For Immediate Release Sept. 16, 2007 Contact: Mike Kern

Illinois State • Indiana State • Missouri State • Northern Southern • Western Illinois • Youngstown State

1818 Chouteau Ave. • St. Louis, MO 63103 • (314) 421-2268 • FAX (314) 421-3505

2007 Gateway Football Standings (thru Sept. 15) • • Media Services • • Conference Points Overall Points Players of the Week Team W L For Opp Pct. W L For Opp Pct. Each week a panel will select players of the week for offense, defense, offensive Southern Illinois 0 0 0 0 .000 3 0 137 55 1.000 line and special teams. Northern Iowa 0 0 0 0 .000 3 0 96 44 1.000 Illinois State 0 0 0 0 .000 2 1 91 65 .667 Gateway Radio Report Missouri State 0 0 0 0 .000 2 1 123 122 .667 Each week’s games are previewed on Western Illinois 0 0 0 0 .000 2 1 98 47 .667 the Gateway Radio Report, produced by Jim Powers. The report can be heard on Youngstown State 0 0 0 0 .000 2 1 71 61 .667 each school’s network affiliate. Indiana State 0 0 0 0 .000 0 3 34 100 .000

VideoStreaming Through its partnership with XOS 2007 Upcoming Schedule, Last Week’s Gateway Results Technologies, the Gateway has a confer- ence-wide subscription service available Upcoming Schedule LastLast Week’s Week’s ResultsResults to view a number of games. Visit the league web site for addtional info. Saturday, Sept. 22 Saturday, Sept. 15 Illinois State at Missouri #15 Illinois State 24 Weekly Coaches Call 4 Columbia, Mo. • 1 p.m. CT #14 Eastern Illinois 21 Teleconferences featuring the First Meeting league’s head coaches are each ISU has lost, 32-21 (Iowa State) and 4Luke Drone - 267 yards on 20-for-31 passing in the air with two TDs Wednesday at 10 a.m. CT. Replays are 24-23 (K-State), in last two vs. Big 12 accessible on the league web site. Eastern Illinois at Indiana State Indiana State 10 , ILS, 10:05 a.m. 4 Terre Haute, Ind. • 6 p.m. ET Southeast Missouri State 13 Lou West, INS, 10:10 a.m. EIU leads series, 40-37-4 Last Meeting: EIU, 31-21, 2006 4QB Reilly Murphy - 13-of-27 for a sea- Terry Allen, MSU, 10:15 a.m. ISU’s 3rd-straight vs. OVC opponent son-high 203 yards, plus a TD , UNI, 10:20 a.m. , SIU, 10:25 a.m. Central Arkansas at Missouri State Missouri State 10 Don Patterson, WIU, 10:30 a.m. 4 Springfield, Mo. • 6 p.m. CT Kansas State 61 Jon Heacock, YSU, 10:35 a.m. UCA leads series, 3-2 Last Meeting: UCA, 16-14, 2006 4QB Cody Kirby - 9-of-17 for 62 yards 913-312-6696 Last time Bears entered conference play with 3-1 record was in 2004 #4 Northern Iowa 31 www.gatewayfootball.org Northern Iowa at Drake (Mediacom) South Dakota State 17 4 Des Moines, Iowa • 4 p.m. CT 4RB Corey Lewis - 289 rushing/receiv- Drake leads series, 25-19-1 ing yards and three rushing TDs Last Meeting: UNI, 48-7, 2006 3rd of 4-straight road games for UNI #6 Southern Illinois 44 This Week’s (Sept. 15) Arkansas-Pine Bluff at Southern Illinois Southern Utah 10 4 Carbondale, Ill. • 1:30 p.m. CT Gateway Conference SIU leads series, 1-0 4QB Nick Hill threw for a career-high Players of the Week Last Meeting: SIU, 48-16, 2006 252 yards and four TDs. Gateway is 12-1 vs. SWAC members Offense St. Francis (Ill.) 0 Western Illinois at Stephen F. Austin #21 Western Illinois 69 RB Corey Lewis, UNI 4 Nacogdoches, Texas • 6 p.m. CT Defense SFA leads series, 1-0 4Nine WIU ball carriers combined for a Last Meeting: SFA, 63-36, 2005 school-record 519 rushing yards. FS Dorian Chenault, Youngstown St. WIU is 4-5-1 vs. members of Southland Special Teams Stony Brook 6 Lock Haven at Youngstown State PK Taylor Rowan, Western Illinois 4 Youngstown, Ohio • 4 p.m. ET #6 Youngstown State 42 Offensive Lineman YSU leads series, 2-0 4YSU - a 21-point second quarter and Last Meeting: YSU, 38-7, 2001 four first half in the win TBA Outscored LHU, 74-13, in 2 meetings 2007 Gateway Football Conference Weekly Release (Sept. 16)

Players of the Week (Sept. 15) Panthers, Salukis - Both 3-0 Drake-UNI to Air on Statewide TV UNI and Southern Illinois both won last Mediacom and Drake officials an- Offensive weekend to improve to 3-0 on the season. nounced last week that the in-state foot- The last time the Gateway had two teams ball match-up between Drake and UNI on RB Corey Lewis, UNI perfect after three games was in 2003 Sept. 22 will be televised live throughout Jr., 6-0, 197, St. Paul (Neb.) High (SIU and Western Kentucky). That year, the state on the Mediacom with a 4 p.m. Lewis caught 10 passes for 164 yards, SIU was 10-0 before losing the season kick-off time at Drake Stadium. rushed 18 times for 125 yards and scored finale at UNI. Western Kentucky lost its three in leading UNI to a 31-17 fourth game (at Auburn). In 2003, the Blank Stares victory at South Dakota State. Lewis tallied Gateway set an FCS record by sending four Western Illinois shut out St. Francis (Ill.), career-bests in receptions, receiving yards, to the playoffs (UNI, SIU, WIU, WKU). 69-0, on Saturday. Gateway teams have all-purpose yards (289) and touchdowns. In recorded a minimum of three shutouts two career games against SDSU, Lewis has Two Gateway Teams at 4-0? each of the past seven years (2006-3; rushed 34 times for 321 yards (9.4 avg.) In the 23-year history of the Gateway, 2005-4; 2004-4; 2003-4; 2002-6; 2001- and five touchdowns. two different league teams have not won 3; 2000-4). There have been a total of 15 their first four games in a season. South- shutouts in league games: ern Illinois (3-0) hosts Ark.-Pine Bluff, and Team Last Shutout Recorded UNI (3-0) is at Drake on Sept. 22. Defensive ILS Sept. 24, 2005 (42-0 vs. Murray State) INS Aug. 29, 1996 (48-0 vs. Mars Hill) FS Dorian Chenault, Youngstown State Best Starts in League History MSU Sept. 18, 2004 (45-0 vs. Union) Sr., 6-1, 200, Canton (Ohio) McKinley In Gateway history, six teams have UNI Sept. 11, 2004 (40-0 vs. Minn. State) SIU Nov. 18, 2006 (59-0 vs. Southern Utah) Chenault was credited with five tackles, started the season 6-0. All six went on to postseason play. SIU’s 10-0 beginning in WIU Sept. 15, 2007 (69-0 vs. St. Francis) but had a forced fumble and an intercep- YSU Oct. 8, 2005 (45-0 vs. Indiana State) tion in the 42-6 victory over Stony Brook. 2003 established a league record for best Entering the contest, the Seawolves aver- starts to a season by a Gateway member. Gateway vs. Ohio Valley aged more than 40 points a game and had Start Team Year Since 1985, the Gateway has compiled scored 12 touchdowns. However, the YSU 10-0 *Southern Illinois 2003 (lost at UNI) a 95-47-1 record against the Midwest- defensive unit limited them to just two field 9-0 *Western Illinois 1988 (lost at N. Illinois) based rival Ohio Valley Conference, goals. 8-0 *UNI 1992 (lost at E. Illinois) including a 1-1 record last week. Indiana 6-0 *Youngstown St. 2000 (lost at W. Illinois) State hosts Eastern Illinois this Saturday. 6-0 *Youngstown St. 1997 (lost at UNI) The Gateway has a streak of five-straight Special Teams 6-0 *Missouri State 1989 (lost at Western Ky.) winning seasons against the OVC, and the GFC is 3-2 against the OVC this year. No- * FCS playoff participant that season PK Taylor Rowan, Western Illinois tably, the Gateway has won seven-straight Jr., 6-0, 185, Melbourne (Fla.) High playoff meetings against OVC members, Rowan scored 15 points in the Leather- Sanders Hits 19 Straight dating back to 2001. QB Eric Sanders of UNI completed 19- necks’ easy win against visiting St. Francis. straight passes in the Panthers’ victory at He was 2-for-3 on field goals, including a South Dakota State on Saturday, Sept. 15. Long-Time Rivals long of 52, just one yard shy of his career It is one completion shy of the league and Indiana State faces Eastern Illinois on high. And nailed all nine extra points, FCS record for consecutive completions. Sept. 22 in one of the most-played rival- extending his PAT streak to an even 100, ries in the Gateway. Here are the longest remaining perfect on his career. The league *20, Austin Moherman, MSU, vs. Indiana St., 2000 rivalries involving GFC members and any record is 103, held by Western Kentucky’s 19, Eric Sanders, UNI, vs. S. Dakota State, 2007 opponent: Chris James (2004-06). 17, Sean Payton, EIU, vs. Western Kentucky, 1986 Most Played Rivalries, by number of games 17, Sam Clemons, WIU, vs. Indiana State, 2001 15, Tom Zetts, YSU, vs. Western Kentucky, 2004 *96 - Illinois State vs. Eastern Illinois (series began in 1901) * NCAA FCS record *88 - Illinois State vs. Western Illinois (began in 1904) *81 - Indiana State vs. Eastern Illinois (began in 1901) 78 - Illinois State vs. Illinois Wesleyan (began in 1887) Success Against the FBS 74 - Southern Illinois vs. SE Missouri State (began in 1913) The Gateway has a total of 27 victories *71 - Missouri State vs. SE Missouri State (began in 1917) against FBS schools since 1985, including *69 - Illinois State vs. Southern Illinois (began in 1929) at least one every year from 1996 through 65 - Western Illinois vs. Eastern Illinois (began in 1930) 2003, and three in the past two seasons. *played or will play in 2007 Southern Illinois (at Indiana in 2006, and at Northern Illinois in 2007) became the first Gateway school since Western Illinois (2002 and 2003) to win against an FBS opponent in back-to-back years. Illinois State plays at Missouri on Sept. 22. The Gateway is 2-4 against the FBS this year. 2007 Gateway Football Conference Weekly Release (Sept. 16)

Vs. Non-League (14-7) Redbirds Top No. 14 Eastern Five Teams in Top 25, Again Illinois State beat Eastern Illinois, 24-21, The Sept. 10, 2007, poll marked the Home: 8-2 / Away: 6-5 in Charleston, Ill., on Sept. 15, lifting the first time in league history that five Gate- league’s record against FCS-ranked teams way teams were ranked in the Top 25 in NCAA FCS Teams (8-3) to 3-0 this season. It marked ISU’s sixth- back-to-back weeks. Great West...... 4-0 straight victory against the Panthers. Ear- 9/20/99 UNI (4), Illinois State (11), Western Illinois #North Dakota State...... 0-0 lier this season Western Illinois defeated (13), Youngstown (18), SIU (25) #South Dakota State...... 3-0 No. 19 South Dakota State, and Missouri Southern Utah...... 1-0 State won at No. 20 Tennessee-Martin. 9/3/01 Youngstown (5), W. Illinois (7), Western Mid-Eastern Athletic...... 0-0 Kentucky (10), Illinois St. (21), UNI (24) Hampton...... 0-0 10/14/02 W. Illinois (10), Youngstown State (17), UNI Ohio Valley Conference...... 3-2 Against the Top 25 (21), SIU (25), Western Ky. (25) Austin Peay...... 0-1 Since 1996, the Gateway has 61 non- Eastern Illinois...... 1-0 conference top-25 wins, including this 10/24/05 Western Ky. (1), S. Illinois (8), Youngstown Murray State...... 1-0 year’s 3-0 mark. State (11), Illinois State (18), UNI (21) Southeast Missouri State...... 0-1 Year Rec. ‘Biggest’ Win 11/14/05 UNI (10), S. Illinois (11), Youngstown UT-Martin...... 1-0 State (15), Western Ky. (23), ILS (24) Pioneer Football League...... 0-1 1985 2-4 UNI, 37-17, vs. No. 8 Delaware Drake...... 0-1 1986 2-4 *EIU, 28-21, vs. No. 20 Murray St. 9/25/06 Illinois State (6), Youngstown St. (8), Southland Football League...... 0-0 1987 2-7 *UNI, 49-28, vs. No. 12 Ark. State S. Illinois (10), UNI (13), W. Illinois (21) #Central Arkansas...... 0-0 1988 1-5 EIU, 6-0, vs. No. 5 Western Ky. 9/3/07 Youngstown St. (6), UNI (7), S. Illinois Stephen F. Austin...... 0-0 1989 6-4 *EIU, 38-21, vs. No. 4 Idaho (10), Illinois St. (17), W. Illinois (23) Southwestern Athletic...... 0-0 1990 0-3 Arkansas-Pine Bluff...... 0-0 1991 2-2-1 UNI, 36-14, vs. No. 2 Idaho 9/10/07 UNI (4), Youngstown St. (6), S. Illinois Independents...... 1-0 1992 4-6 UNI, 27-26, vs. No. 2 Idaho (6), Illinois St. (15), W. Illinois (21) Stony Brook...... 1-0 1993 3-7 ILS, 13-10, vs. No. 1 Youngstown #denotes ‘reclassifying’ FCS teams 1994 1-6-1 SIU, 10-7, vs. No. 16 Western Ky. 1995 2-6 *UNI, 35-34, at No. 4 Murray State Fearsome Foursome NCAA BCS Teams (2-4) 1996 7-5 MSU, 12-7, vs. No. 3 McNeese A minimum of four Gateway teams have UNI, 38-12, vs. No. 3 SF Austin been ranked in the same top-25 poll 65 Big 12...... 1-1 1997 8-9 *YSU, 37-34, vs. No. 1 Villanova times in league history, including a league- Iowa State...... 1-0 1998 5-8 *WIU, 24-21, vs. No. 2 Florida A&M Kansas State...... 0-1 1999 9-5 *ILS, 37-20, vs. No. 4 Hofstra record 13 polls (every week) in 2006. Missouri...... 0-0 2000 4-5 YSU, 42-35, vs. No. 8 Hofstra Big Ten...... 0-3 2001 3-6 *UNI, 49-43, vs. No. 3 E. Illinois Three-Headed Monsters Illinois...... 0-1 2002 5-4 *WKU, 34-14, vs. No. 1 McNeese In league history, three Gateway Confer- Indiana...... 0-1 2003 7-4 *WIU, 43-40, at No. 11 Montana Ohio State...... 0-1 2004 0-2 ence teams have been ranked among the Mid-American...... 1-0 2005 5-2 *UNI, 24-21, at No. 1 N. Hampshire nation’s Top 10 the same week 26 times. Northern Illinois...... 1-0 2006 5-4 YSU, 35-31, vs. No. 6 J. Madison Poll Teams (Rank) Sun Belt...... 0-0 2007 3-0 WIU, 29-26 (4ot) vs. No. 19 SDSU #Western Kentucky...... 0-0 TOTALS 86-110-2 S2, 1997 UNI (4), W. Illinois (5), Youngstown (9) *denotes playoff game S3, 2001 Youngstown (5), W. Illinois (7), WKU (10) Non-Division I Teams (4-0) S10, 2002 Youngstown (3), W. Illinois (6), WKU (8) O6, 2003 W. Illinois (2), S. Illinois (8), WKU (9) Lock Haven...... 0-0 Top Ten Teams Minnesota State (Mankato)...... 1-0 O13, 2003 W. Illinois (2), S. Illinois (7), WKU (9) Missouri-Rolla...... 1-0 A minimum of two Gateway teams have O20, 2003 SIU (4), WIU (7), WKU (8), UNI (9)* Quincy (Ill.)...... 1-0 been ranked in the top 10 (not counting O27, 2003 SIU (3), UNI (6), WKU (7) St. Francis (Ill.)...... 1-0 pre-season polls) during the same week N3, 2003 SIU (3), UNI (6), WKU (9), WIU (10)* 115 times in league history. Before 1996, N10, 2003 SIU (2), WKU (7), WIU (10) that had only happened once (Missouri N17, 2003 SIU (5), UNI (7), WIU (10), WKU (10)* N24, 2003 SIU (4), UNI (6), WKU (8), WIU (10)* vs. Ranked (FCS) Teams (3-0) State/UNI in 1990). Dating back to the final 2002 poll, the Gateway has had at Final 2003 UNI (5), WIU (5), WKU (7), SIU (10)* S13, 2004 SIU (2), UNI (7), WKU (10) A30 -- W. Illinois vs. #19 SDSU...... W, 29-26 (4OT) least two teams in the top 10 in 53 of 56 S6 -- Missouri St. at #20 UT-Martin...... W, 51-44 S12, 2005 SIU (1), WKU (2), UNI (9) S15 -- Illinois State at #14 E. Illinois...... W, 24-21 top-25 polls. S19, 2005 WKU (1), SIU (2), UNI (10) S26, 2005 SIU (2), WKU (3), UNI (8) vs. Ranked (BCS) Teams (0-1) Poll Position, Consecutive Ranks O3, 2005 SIU (2), WKU (3), UNI (6) S1 -- Youngstown St. at #10 Ohio State...... L, 6-38 Through the Sept. 10, 2007, poll, South- S4, 2006 UNI (3), Illinois State (7) Youngstown St. (8) ern Illinois has the Gateway Conference’s S18, 2006 Illinois State (6), YSU (8), S. Illinois (10) S25, 2006 Illinois State (6), YSU (8), S. Illinois (10) longest active streak as the Salukis have O2, 2006 Illinois State (6), YSU (8), S. Illinois (9) been ranked in 54-straight polls. UNI has O9, 2006 Illinois State (5), YSU (6), S. Illinois (7) the next-best active streak, with 30-con- O23, 2006 Illinois State (3), UNI (7), Youngstown (10) secutive poll appearances. The league Final 2006 YSU (4), S. Illinois (7), Illinois State (8) record is 96 (UNI, 1990-97). SIU’s streak S3, 2007 YSU (6), UNI (7), Southern Illinois (10) of 54 is second-best all-time in the GFC. S10, 2007 UNI (4), YSU (6), Southern Illinois (6) *four teams in Top 10 in same week is a GFC record; does not include pre-season top-25 polls 2007 Gateway Football Conference Weekly Release (Sept. 16)

Fab Four Longest Game Ever Is a 4OT Win 2007 Gateway Television In league history, four teams have been The Western Illinois 4OT victory against (includes only the Gateway-produced package and ranked among the nation’s Top 15 the South Dakota State marked the “longest” other games targeted for national distribution) same week 26 times. game in Gateway history. In league his- Network Air Time Poll Teams (Rank) tory, 34 games -- including the WIU-SDSU affair -- have gone overtime, and only three S1 -- Youngstown State at Ohio State O1, 2001 YSU (8), WKU (11), WIU (14), UNI (15) of those previous contests have lasted as Big Ten Network 12 p.m. ET -- LIVE O8, 2001 YSU (5), WKU (11), WIU (14), UNI (14) O15, 2001 YSU (5), WKU (10), WIU (11), UNI (12) many as three overtime periods. S1 -- Indiana State at Indiana S29, 2003 WIU (2), WKU (5), SIU (11), UNI (15) Big Ten Network 8 p.m. ET -- LIVE O6, 2003 WIU (2), SIU (8), WKU (9), UNI (12) Penguins Aim for Three-Peat O13, 2003 WIU (2), SIU (7), WKU (9), UNI (11) In 2007, Youngstown State is aiming S8 -- Western Illinois at Illinois O20, 2003 SIU (4), WIU (7), WKU (8), UNI (9)* for a third-straight Gateway Conference O27, 2003 SIU (3), UNI (6), WKU (7), WIU (12) Big Ten Network 6 p.m. CT -- LIVE N3, 2003 SIU (3), UNI (6), WKU (9), WIU (10)* crown. In league history only UNI (seven- N10, 2003 SIU (2), WKU (7), WIU (10) straight from 1990-96) and Southern S8 -- Southern Illinois at Northern Illinois N17, 2003 SIU (5), UNI (7), WIU (10), WKU (10)* Illinois (three-straight from 2003-05) have Comcast Chicago 6:30 p.m. CT -- LIVE N24, 2003 SIU (4), UNI (6), WKU (8), WIU (10)* managed to earn three-straight Gateway Mediacom (SIU) 6:30 p.m. CT -- LIVE Final 2003 UNI (5), WIU (5), WKU (7), SIU (10)* Conference crowns. S13, 2004 SIU (2), UNI (7), WKU (10), WIU (15) S29 -- Southern Illinois at Indiana State O10, 2005 SIU (1), WKU (3), UNI (14), YSU (15) FCS Central 11 a.m. CT -- LIVE O17, 2005 WKU (1), SIU (10), UNI (13), YSU (14) League Expands for 2008 Mediacom (SIU) 11 a.m. CT -- LIVE O31, 2005 SIU (5), WKU (6), UNI (14), YSU (15) In March 2007, Gateway Conference FSN Midwest 12 p.m. CT (Oct. 4) -- TD S18, 2006 ILS (6), YSU (8), S. Illinois (10), UNI (12) presidents voted to extend membership Metro Sports (KC) TBD S25, 2006 ILS (6), YSU (8), S. Illinois (10), UNI (13) to both North Dakota State and South Da- O2, 2006 ILS (6), YSU (8), S. Illinois (9), UNI (14) O9, 2006 ILS (5), YSU (6), S. Illinois (7), UNI (14) kota State, effective for the 2008 season. O6 -- Youngstown State at Southern Illinois O16, 2006 ILS (3), YSU (5), S. Illinois (13), UNI (14) NDSU and SDSU currently compete in the CSTV 2:30 p.m. CT -- LIVE O30, 2006 YSU (7), ILS (8), UNI (12), S. Illinois (14) Great West Conference. Next fall, the N6, 2006 YSU (6), ILS (6), UNI (12), S. Illinois (14) Gateway will have its largest membership O6 -- Illinois State at Missouri State N20, 2006 YSU (5), SIU (10), ILS (11), UNI (15) (nine schools) in the league’s history. FCS Central 2 p.m. CT -- LIVE S10, 2007 UNI (4), YSU (6), SIU (6), ILS (15) WYZZ (Illinois) 2 p.m. CT -- LIVE *four teams in Top 10 in same week is a GFC record Mediacom (MSU) 7 p.m. CT -- TD Dakota Watch Comcast Chicago 12 p.m. CT (Oct. 7) -- TD • Steve Walker threw a 27-yard touch- FSN Midwest TBD -- TD Five in Gateway on FCS Lists down pass to Kole Heckendorf with 7 Metro Sports (KC) TBD Five Gateway seconds left to cap a dramatic rally and players are among lift fourth-ranked North Dakota State (2-0) O20 -- UNI at Western Illinois 32 nationwide over No. 14 Sam Houston State 41-38 on FSN Midwest 6:30 p.m. CT -- LIVE players listed by Sept. 15. The game was played before FCS Central 6:30 p.m. CT -- LIVE The Sports Comcast Chicago 6:30 p.m. CT -- Live* 18,961 fans at the Fargodome. It was Comcast Chicago 12 p.m. CT (Oct. 21) -- TD Network as official NDSU’s third straight sellout. NDSU plays Mediacom (KC) TBD “Payton Watch” and “Buchanan Battle” at Central Michigan on Sept. 22. *select markets in Iowa only members. Representing the Gateway on • South Dakota State (0-3) fell for the the Payton list is RB Herb Donaldson of third-straight time against a Gateway O27 -- Youngstown State at UNI WIU, QB Eric Sanders of UNI and QB Luke team, losing at home to No. 4 UNI, 31-17. FCS Central 3 p.m. CT -- LIVE Drone of ILS. LBs Kye Stewart of ILS and KFXA (Iowa) 3 p.m. CT -- LIVE The Jackrabbits host Texas State Sept. 22. KDSM (Iowa) 3 p.m. CT -- LIVE James Terry of YSU are on the Buchanan WFMJ (Ohio) 4 p.m. ET -- LIVE list. The honors will be presented at the FSN Midwest 12 p.m. CT (Oct. 31) -- TD 21st annual FCS Awards Metro Sports (KC) TBD in Chattanooga. Herb Donaldson (RB), Western Illinois (Payton) Rice Scores Luke Drone (QB), Illinois State (Payton) Senior Rafael Rice Eric Sanders (QB), Northern Iowa (Payton) scored his fifth TD of Kye Stewart (LB), Illinois State (Buchanan) the season during the James Terry (LB), Youngstown State (Buchanan) fourth quarter of last weekend’s game at Largest Crowd Ever No. 14 Eastern Illinois, which moved him into The 105,038 attendance figure for the a tie for sixth place in the school annals for Youngstown State at Ohio State game career rushing touchdowns. Rice now has 17 marked the largest crowd to ever see a career touchdowns and needs seven more Gateway team, beating the previous record scores to tie Ron Bell and Bruce Cullen (24) of 104,954 (YSU at Penn State in 2006). for fourth place all-time. 2007 Gateway Football Conference Weekly Release (Sept. 16)

Hail Caesar! A First in the FCS? Senior Jesse Caesar collected a game- Indiana State head coach Lou West, who and career-high 12 tackles during last watched the SEMO game from the sidelines Panthers 3-0 week’s victory against in-state rival Eastern due to an NCAA mandated suspension UNI is off to a 3-0 Illinois. Caesar also added a tackle-for-loss for using an ineligible player in 2006, and start for the first time in the game, and is tied for the third on the SEMO head coach Tony Samuel stalked under Mark Farley. team with 25 tackles this season. the sidelines on Saturday. It proved to be Only one Farley- historic as both coaches are African-Ameri- coached UNI squad Kicking Game Ends Funk can, and is believed to be the first time in had started 2-0, and that team reached the ISU showed improvement in its kicking the history of FCS football that the head 2005 FCS national championship game. game at No. 14 Eastern Illinois last week- coaches of both teams have been black. UNI’s last 3-0 start to a season came in end. Redshirt freshman Tyler Funk hit all 1999 when UNI started 4-0 (before finishing three PATs and a 23-yard field goal on his at 8-3) under then-head coach Mike Dunbar. only try. The 4-for-4 effort in the kicking Missouri State Bears game was the first for ISU since Oct. 7, State Title Up for Grabs 2006, when Kevin Mazur made all four PAT A Grand UNI and Drake will play for the ‘mythical’ Terry Allen is 4-10 tries in the 28-27 win at Western Kentucky. state championship Saturday. UNI beat Iowa in his second year at State on Sept. 8, and the Cyclones followed Missouri State and that up this week with a win over Iowa. UNI 99-69 in his 15th is 1-0 against in-state schools, while ISU is year overall as a col- 1-1 and Iowa is 0-1. UNI is the only in-state lege head coach. He’ll be going for career Block Party school on Drake’s 2007 schedule. Senior Jon Go- win #100 next week. odrich blocked a Second-Half Rallies Southeast Missouri Davis Stars in Loss For the second-straight season UNI trailed State punt in the first KR Eric Davis had 122 yards on six South Dakota State at the half but respond- quarter of Saturday’s kickoff returns, one 11-yard punt return and ed with a dominant second half. In 2006, non-conference tilt. The blocked punt was caught three passes for 17 yards for 150 SDSU led 17-3 at the half, before UNI rallied the first for the Sycamores since Donye all-purpose yards. Also, freshman QB Cody for a 27-17 victory in the UNI-Dome. This McCleskey blocked a Purdue punt in the Kirby hit 9-of-17 passes for 62 yards. past Saturday, UNI trailed 14-13 at the half 2006 season opener. before outscoring the Jackrabbits 18-3 in the Streak Stopped second stanza for a 31-17 triumph. Defense Shines in 13-10 Loss In the loss to Kansas State, the Bears The Indiana State defense held South- had their three-game win streak snapped. east Missouri State to just 13 points on Missouri State was in its first-ever meeting Southern Illinois Salukis Saturday night, which are the fewest points with K-State and is now 1-22 all-time vs. allowed by the Sycamores since head coach FBS schools since moving to Division I in Over the Hill Lou West took over the reigns of the pro- 1982. Nick Hill became gram in 2006 -- a span of 25 games. ISU the first Saluki QB to held the Redhawks to just 13 points without throw for 250 yards the benefit of a turnover and despite the in a game since Joel fact that the Sycamore offense turned the Sambursky had 253 ball over three times in the game. yards on Nov. 12, 2005. Hill was 16-of-23 for a career-high 252 yards and four TDs vs. 2007 Gateway Teams in the Top 25 Southern Utah. He extended his streak to 95 consecutive passes thrown without a pick. Team Pre S3 S10 S17 S24 O1 O8 O15 O22 O29 N5 N12 N19 End Salukis Cause Turnovers Illinois State 7 17 15 SIU’s defense recorded four takeaways Indiana St. -- rv -- against Southern Utah, increasing its total to MSU -- rv rv 12 in three games this year. SIU recovered UNI 9 7 4 four fumbles, executed an onside kick to perfection and have seven interceptions this S. Illinois 11 10 6 year. SIU also returned one fumble and two W. Illinois rv 23 21 interceptions for TDs. Eleven different Salu- Youngstown 5 6 6 kis have accounted for the dozen takeaways, *Rank represents highest position in either of two polls (Sports Network or FCS Coaches polls) which are one shy of matching SIU’s total number of 13 in 2006. 2007 Gateway Football Conference Weekly Release (Sept. 16)

20 and Over Only, Please Youngstown State Penguins 2007 Players of the Week SIU scored 20 or more points in a quarter Sept. 1 for the third game in a row. The Salukis put Ground Game Offense -- RB Gerald Davis, Missouri St. up 21 points in the first 13 minutes of game Despite losing two Defense -- CB Patrick Stoudamire, WIU against Southern Utah on Saturday. Prior offensive lineman to *Sp. Teams -- PK Taylor Rowan, W. Illinois to that, SIU scored 20 in the fourth quarter injuries during the Lineman -- OT David Arkin, Missouri State against Northern Illinois (Sept. 8) and 21 in game, the Penguins Sept. 8 the fourth quarter against Quincy (Aug. 30). showed an impres- Co-Offense -- *QB Nick Hill, S. Illinois Averaging 45.7 points per game this season, sive ground attack, finishing with a season- QB Eric Sanders, UNI Defense -- SS Vince Gliatta, Youngstown SIU is outscoring foes 35-7 in the first quar- high 281 yards against Stony Brook. Enter- Sp. Teams -- PK Nathan Stokes, MSU ing the game YSU had 265 yards on 80 ter and 44-7 in the fourth. The Thunderbirds Lineman -- RB Joe Niklasch, Illinois State were the first team to score against the carries. Sophomore Jabari Scott led the way Sept. 15 Dawgs in the fourth quarter this season. with 99 yards on 16 carries while newcomer Offense -- RB Corey Lewis, UNI Kevin Smith had 60 yards on 11 attempts, Defense -- FS Dorian Chenault, YSU including two touchdowns. Sp. Teams -- PK Taylor Rowan, W. Illinois Western Illinois Leathernecks Lineman -- TBD YSU Defense Steps Up * - denotes National Player of the Week School Record The Penguin defense held a Stony Brook Nine different ball squad, which was averaging 41.5 points carriers combined for per game, to just six points on Saturday. Last Week’s Other Top Stars a school-record 519 A big reason was four interceptions by the Offense rushing yards against Guins in the first half. Dorian Chenault had • Nick Hill, SIU -- Hill threw TD passes to St. Francis, surpassing an in the first quarter while LB four different receivers and finished with a career-high 252 passing yards while the 517 net yards gained against Cheyney in James Terry, CB De’Angelo Wilson and DE completing 16 of 23 passes. 2004. Western averaged 8.5 yards per rush, Myles Banford all had picks in the second • Kedric Meredith, ILS -- career-best 3 carrying the ball 61 times, and reached the quarter. YSU turned the three second quar- catches, 59 yards, and a TD at EIU end zone eight times on the ground. Twenty- ter interceptions into 21 points. • Reilly Murphy, INS -- Completed 13-of-27 one of their 28 first downs came by rushing. passes for a season-high 203 yards and Herb Donaldson accounted for 142 yards a TD and added 77 rush yards. Palmer Now Over 100 • Ferlando Williams, YSU -- Caught two and two scores on just 12 carries in about Junior PK Brian Palmer became the passes for TDs and ran for another on a 18 minutes of work. Western gathered an fourth Penguin to attempt over 100 career direct snap vs. Stony Brook even 100 yards passing to total 619 yards of PATs on Saturday. He was a perfect 6-of-6 offense on the night. Defense against Stony Brook to bring his career total • Brannon Carter, UNI -- Had eight tackles to 98-of-105. His 105 attempts rank him (four solos), while recording a tackle for Defense Limits St. Francis third in school history while his 98 conver- loss and a pass breakup vs. SDSU The Leatherneck defense held the Saints sions are the third most. • Shonda Faulkner, INS -- 10 tackles to just 67 total yards of offense (42 rush- (seven solo) and 2 TFLs vs. SEMO • Kaschiev Hunter, ILS -- Three tackles, in- ing, 25 passing), collecting the second-best What’s In A Name? cluding two solo, and his fumble recovery defensive output in school history and the Last year, the Division I Board of Directors with 26 seconds left on the game clock best effort in Western’s Division I era. After approved a recommendation to delete the secured a 24-21 win at EIU. getting 56 yards in the first half, St. Francis labels Division I-A, I-AA and I-AAA from NCAA •Brandon Williams, SIU -- Four tackles, a forced fumble and two PBUs posted three drives of negative yardage in use. Additionally, the Board adopted the the third-quarter and collected 22 yards on title “NCAA Division I Football Champion- Special Teams its two fourth-quarter possessions. The WIU ship” to replace the “Division I-AA Football • Eric Davis, MSU -- 122 yards on six kick- defense forced three-and-outs 11 times, Championship”. And the Board adopted off returns, one 11-yard punt return and three receptions for 17 yards including St. Francis’ last 10 possessions. the terms “Football Bowl Subdivision” and • Tyler Funk, ILS -- 3-for-3 on PATs, and “NCAA Football Championship Subdivision” made a 23-yard FG in 24-21 win at EIU Rowan’s Streak Reaches 100 to refer to the level of football played by • Ryan Patrick, INS -- Season-best 42-yard With nine extra points against St. Francis, Division I members. No more “I-AA” - we punt return to set up a . are the Football Championship Subdivision • De’Angelo Wilson, YSU -- 4 punt returns Taylor Rowan extended his PAT streak to an (FCS). for 33 yards, a kickoff return for 12 yards, even 100, remaining perfect on his career. plus an interception The league record is 103, held by Western Kentucky’s Chris James (2004-06). Rowan also connected on field goals of 35 and 52 yards, both in the third quarter, to raise his season point total to a team-high 32 points.