigan) State, LB Nick DeLuca of North Dakota Illinois...... 0-1 2013 (16) -- NDSU (at Kansas State), UNI (at Iowa State) State, DE Derek Rivers of Youngstown Indiana...... 0-1 2014 (8) -- NDSU (at Iowa State), INS (at Ball State) Iowa...... 0-1 2015 (9) -- SDSU (at Kansas) State, DE Greg Menard of North Dakota Purdue...... 0-1 Number in parentheses represents total FCS wins vs. State and DE Karter Schult of UNI. Sun Belt...... 0-1 FBS schools in a given season. Arkansas State...... 0-1 2 on STATS Offensive List Non-Division I Teams (1-0) Defending National Champs QB Aaron Bailey of UNI and WR Jake Wieneke of South Dakota State are among Chadron State...... 1-0 League member North Dakota State is the five-time defending national champion. 22 players on the STATS FCS Offensive The Bison defeated Jacksonville State in the Player of the Year Watch List. vs. Ranked (FCS) Teams (9-4) FCS Title Game in Frisco, Texas, last January. It marks the seventh national champion- Pre-Season MVFC All-Americans A29 -- N. Dakota State at #12 Montana, L, 35-38 ship for an MVFC member. Here’s what the S3 -- Western Illinois vs. #25 E. Illinois, W, 33-5 A total of 16 MVFC student-athletes are S12 -- UNI vs. #7 Eastern Washington, W, 38-35 league’s national champions have done in on STATS’ pre-season All-America Team - S19 -- UNI vs. #17 Cal Poly, W, 34-20 the year after claiming a national title. more than any other league. And 14 from S19 -- Western Illinois vs. #1 Coastal Caro., L, 27-34 S26 -- Southern Illinois vs. #10 Liberty, W, 34-13 Previous Missouri Valley Football National Champs MVFC schools are on the HERO Sports N28 -- South Dakota State at #16 Montana, L, 17-24 1997 - Youngstown State (1998 -- 6-5, t3rd MVFC) pre-season All-America Team. N28 -- UNI vs. #24 Eastern Illinois, W, 53-17 2002 - Western Kentucky (2003 -- 9-4, t3rd MVFC) First-Team MVFC All-America Picks D5 -- UNI at #5 Portland State, W, 29-17 2011 - North Dakota State (2012 -- 14-1, 1st MVFC) D5 -- North Dakota State vs. #16 Montana, W, 37-6 WR - Jake Wieneke, junior, 6-4, 210, SDSU 2012 - North Dakota State (2013 -- 15-0, 1st MVFC) D11 -- Illinois State vs. #11 Richmond, L, 39-27 WR - Anthony Warrum, senior, 6-2, 200, ILS 2013 - North Dakota State (2014 -- 15-1, t1st MVFC) D18 -- North Dakota State vs. #11 Richmond, W, 33-7 OL - Zack Johnson, senior, 6-4, 329, NDSU 2014 - North Dakota State (2015 -- 13-2, t1st MVFC) J9 -- N. Dakota St. vs. #1 Jacksonville St., W, 37-10 DL - Derek Rivers, senior, 6-5, 255, YSU 2015 - North Dakota State (2016 -- ?, t1st MVFC) DL - Karter Schult, senior, 6-2, 265, UNI LB - Dylan Cole, senior, 6-1, 236, MSU LB - Nick DeLuca, senior, 6-3, 245, NDSU LS - Joshua Appel, senior, 6-2, 250, INS Going for a Three-Peat When the Redbirds won a share of the Missouri Valley Football Confer- ence championship for the second year in row in 2015, they set a new benchmark for the program. A chance for a third-straight league champion- ship in 2016 would only build on that record-setting achievement, but so would a third-straight trip to the FCS playoff. Twice in school history (1998- 99, 2014-15), ISU has made back-to-back trips to the FCS playoffs but the ILLINOIS STATE program has never advanced to the postseason in three-straight years. A Fortified Front REDBIRDS All five senior offensive lineman returning to start as a unit for the second (0-0, 0-0 MVFC) season in a row. The group, comprised of Dan Pawlak, Kyle Avaloy, Mark Spelman, Cameron Lee and Ryan Gelber started for the first time together S3 Valparaiso 6:00 p.m. in the 2015 opener at Iowa and did not miss a game as a group in 2015 on S10 at Northwestern 2:30 p.m. the way to a second-straight share of the MVFC title. Having all five start- S17 Eastern Illinois 2:00 p.m. ers back up front will surely be a comfort for new starting quarterback Jake S24 *at Indiana State 2:00 p.m. Kolbe and stable of running backs led by Jamal Towns, which will have to O1 *at North Dakota State 1:00 p.m. replace the gaudy numbers put up the past couple of seasons by First-Team O8 *Youngstown State 2:00 p.m. All-MVFC selections and Marshaun Coprich. O15 *Southern Illinois 6:00 p.m. O22 *at South Dakota 2:00 p.m. Protecting the Nest O29 *South Dakota State 2:00 p.m. ISU is a combined 36-7 at home during Spack’s tenure and have won 19 N5 *at Western Illinois 1:00 p.m. out of 20 of its games at Hancock Stadium since the renovation of the facil- N12 *Missouri State 12:00 p.m. ity in 2013. In addition, teams coming in for the home opener have been *MVFC game; Times Central greeted rudely, with the Redbirds winning all seven home-opening contests under the leadership of Spack and his staff.

Who Will It Be? For the second time in two seasons, Indiana State will go into its first game vs. Butler without a clear starter under center. In 2015, it was a battle between eventual starter Matt Adam and Cal transfer Zach Kline. The lone returner, however, is redshirt sophomore Isaac Harker, who led the Syca- mores on their game-winning drive against Youngstown State at home in the season finale on Nov. 21. His competition is redshirt junior Wyoming INDIANA STATE transfer Aaron Young, who transferred to ISU this fall. SYCAMORES From Backup QB to NFL Prospect WR Robert Tonyan Jr. originally came to Indiana State as a quarterback, (0-0, 0-0 MVFC) and after redshirting the 2012 season he was part of a dual QB setup with S3 Butler at Indiana State 3:00 p.m. Mike Perish in 2013. After a stellar year in 2015 that saw 601 yards and S10 at Minnesota 4:00 p.m. six touchdowns on 40 catches, the 6-5, 220-pound McHenry, Ill., native is S17 at SE Missouri State 7:00 p.m. knocking on the door of the all-time top-10 in receiving yards at ISU, just 25 yards away (1,348) from pushing former teammate Gary Owens (1,373) out S24 *Illinois State 3:00 p.m. of 10th all-time. O1 *Missouri State 3:00 p.m. O8 *at Western Illinois 4:00 p.m. O15 *South Dakota 3:00 p.m. Out of the Backfield O22 *at Southern Illinois 3:00 p.m. The Sycamores have been dealt two punishing blows after losing starting O29 *at Youngstown State 4:00 p.m. running back LeMonte Booker to an ACL injury in spring practice and losing N5 *UNI 1:00 p.m. sophomore Marlon Fleming to a toe injury during fall camp. Booker is out for N12 *at North Dakota State 3:30 p.m. the season and the duration of Fleming’s injury is unknown as of yet. Se- *MVFC game; Times Eastern nior Roland Genesy is the clear starter after leading ISU in rushing in 2015 with 582 yards and three scores. Lifting the Lid The Missouri State Bears kick off their 105th season of college foot- ball — and 75th season at Robert W. Plaster Stadium — Thursday (Sept. 1) when they welcome the Southwestern Moundbuilders to Springfield. MSU is 50-51-3 (.495) all-time in season openers, including a 14-20 mark in debut games since its move to Division I in 1982. Additionally, the Bears are 65-35-4 (.644) all time in home openers and have gone 24-8-2 as a D-I MISSOURI STATE program. Strength of Schedule BEARS Missouri State can once again make a valid claim as having one of the (0-0, 0-0 MVFC) toughest schedules in the Division I FCS ranks this fall. Based on STATS’ preseason FCS Poll, the Bears are slated to meet five of the top 20 teams in S1 Southwestern (Kan.) 6:00 p.m. the nation, in addition to traveling to perennial FBS power Kansas State on S10 at Murray State 6:00 p.m. Sept. 24. All eight of the Bears’ MVFC foes enter the season either ranked in S24 at Kansas State 6:00 p.m. the top 20 or receiving votes from the STATS voters. O1 *at Indiana State 2:00 p.m. O8 *North Dakota State 2:00 p.m. Leading the Sleuth O15 *Western Illinois 2:00 p.m. The Missouri State players have elected three co-captains to represent O22 *at UNI 1:00 p.m. them throughout the 2016 season. Senior Dylan Cole will represent the O29 *Southern Illinois 2:00 p.m. defense as captain, while senior Riley Shantz and junior Malik Earl will lead N5 *at South Dakota State 2:00 p.m. the offense this fall. N12 *at Illinois State 12:00 p.m. N19 *Youngstown State 2:00 p.m. *MVFC game; Times Central

Bison Win First Home OT Game North Dakota State’s 24-17 victory over Charleston Southern was the first- ever overtime game played at the Fargodome. Senior RB King Frazier scored on a 25-yard run on the first play of OT and the Bison defense held CSU without a first down to seal the victory. It was NDSU’s first overtime game since the 2010 NCAA quarterfinal loss at Eastern Washington. The Bison snapped a four-game losing streak in OT dating back to 1997 and improved to 3-5 in OT games. NDSU got a career-long 52-yard field goal from Cam Pedersen, a 23-yard pass- NORTH DAKOTA STATE ing TD from to , and took its first lead of the night BISON early in the fourth quarter on a 47-yard strike from Stick to RJ Urzendowski. Young Defensive Backfield Tested (1-0, 0-0 MVFC) NDSU returns eight starters and eight of the top nine tacklers from last year’s A27 #6 Charleston Southern W 24-17 (ot) defense that ranked third in the FCS in total defense (271.5) and fifth in scoring defense (15.3 ppg). New to the starting lineup are sophomore CBs Jaylaan Wim- S10 Eastern Washington 2:30 p.m. bush and Jalen Allison, who combined for eight tackles and four pass breakups S17 at Iowa 11:00 a.m. in the opener. Allison made his second career interception and Wimbush broke O1 *Illinois State 1:00 p.m. up a fourth-and-9 pass in the end zone on the final play of the game. O8 *at Missouri State 2:00 p.m. O15 *South Dakota State 2:30 p.m. O22 *at Western Illinois 6:00 p.m. Nine Bison in NFL Camps This Fall Four NDSU players from last season are with NFL teams including No. 2 O29 *at UNI 6:00 p.m. overall quarterback , fifth-round offensive lineman , and N5 *Youngstown State 2:30 p.m. undrafted free agent fullback and cornerback CJ Smith. NDSU N12 *Indiana State 2:30 p.m. has nine players still active in the NFL including Packers RB John Crockett, Char- N19 *at South Dakota 2:00 p.m. gers LB , Patriots LB Ramon Humber, Dolphins OL Billy Turner, and *MVFC game; Times Central Jets CB Marcus Williams. In the CFL, former Bison QB is with the and WR Ryan Smith is with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers. Season Openers UNI is 58-51-7 all-time in season openers and 15-11 in the last 22 years. UNI is 7-8 in season openers under Mark Farley. The last time UNI opened the season with a road win over an FBS opponent was in 2013 when UNI defeated the Cyclones, 28-20. UNI in Non-Conference NORTHERN IOWA UNI has the most victories among league members over top-25 non- conference opponents with 33 since 1985. UNI posted back-to-back wins PANTHERS against non-conference top-25 opponents in 2015 for the first time since the 2008 playoffs (Maine, New Hampshire) when they beat No. 7 Eastern (0-0, 0-0 MVFC) Washington (9/12/15) and No. 17 Cal Poly (9/19/15). UNI plays Eastern S3 at Iowa State 7:00 p.m. Washington in week three of the 2016 season. S10 Montana 4:00 p.m. S17 at Eastern Washington 6:00 p.m. Farley Wins O1 *Southern Illinois 4:00 p.m. Head coach Mark Farley has 129 career wins at the helm of the UNI foot- O8 *at South Dakota 2:00 p.m. ball program, tying Stan Sheriff who held a record of 129-101-4. O15 *at Youngstown State 6:00 p.m. O22 *Missouri State 1:00 p.m. O29 *North Dakota State 6:00 p.m. N5 *at Indiana State 12:00 p.m. N12 *at Western Illinois 1:00 p.m. N19 *South Dakota State at UNI 4:00 p.m. *MVFC game; Times Central

Program Builder Bob Nielson is in his first season with the Coyotes following three years at Western Illinois. USD is the sixth program Nielson has served as head coach at. He has taken four of the previous five programs to the playoffs within his first four years and captured NCAA Division II national championships with Minnesota Duluth in 2008 and 2010. SOUTH DAKOTA USD vs. the FBS South Dakota and New Mexico are meeting this week for the first time. COYOTES The Coyotes are taking on a FBS program for the ninth time in the last seven (0-0, 0-0 MVFC) seasons. USD beat Minnesota 41-38 in 2010 for its last win vs. a FBS team. S1 at New Mexico 8:00 p.m. QB Trio Could See Time S10 Weber State 2:00 p.m. USD has not announced a starting quarterback. The candidates include S17 at North Dakota 4:00 p.m. returning starter and senior Ryan Saeger, University of Minnesota transfer O1 *at Youngstown State 3:00 p.m. Chris Streveler, and redshirt freshman Austin Simmons. O8 *UNI 2:00 p.m. O15 *at Indiana State 2:00 p.m. O22 *Illinois State 2:00 p.m. New Offense, New Receivers O29 *Western Illinois 2:00 p.m. Nielson has installed an up-tempo offense that will certainly utilize N5 *at Southern Illinois 2:00 p.m. more wide outs than in years past. To that extent, USD’s initial depth chart N12 *at South Dakota State 2:00 p.m. includes two true freshmen receivers in Randy Baker (Daytona Beach, Fla.) N19 *North Dakota State 2:00 p.m. and Trystn Ducker (Bellevue, Neb.). Junior college transfer Alonge Brooks *MVFC game; Times Central caught 29 passes for 476 yards and five touchdowns at Riverside City Col- lege in California. Coach Stig Starts 20th Season Head coach John Stiegelmeier begins his 20th season as Jackrabbit head coach. The winningest coach in program history, Stiegelmeier enters Saturday night’s season opener at TCU with a 128-90 career record, includ- ing an 86-57 record since moving to the FCS ranks in 2004

Playing Up SOUTH DAKOTA STATE For the third year in a row, the South Dakota State University football team will open its season against a Football Bowl Subdivision opponent. The Jackrabbits dropped a 38-18 decision at nationally ranked Missouri in JACKRABBITS 2014, before scoring their first win over an FBS opponent in the Division I (0-0, 0-0 MVFC) era with a 41-38 win at Kansas last season. Overall, SDSU is 1-7 against FBS opponents since moving to the Division I ranks.. Four of those games S3 at TCU 7:00 p.m. have been season openers. S10 Drake 6:00 p.m. S17 Cal Poly 6:00 p.m. O1 *Western Illinois 6:00 p.m. Christion To Start O8 *at Southern Illinois 6:00 p.m. Sophomore Taryn Christion was named last week as the Jackrabbits’ O15 *at North Dakota State 2:30 p.m. starting quarterback for this week’s season opener, winning a closely O22 *Youngstown State 2:00 p.m. contested battle with senior and 2015 opening day starter Zach Lujan. O29 *at Illinois State 2:00 p.m. Christion started four games during his freshman season and compiled a N5 *Missouri State 2:00 p.m. 3-1 record en route to 1,286 passing yards and 347 yards. He accounted for N12 *South Dakota 2:00 p.m. 12 touchdowns — seven passing and five rushing — in earning a spot on the N19 *at UNI 4:00 p.m. league’s All-Newcomer Team. *MVFC game; Times Central

Hill Makes Debut Head coach Nick Hill will make his head coaching debut when Southern Illinois travels to Florida Atlantic for a 5 p.m. CT game on Saturday. Hill went 2-0 against FBS programs as a starting quarterback for the Salukis in 2006 and 2007. In 2006, Hill led SIU to an upset at Indiana, the MVFC’s first-ever win against a Big Ten program. In 2007, he backed it up with a win at North- ern Illinois. In Hill’s senior season, he guided the Salukis to an FCS Playoffs SOUTHERN ILLINOIS semifinal appearance, where Southern lost to Joe Flacco and Delaware. SALUKIS Chase Allen: All-America Candidate Senior linebacker Chase Allen proved himself as one of the best lineback- (0-0, 0-0 MVFC) ers in the nation in 2015. He had 120 tackles in 11 games, ranking third in the MVFC in tackles per game. He was MVFC Special Teams Player of the S3 at Florida Atlantic 5:00 p.m. Week after recording 10 tackles and two blocked kicks in the second half S10 SE Missouri State 6:00 p.m. alone in a win vs. Youngstown State. S17 Murray State 6:00 p.m. O1 *at UNI 4:00 p.m. O8 *South Dakota State 6:00 p.m. Coach Kill Connection O15 *at Illinois State 6:00 p.m. Head coach Nick Hill and four assistants have direct ties to former SIU O22 *Indiana State 2:00 p.m. coach Jerry Kill. Hill played for Coach Kill in 2005-07. Safeties coach Marty O29 *at Missouri State 2:00 p.m. Rodgers also played for Coach Kill at SIU, and offensive line coach Trevor N5 *South Dakota 2:00 p.m. Olson played for Coach Kill at Northern Illinois. Running backs coach Nate N12 *at Youngstown State 11:00 a.m. Griffin, tight ends coach Jay Nunez, and Olson were on Kill’s staff at Minne- N19 *Western Illinois 2:00 p.m. sota as quality control coaches before being hired by Hill at SIU. *MVFC game; Times Central Coach Fisher Era Begins When head coach Charlie Fisher leads Western onto the field Thursday, he will become the 28th coach to do so in Western Illinois history. He served as head coach at West Georgia, posting a 36-17 record in his five years leading the program. Preseason Top 25 WESTERN ILLINOIS Western Illinois received two more preseason ‘Top 25’ rankings when the STATS FCS and Coaches ‘Top 25’ poll each was released… The Leather- LEATHERNECKS necks were ranked 20th in the STATS poll and 24th in the Coaches… West- ern was ranked 22nd in both poll at the conclusion of the 2015 season… (0-0, 0-0 MVFC) The No. 16 ranking by the Sporting News poll remains the highest ranking for Western... It marks the first preseason ‘Top 25’ ranking for Western since S1 at Eastern Illinois 6:00 p.m. the 2008 season, and highest since starting 12th in the 2004 season. S10 Northern Arizona 3:00 p.m. S24 at Northern Illinois TBA O1 *at South Dakota State 6:00 p.m. Toughest Schedule Again O8 *Indiana State 3:00 p.m. The 2015 season saw Western finish with the nation’s toughest schedule. O15 *at Missouri State 2:00 p.m. At 6-5 in the regular season, but 5-3 and 3rd place in the Missouri Valley O22 *North Dakota State 6:00 p.m. Football Conference, Western earned an at-large bid to the postseason O29 *at South Dakota 2:00 p.m. and advanced to the second round... This year Western has five preseason N5 *Illinois State 1:00 p.m. ranked opponents on the schedule, another four receiving votes, and an- N12 *UNI 1:00 p.m. other against a FBS program (Northern Illinois). N19 *at Southern Illinois 2:00 p.m. *MVFC game; Times Central

Non-Conference Home Success YSU has won 26 of its last 27 non-conference regular-season home games since September 2004. The lone loss was a final-play 31-28 setback to Liberty in 2008. Since falling to the Flames on Sept. 27, 2008, the Penguins have won 15 straight at home against non-conference foes. All 15 wins have come against FCS programs. In the 15 games, the Guins have outscored the opposition 661-228 (an average of 43.7-16.1). YOUNGSTOWN STATE September Home Win Streak PENGUINS The Penguins have won 16 straight home games in the month of Sep- tember dating back to the start of the 2009 season. Since losing to Florida (0-0, 0-0 MVFC) International in overtime on Sept. 11, 2004, YSU is 26-1 in September at S1 Duquesne 7:30 p.m. Stambaugh Stadium. The lone loss was a final-play defeat to Liberty in 2008 (31-28). The Penguins own MVFC victories over UNI (2012), Illinois State S10 at West Virginia 2:00 p.m. (2011), Southern Illinois (2010) and Missouri State (2007). S17 Robert Morris 4:00 p.m. O1 *South Dakota 4:00 p.m. O8 *at Illinois State 3:00 p.m. Pennsylvania Visitors O15 *UNI 7:00 p.m. The Penguins have had a tremendous amount of success against visitors O22 *at South Dakota State 3:00 p.m. from the Keystone State. The last time YSU lost a home game to a team O29 *Indiana State 4:00 p.m. from Pennsylvania was to Villanova on Oct. 28, 1978 (22-17). Since that N5 *at North Dakota State 3:30 p.m. time, the Guins have won 32 straight home games against teams from N12 *Southern Illinois 12:00 p.m. Pennsylvania. Most of those contests have come against members of the N19 *at Missouri State 3:00 p.m. Division II PSAC. YSU has a pair of wins against Villanova and Duquesne *MVFC game; Times Eastern and three over Saint Francis. YSU beat Robert Morris in the first meeting between the schools last season.