For Immediate Release Oct. 30, 2017 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

2017 Valley Football Standings (thru Oct. 28) Schedule/Results Saturday, Oct. 28 MVFC Points Overall Points Team W-L Pct. For Opp W-L Pct. For Opp H A Stk. #16 Illinois State 35, #19 Youngstown State 0 North Dakota State 5-0 1.000 171 61 8-0 1.000 339 81 5-0 3-0 W8 Missouri State 59, Indiana State 20 South Dakota 4-1 .800 188 104 7-1 .875 345 145 4-0 3-1 W1 #2 North Dakota State 30, #25 UNI 14 Illinois State 4-1 .800 137 85 6-2 .750 242 135 3-0 3-2 W2 #6 South Dakota 42, Southern Illinois 0 South Dakota State 3-2 .600 188 125 6-2 .750 321 175 3-1 3-1 W2 #8 South Dakota St. 52, #12 Western Illinois 24 Northern Iowa 3-2 .600 124 117 4-4 .500 214 221 2-1 2-3 L1 Saturday, Nov. 4 (Times CT) Western Illinois 2-3 .400 156 173 5-3 .625 287 217 1-2 4-1 L2 Southern Illinois 2-3 .400 118 146 4-4 .500 239 210 2-1 2-3 L1 *#15 Western Illinois at #12 Illinois St., Noon Youngstown State 1-4 .200 85 119 3-5 .375 195 156 3-2 0-3 L4 Normal, Ill. • ESPN3 Missouri State 1-4 .200 139 203 2-6 .250 210 330 2-2 0-4 W1 *Youngstown State at Indiana State, Noon Indiana State 0-5 .000 63 236 0-8 .000 131 342 0-3 0-5 L8 Terre Haute, Ind. • ESPN3 *Missouri State at Southern Illinois, 1 pm Carbondale, Ill. • ESPN3 Noteworthy *#2 N. Dakota St. at #8 S. Dakota St., 2 pm • • Media Services • • Brookings, S.D. • NBC ND / Midco / ESPN3 Players of the Week Christion Earns National Honor *#6 South Dakota at UNI, 1 pm Each week a panel will select players of QB Taryn Christion of South Dakota State Cedar Falls, Iowa • PSN / ESPN3 the week for offense, defense, newcomer, has earned STATS National Offensive Player *denotes Conference game offensive line and special teams. of the Week honors -- he’s the seventh MVFC player to be honored by STATS this season. What’s Left MVFC Media Vault By Tuesday of each week, the league will Ranked vs. Ranked Below is a snapshot of what remains collect school weekly coach press confer- for the MVFC schools during the regular- ences (audio/video links) and PDF links to Before two games this weekend, there have season league slate. The “OPP” column weekly notes in the MVFC Media Vault. been 161 games in which two ranked MVFC teams have faced one another. In those is the combined overall record of the four Statistics games, the home team is 94-66 (there was remaining opponents. Interactive school and league statistics one neutral site game), and the higher ranked Team N4 N11 N18 OPP are available, courtesy of the league’s part- team is 98-63. The NDSU-SDSU meeting nership with SIDEARM. Illinois State WIU at SDSU NDSU 19-5 marks the 39th game in league history in Indiana State YSU WIU at UNI 12-12 which both teams were ranked in the Top 10. Missouri State at SIU UNI at YSU 11-13 Weekly Features N. Dakota St. at SDSU USD at ILS 19-5 The league produces weekly video Ruling the Rankings UNI USD at MSU INS 9-15 segments (Two Minute Drill and The Extra South Dakota at UNI at NDSU SDSU 18-6 Point) and a bimonthly audio podcast (First Eight MVFC teams rank in the Top 20 for S. Dakota St. NDSU ILS at USD 21-3 and Goal). Each is available by visiting the FCS schools in the Sagarin Rankings, which S. Illinois MSU YSU at WIU 10-14 W. Illinois at ILS at INS SIU 10-14 league’s web site (valleyfootball.org) - under includes 7 of the top 8 spots (James Madi- Youngstown St. at INS at SIU MSU 6-18 the Multimedia tab on the main menu bar. son of the CAA is the only non-MVFC school in the Top 8.) HERO Sports’ BennettRank Based on cumulative opposition (past www.valley-football.org yields similar results -- with six MVFC schools opponents and future opponents), six of 10 MVFC schools rank in the Top 18 in facebook.com/ValleyFootball ranked in the Top 11. UNI’s schedule strength is rated as the the NCAA for ‘toughest schedules.’ SDSU @valleyfootball • @FCS_Insider most difficult in the nation by three different leads the MVFC at No. 3 (.690 win percent- @ESPNCFB • @NCAA_FCS age by its past/future opponents). @FCS_STATS • @HeroSportsNews metrics - BennettRank, Sagarin, Massey. 2017 Missouri Valley Football Conference Weekly Release (Oct. 30)

Players of the Week The Week Ahead 5 MVFC Teams in Top 15 All 10 league teams are in action this For the first time this season, the MVFC Offense weekend with five Conference games on the has fewer than six Top-25 teams, but all QB Taryn Christion, South Dakota State slate. All five games this weekend will be five of the league’s ranked teams are in 6-2, 220, Jr., Sioux Falls (S.D.) Roosevelt High available on ESPN3. The league’s ESPN3 the Top 15 of the STATS poll. Youngstown Christion accounted for six touchdowns and 423 yards of total offense to lead the Jackrab- production is the Western Illinois-Illinois State and UNI continue to be among bits to a 52-24 road win Oct. 28 at Western State contest at 12 pm CT. Adam Seidel, those receiving votes. HERO Sports’ Ben- Illinois in a battle of nationally ranked teams. Danan Hughes and Kelly Burke will be on the nettRank is also listed below and is a com- The reigning MVFC Offensive Player of the Year, call from Normal, Ill. Christion completed 26-of-41 passes for 386 puter predictive metric that ranks all FCS yards and ran eight times for 37 yards and an- teams. The Sagarin ranking ranks all 254 other score. His five touchdown passes, which 100th All-Time Meeting Division I teams, but the number listed is covered 30, 13, 1, 46 and 6 yards, tied a Illinois State and West- career high, while his passing total is seventh- each team’s position within the FCS. most in program history and his total offense ern Illinois will meet for the Team FCS STATS HERO SAG. mark ranks eighth in the Jackrabbit annals. 100th time on the gridiron North Dakota State 2 2 2 1 this Saturday when the Defense South Dakota 6 6 5 3 Redbirds host the Leather- South Dakota State 8 10 9 4 LB Christian Rozeboom, South Dakota State necks. The series began Illinois State 13 12 21 7 6-2, 225, So., Sioux Center (Iowa) High in 1904 and is the third- Western Illinois 18 15 7 5 Rozeboom registered a team-high 10 tack- most played rivalry among league members Youngstown State rv rv 11 8 les and recorded a pair of takeaways in the UNI rv rv 6 6 Jackrabbits’ 52-24 road win Oct. 28 at Western (South Dakota State-South Dakota have Southern Illinois -- -- 16 17 Illinois. The Buck Buchanan Award nominee faced one another 109 times, while North recovered a fumble in the third quarter and notched his first interception of the season in Dakota State and SDSU have played 106 Among conferences, the MVFC is the the fourth quarter. Rozeboom, who notched previous games.) top-rated league in the FCS, but also ranks double figures in tackles for the fifth time this ahead of a number of FBS leagues, includ- season and 12th time in 21 career games, led a Jackrabbit defensive effort that held Western Dakota Marker This Saturday ing the Mountain West (West Division), the Illinois to 285 yards of total offense – nearly South Dakota State hosts North Dakota C-USA (both the East and West divisions), 150 yards below its season average. State in the annual Dakota Marker game the MAC (East Division), and the Sun Belt. on Saturday. The programs have played Sagarin Rankings, Conference Leaders (FCS) Special Teams for the trophy annually since 2004 when 1. MISSOURI VALLEY FOOTBALL PK Zach Drake, Missouri State the two football teams began NCAA Divi- 6-2, 191, So., Lee’s Summit (Mo.) O’Hara High 2. CAA Football Drake continued a string of successful kicks sion I competition. NDSU leads the Dakota 3. Big Sky Saturday against Indiana State, nailing his Marker series, 8-5, while South Dakota State 4. Southern fifth-straight field goal attempt and all eight claimed the trophy last year with a 19-17 win 5. Ohio Valley PAT tries in MSU’s first Valley win of the sea- in Fargo. NDSU and SDSU have met 106 son. Drake opened the scoring with a 28-yard field goal and has now successfully converted previous times on the football field, dating Against the FCS each of his last 16 field goal/PAT attempts over back to 1903. the last three games. The MVFC is 18-5 against FCS schools this year, which includes two road losses to Newcomer Bison Stay Perfect ranked FCS teams, one of which (Liberty) Two teams have been 6-0 in the same is transitioning to FBS. The MVFC is 2-2 QB Peyton Huslig, Missouri State season three times in league history, includ- 6-3, 205, So., Andover (Kan.) Andover Central against non-league FCS ranked teams. Garden City (Kan.) Community College ing North Dakota State and South Dakota Huslig racked up 385 yards of total offense by this year. The Bison, meanwhile, are one of completing 12-of-14 passes for 211 yards and just three unbeaten teams in the FCS. There Against the FCS | Breakdowns Here’s a breakdown of what MVFC schools a pair of TDs, while eclipsing DeAndre Smith’s are five unbeaten FBS teams. Six previous Bears rushing record by a QB with 174 yards have done vs. FCS schools (league and non- MVFC teams, meanwhile, have started a sea- and two more TDs on just seven carries to help league), vs. FBS schools, and vs. the Top 25 the offense roll up 624 yards of total offense— son with nine-straight wins -- North Dakota its best single-game total in 10 years. He also State in 2014 was the last to do it. (league and non-league FCS schools). teamed up with J.T. Granato to complete 14 Team All vs. FCS vs. FBS Top 25 straight passes in the first half, good for the Seasons with 2 MVFC Teams 4-0 or better second-longest streak in program history. 2007 UNI (12-0); Southern Illinois (6-0) Illinois State 6-2 6-2 0-0 2-0 2012 Illinois State (5-0); North Dakota State (5-0); Indiana State 0-8 0-7 0-1 0-5 Offensive Lineman Youngstown State (4-0) Missouri State 2-6 2-5 0-1 0-5 2013 North Dakota State (15-0); UNI (4-0) North Dakota State 8-0 8-0 0-0 4-0 RG Marquis Prophete, Missouri State 2014 North Dakota State (9-0); Illinois State (7-0) UNI 4-4 4-3 0-1 2-2 6-5, 308, Jr., Florissant (Mo.) McCluer North 2017 North Dakota State (8-0); South Dakota (6-0); South Dakota 7-1 6-1 1-0 3-1 Prophete anchored a Missouri State offen- Illinois State (4-0) South Dakota State 6-2 6-2 0-0 1-1 sive line that helped roll up 624 yards of total Southern Illinois 4-4 4-3 0-1 1-3 offense in this week’s win over Indiana State. 2017 FCS Unbeatens (3) Western Illinois 5-3 4-3 1-0 1-3 It marked the best single-game offensive total Youngstown State 3-5 3-4 0-1 1-3 for the Bears in 10 years. Prophete posted a 8-0 James Madison, North Carolina A&T, NDSU 100-percent assignment grade and 89-percent NON-MVFC ONLY 20-10 18-5 2-5 2-2 execution grade as part of the winning effort. 2017 FBS Unbeatens (5) ALL GAMES 45-35 43-30 2-5 15-22 8-0 Alabama, Georgia, Wisconsin *Indiana State fell at No. 21 Tennessee (FBS) and that 7-0 UCF, Miami (Fla.) result is also included here. 2017 Missouri Valley Football Conference Weekly Release (Oct. 30)

vs. Non-Conference (20-10) Christion Notches 6 TDs Gray Takes it to the House QB Taryn Christion accounted for six Andrew Gray of South Dakota returned Home: 11-1 / Away: 9-9 / Neut: 0-0 TDs in South Dakota State’s 52-24 win at an interception a program-record 97 yards NCAA FCS Teams (18-5) Western Illinois (5 pass, 1 rush) on Oct. 28. for a touchdown leading the seventh-ranked It’s tied for the second-most in the FCS this Coyotes to a 42-0 shutout of Southern Illinois Big Sky...... 5-3 season in a single game (games against Divi- Cal Poly...... 1-0 Saturday inside the DakotaDome. It’s tied Eastern Washington...... 1-0 sion I opponents are only listed.) It marks for the 10th-longest return in MVFC history. Montana State...... 1-0 the second time its happened in the MVFC Longest INT returns, MVFC history North Dakota...... 1-1 this season (Chris Streveler of South Dakota Northern Arizona...... 1-1 was the other, vs. Drake.) 100, Moses Aimable, UNI, vs. W. Illinois, 1985 Southern Utah...... 0-1 100, Ryan Doak, UNI, vs. Indiana State, 2000 Big South...... 0-1 Most TDs (Pass + Rush) in FCS 100, Bryan Jackson, INS, vs. Eastern Illinois, 2006 Liberty...... 0-1 Kevin Thomson, Sac State vs. S. Utah 7 100, Anthony Thompson, SIU, vs. Youngstown, 2012 Northeast...... 4-0 100, Caleb Schaffitzel, MSU, vs. NDSU, 2012 Central Connecticut...... 1-0 Taryn Christion, SDSU vs. W. Illinois 6 Duquesne...... 1-0 Gage Gubrud, EWU vs. UC Davis 6 100, Travis Starks, INS, vs. SE Missouri St., 2015 Robert Morris...... 2-0 Kyle Lauletta, Richmond vs. Howard 6 98, Chris Klieman, UNI, vs. W. Illinois, 1989 Ohio Valley...... 4-1 Anthony Lawrence, San Diego vs. Jacksonville 6 98, Marcus Williams, NDSU, vs. YSU, 2012 Eastern Illinois...... 1-1 Chris Streveler, USD vs. Drake 6 98, Travis Starks, INS, vs. Southern Illinois, 2013 Murray State...... 1-0 97, Andrew Gray, USD, vs. S. Illinois, 2017 Southeast Missouri State...... 1-0 97, Dallas Nichols, WIU, vs. Hampton, 2013 Tennessee Tech...... 1-0 Huslig Sets Bears QB Rush Mark Pioneer Football...... 3-0 QB Peyton Huslig of Missouri State Butler...... 1-0 Drake...... 2-0 eclipsed DeAndre Smith’s Bears rushing Jordheim Ties MVFC Record SWAC...... 2-0 record by a QB with 174 yards in the win Levi Jordheim recovered three fumbles Mississippi Valley State...... 2-0 against Indiana State. The 174 rush yards and tied the NDSU record set by Don Meyer were the sixth-most by an MVFC QB. at Northern Michigan in 1976. Jordheim NCAA FBS Teams (2-5) Most Rushing Yards by MVFC QB, All-Time also tied the MVFC record of three fumble ACC...... 0-1 245, Donte Pimpleton, WKU, vs. Illinois St., 2001 recoveries by Missouri State’s Dempster Pittsburgh...... 0-1 Jackson in 1985 vs. Southern Illinois. The American...... 0-1 207, Julian Reese, INS, vs. Illinois State, 2001 Memphis...... 0-1 200, Aaron Bailey, UNI, vs. Portland State, 2015 league record for a single season is held by Big 12...... 0-1 194, Tirrell Rennie, UNI, vs. Youngstown St., 2010 South Dakota State’s R.C. Kilgore, who had Iowa State...... 0-1 187, Tirrell Rennie, UNI, vs. Indiana State, 2010 five recoveries in 2013 (in 14 games). Mid-American...... 1-0 174, Peyton Huslig, MSU, vs. Indiana St., 2017 Bowling Green...... 1-0 172, Easton Stick, NDSU, vs. YSU, 2017 SEC...... 0-2 169, Aaron Bailey, UNI, vs. S. Dakota St., 2015 Missouri...... 0-1 Bison With 10-Straight Wins Tennessee...... 0-1 North Dakota State’s 10-game winning Sun Belt...... 1-0 streak in regular-season league games ranks Coastal Carolina...... 1-0 4-0 League Starts Are Key fifth-best all-time in MVFC history. NDSU North Dakota State became the 35th is the 24th team in MVFC history to start a team in league history to start an MVFC sea- league season with five-straight wins. Of son with a 4-0 mark after the Bison defeated vs. Ranked (FCS) Teams (2-2) the previous 23 teams to do it, 20 of those Western Illinois, 22-14, on Oct. 21. All but #2 NDSU at #6 Eastern Washington, W, 40-13 teams won the league title that year. Missouri State at #11 North Dakota, L, 34-0 one of the previous 34 teams finished 2nd #10 North Dakota at #23 South Dakota, W, 45-7 or better in the league standings (Western Consecutive Victories (league games only) Indiana State at #19 Liberty, L, 42-41 Kentucky, 2005). Twenty eight of the 34 18, North Dakota State, 2012-14 14, Southern Illinois, 2008-09 vs. Ranked (FBS) Teams (0-1) earned playoff berths, and 25 of those 34 teams won the MVFC crown. NDSU has won 13, UNI, 1993-95 11, Western Illinois, 1997-1998 Indiana State at #21 Tennessee, L, 42-7 10 straight league games dating back to last 10, North Dakota State, 2016-present season, which is fifth on the all-time list.

2017 Valley Football Teams in the Top 25 Team Pre S4 S11 S18 S25 O2 O9 O16 O23 O30

Illinois State 18 15 14 12 8 7 15 24 16 12 Indiana St. rv ------Missouri St. ------NDSU 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 UNI 18 21 18 24 20 21 rv rv 25 rv S. Dakota rv rv 23 13 10 6 4 4 6 6 SDSU 4 4 4 4 4 8 7 13 8 8 S. Illinois rv rv rv rv rv -- -- rv rv -- W. Illinois 25 22 20 19 13 15 14 10 12 15 Youngstown 8 6 5 5 5 3 8 9 19 rv *Rank represents highest position in the two polls (STATS or FCS Coaches polls) 2017 Missouri Valley Football Conference Weekly Release (Oct. 30)

Blankity Blank Blank Jake Continues To Climb Charts 2017 Players of the Week Two league schools recorded shutouts on WR Jake Wieneke of South Dakota State Oct. 28 (South Dakota beat Southern Illinois, finished with season highs of eight catches Sept. 2 Offense -- QB Chris Streveler, South Dakota 42-0, and Illinois State blanked Youngstown for 97 yards against Western Illinois as he Defense -- LB Quentin Moon, Western Illinois State, 35-0). The league has had three shut- took over third place on the FCS career *Special Teams -- P Brady Schutt, South Dakota outs in league play this year and 39 in its Newcomer -- QB Peyton Huslig, Missouri State charts with 54 touchdown receptions. He Offensive Lineman -- OC Tanner Volson, NDSU history. The shutout for the Coyotes was its holds league career receiving records for TDs Sept. 9 first as an MVFC member. The league had (54), yards (4,671) and is second in recep- *Offense -- QB Chris Streveler, South Dakota Defense -- SS Robbie Grimsley, North Dakota State just one shutout in conference play last year, tions (260). Lance Lenoir of Western Illinois Defense -- LB Jared Farley, UNI while the most in one season is four (accom- holds the latter record with 273. *Special Teams -- PK Chase Vinatieri, SDSU plished in 2008, 2009, 2012 and 2015). Newcomer -- DE Justus Reed, Youngstown State All-Time FCS Leaders, Career TD Receptions Offensive Lineman -- LT Nick Jensen, South Dakota Shutouts as MVFC member (league games) Cooper Kupp, Eastern Wash. 2013-16 *73 Sept. 16 David Ball, New Hampshire 2003-06 58 *Offense -- WR Bob Pugh, Indiana State 8 - Northern Iowa Defense -- S Ryan Neal, Southern Illinois 6 - Illinois State Jake Wieneke, SDSU 2014-pres. 54 Special Teams -- RS Deion Holliman, Missouri State Terrell Hudgins, Elon 2006-09 52 5 - North Dakota State, Southern Illinois Newcomer -- QB Cade Sparks, Indiana State 4 - Western Illinois, Youngstown State Offensive Lineman -- C Jacob Ohnesorge, SDSU All-Time FCS Leaders, Career Receiving Yards Sept. 23 3 - South Dakota State Offense -- RB Lance Dunn, North Dakota State 2 - Missouri State Cooper Kupp, Eastern Washington (2013-16) 6,464 Offense -- QB Sean McGuire, Western Illinois 1 - South Dakota, Western Kentucky Terrell Hudgins, Elon (2006-09) 5,250 Defense -- LB Brett Taylor, Western Illinois Jerry Rice, Mississippi Valley (1981-84) 4,693 Special Teams -- P/K Sean Slattery, Illinois State Jake Wieneke, SDSU (2014-present) 4,671 Newcomer -- LB Jabril Cox, North Dakota State Dominance By Decade David Ball, New Hampshire (2003-06) 4,655 Offensive Lineman -- OL Austin Olsen, S. Illinois R.J. Harris, New Hampshire (2011-14) 4,328 Sept. 30 The MVFC has had a team in the Top 5 for *Offense -- WR Jaelon Acklin, Western Illinois total wins in each of the past three decades. Defense -- LB Brett Taylor, Western Illinois Defense -- LB Armand Dellovade, Youngstown State North Dakota State picked up its FCS-best Tackle Machine Special Teams -- RS Deion Holliman, Missouri State 100th win of this decade when it defeated LB Brett Taylor had an FCS-best 28 tackles Newcomer -- FS Suni Lane, UNI UNI on Oct. 28. in Western Illinois’ game vs. South Dakota. Offensive Lineman -- YSU Offensive Line Oct. 7 FCS Leaders by Decade That number ranks 5th all-time for a single Offense -- QB Sean McGuire, Western Illinois Defense -- DE Darin Greenfield, South Dakota 2010-present Wins Pct. game in league history. He currently leads the FCS in tackles per game (14.8). Includ- Special Teams -- PK Ryan Weese, South Dakota 1 North Dakota State 100 .893 Newcomer -- TE Skyler Cavanaugh, South Dakota St. 2 Sam Houston State 81 .757 ing Taylor, only 15 players in MVFC history Offensive Lineman -- C Jacob Ohnesorge, SDSU 3 Eastern Washington 76 .745 have reached 425 career tackles, while Oct. 14 Offense -- QB Sam Straub, Southern Illinois 4 Jacksonville State 73 .760 Taylor ranks 2nd among active FCS players 5 James Madison 67 .705 Offense -- QB Chris Streveler, South Dakota with 425 career stops. Defense -- LB Brett Taylor, Western Illinois 2000-09 Wins Pct. Special Teams -- K Cam Pedersen, North Dakota St. FCS Leaders - Tackles Per Game *Newcomer -- LB Jabril Cox, North Dakota State 1 Montana 119 .838 Offensive Lineman -- LG Jackson Scott-Brown, UNI 2 Appalachian State 101 .754 Name, School Total P/G Oct. 21 3 North Dakota (reclassifying) 93 .750 1 Brett Taylor, Western Illinois 118 14.8 Offense -- WR Spencer Schnell, Illinois State 4 Northern Iowa 89 .712 2 Brandon Bryant, Lafayette 109 13.6 Defense -- DE Rickey Neal, UNI 5 Dayton 87 .791 Special Teams -- PK Sean Slattery, Illinois State 3 Garrett Dolan, Houston Baptist 99 12.4 Newcomer -- WR/KR Cade Johnson, S. Dakota State 1990-99 Wins Pct. 4 Darius Leonard, SC State 95 11.9 Offensive Lineman -- C Dean Helt, Illinois State 1 Youngstown State* 103 .770 Oct. 28 Active Career Leaders - Total Tackles 2 Montana 93 .744 *Offense -- QB Taryn Christion, South Dakota State 3 Dayton 92 .844 1. Garrett Dolan, Houston Baptist 494 Defense -- LB Christian Rozeboom, S. Dakota State Special Teams -- PK Zach Drake, Missouri State 4 Georgia Southern 92 .719 2. Brett Taylor, Western Illinois 425 5 Northern Iowa 89 .724 Newcomer -- QB Peyton Huslig, Missouri State 3. Allan Cratsenberg, VMI 398 Offensive Lineman -- RG Marquis Prophete, MSU *Youngstown State joined the league in 1997 4. Mike Basile, Monmouth 394 * - denotes National Player of the Week Two in MVFC in Top 3 for TDs The Big D QB Chris Streveler of South Dakota has a Dallas Goedert of South Dakota State set combined 27 TDs (19 passing, 8 rushing), a league record for receiving yards by a tight while QB Taryn Christion of South Dakota end last year with 1,293 in 13 games. That State has accounted for 26 TDs (21 passing was also the best in Division I. He leads all and 5 rushing). The MVFC single-season DI tight ends in receiving yards again this record is 44, set by North Dakota State QB year with 700 in eight games. He has 2,577 Brock Jensen in 2013 (15 games). receiving yards in his career, trailing only Total TD Leaders (Pass + Rush) -- FCS Only SIU’s MyCole Pruitt (2,601 from 2011-14) for Kyle Lauletta, Richmond 28 career receiving yards by an MVFC tight end. Chris Streveler, South Dakota 27 Taryn Christion, South Dakota State 26 2017 Receiving Leaders, Yards by Tight End Tommy Stuart, Duquesne 26 1. Dallas Goedert, South Dakota State 700 Jeremiah Briscoe, Sam Houston State 25 2. Donald Parham, Stetson 607 Gage Gubrud, Eastern Washington 25 3. Adam Breneman, UMass 605 Devlin Hodges, Samford 25 4. Mark Andrews, Oklahoma 599 Brad Mayes, Lehigh 25 5. Caleb Wilson, UCLA 490 ILLINOIS STATE REDBIRDS INDIANA STATE SYCAMORES (6-2, 4-1 MVFC) (0-8, 0-5 MVFC) S2 Butler W, 45-0 1-0, 0-0 A31 Eastern Illinois L, 20-22 0-1, 0-0 S16 at Eastern Illinois W, 44-13 2-0, 0-0 S9 at #21 Tennessee L, 7-45 0-2, 0-0 S23 *at Missouri State W, 34-9 3-0, 1-0 S16 at #19 Liberty L, 41-42 0-3, 0-0 S30 *Indiana State W, 24-13 4-0, 2-0 S30 *at #8 Illinois State L, 13-24 0-4, 0-1 O7 at Northern Arizona L, 16-37 4-1, 2-0 O7 *#2 North Dakota State L, 0-52 0-5, 0-2 O14 *at Southern Illinois L, 7-42 4-2, 2-1 O14 *at #4 South Dakota L, 6-56 0-6, 0-3 O21 *#4 South Dakota W, 37-21 5-2, 3-1 O21 *Southern Illinois L, 24-45 0-7, 0-4 O28 *at #19 Youngstown St. W, 35-0 6-2, 4-1 O28 *at Missouri State L, 20-59 0-8, 0-5 N4 *#15 Western Illinois ESPN3 Noon N4 *Youngstown State ESPN3 1:00 p.m. ET N11 *at South Dakota State ESPN3 2:00 p.m. N11 *Western Illinois ESPN3 1:00 p.m. ET N18 *North Dakota State CSN / ESPN3 Noon N18 *at UNI ESPN3 5:00 p.m. ET *MVFC game *MVFC game

Running Past the Penguins Into the Record Book For the second-straight week, the Illinois State rushing attack was LeMonte Booker ran into the Sycamore record book Saturday at dominant and rushed for nearly 300 yards. The duo of Markel Smith Missouri State. The redshirt senior finished the game with 61 yards (124) and James Robinson (117) paced the attack and they became rushing and a touchdown on just 12 attempts for the Sycamores. the first duo to both run for over 100 yards since Dec. 5, 2015, when With the 61 yards, Booker moved to ninth in school history in career Marshaun Coprich (217) and Tre Roberson (111) achieved the feat in rushing with 1,603 total yards. Booker sits just 395 yards from eighth the FCS playoffs against Western Illinois. Robinson has now rushed place. Booker also surpassed the 3,000-career all-purpose yardage for over 100 yards in consecutive weeks and Smith recorded the mark, becoming the seventh player to do so in ISU history. first 100-plus yard effort of his career at ISU in the victory over the Penguins. Big Play Bob Wide receiver Bob Pugh is fourth in the country and tops in the McCown Makes Good MVFC with 27 yards per catch. So far this season Pugh has 21 It’s always good to be in the right place at the right time, and senior catches for 568 yards and three touchdowns. The Foley, Alabama defensive lineman Matt McCown was the beneficiary of one such product is averaging 71 yards a game this season. happenstance of luck in the Redbirds’ win at Youngstown State. Just six minutes into the game, Tyree Horton sacked YSU quarterback Nathan Mays and forced a fumble that popped in the air landed in Making the Stops the arms of McCown, who rumbled 26 yards for the defensive score Redshirt sophomore Jonas Griffith put together another solid week- to widen the ISU lead to 14-0 at the time. The score was the first of end on the field at Missouri State. Griffith had 10 tackles against the McCown’s career and the third defensive score for the Redbirds this Bears (4 solo); the second week in-a-row that the linebacker has had season. double-digit tackles. The Louisville, Kentucky native recorded a career best 15 tackles Oct. 21 against Southern Illinois and has had six or Hitting the Century Mark more tackles each game this season for the Trees. When Illinois State hosts Western Illinois Saturday, it will mark the 100th meeting between the two in-state rivals. WIU holds a 50-46-3 lead in the series, which began in 1904. The two teams have played every year since 1923 and no team has had a winning streak longer than eight games. The Redbirds currently have a seven-game winning streak over the Fighting Leathernecks and have won eight of the last nine contests overall under the leadership of head coach Brock Spack. It will mark the second 100-plus game series for ISU, which played its 106th game against in-state foe Eastern Illinois earlier this season. MISSOURI STATE BEARS NORTH DAKOTA STATE BISON (2-6, 1-4 MVFC) (8-0, 5-0 MVFC) S2 at Missouri L, 43-72 0-1, 0-0 S2 Mississippi Valley State W, 72-7 1-0, 0-0 S9 at #11 North Dakota L, 0-34 0-2, 0-0 S9 at #6 Eastern Washington W, 40-13 2-0, 0-0 S16 Murray State W, 28-21 1-2, 0-0 S23 Robert Morris W, 56-0 3-0, 0-0 S23 *#12 Illinois State L, 9-34 1-3, 0-1 S30 *Missouri State W, 38-11 4-0, 1-0 S30 *at #2 North Dakota St. L, 11-38 1-4, 0-2 O7 *at Indiana State W, 52-0 5-0, 2-0 O14 *at #14 Western Illinois L, 30-49 1-5, 0-3 O14 *at #8 Youngstown State W, 27-24 (ot) 6-0, 3-0 O21 *#9 South Dakota State L, 30-62 1-6, 0-4 O21 *#10 Western Illinois W, 24-12 7-0, 4-0 O28 *Indiana State W, 59-20 2-6, 1-4 O28 *#25 UNI W, 30-14 8-0, 5-0 N4 *at Southern Illinois ESPN3 1:00 p.m. N4 *at #8 S. Dakota State NBC ND / ESPN3 2:00 p.m. N11 *UNI ESPN3 2:00 p.m. N11 *South Dakota NBC ND / ESPN3 2:30 p.m. N18 *at Youngstown State ESPN3 11:00 a.m. N18 *at Illinois State NBC ND / ESPN3 Noon *MVFC game *MVFC game

Randall to the Rescue Jordheim Ties Conference Record Faced with an injury-depleted backfield, the Bears received a large LB Levi Jordheim’s three fumble recoveries against Northern Iowa lift from junior Jason Randall Saturday against Indiana State. Randall tied the NDSU record set by Don Meyer at Northern Michigan in 1976 hauled in his first three receiving touchdowns of the season to help and the Missouri Valley Football Conference record set by Missouri the Bears build a 32-point halftime lead, then added a rushing TD in State’s Dempster Jackson in 1985 vs. Southern Illinois. The Bison the second half to help seal MSU’s first Valley win of the season. In lead the league and are second in the FCS behind Grambling with a doing so, Randall became the first Bear since 2003 to reel in three +14 turnover margin through eight contests. scoring receptions in a game, as well as the first MSU player to score four touchdowns since Cody Kirby accomplished the feat in 2010. Brooks Makes Timely Return to Lineup Overall, the Thomasville, Ga., native rushed for 46 yards and logged a RB Ty Brooks returned to the backfield against Northern Iowa car- career-best 97 receiving yards in the 59-20 MSU victory. rying seven times for 59 yards last week. His 22-yard touchdown run capped an eight-play, 75-yard drive to open the third quarter and put NDSU ahead for good. He averaged 8.4 yards per carry. Brooks had Offense on the Move 20 carries for 166 yards and two TDs in NDSU’s first two games this The Bears recorded their best single-game offensive output Satur- year before missing nearly all of the next five games with two differ- day since their 2007 season opener against Missouri S&T with 624 ent leg injuries. His return was timely with junior Lance Dunn missing yards of total offense, as well as their top single-game scoring output his first game of the year with a hip injury. Bruce Anderson carried a (59) under head coach Dave Steckel. Over their last three contests, career-high 26 times for 78 yards and one TD in the win. the Bears have totaled 1,482 yards of offense—an average of 494 per game—while topping the 30-point plateau in each outing. MSU has scored at a 39.7 point per game clip, marking their best three-game Offense Coming Out Strong showing since the 2013 season, when they scored 124 points over a NDSU has shown the ability to start strong in the first and third three-game stretch from Oct. 26 through Nov. 9. quarters. The Bison have scored on their opening drive of the half 12 of 16 times with 10 TDs and two FGs. NDSU erased its only halftime deficit of the year against Western Illinois with an 11-play, 75-yard Huslig Hard to Handle touchdown drive on the first possession of the second half, and broke Sophomore quarterback Peyton Huslig turned in his second 100- a 7-7 tie last week against UNI with an eight-play, 75-yard TD drive. yard rushing game in a row Saturday, breaking the Bears’ single-game The Bison are averaging nearly 19 minutes in time of possession in mark for rushing yards by a quarterback with his 174-yard perfor- the second half while outscoring opponents 159-30 after halftime. mance against Indiana State. The Andover, Kan., product racked up 385 yards of total offense by completing 12-of-14 passes for 211 Bison Lead Dakota Marker Series yards and a pair of touchdowns, while eclipsing DeAndre Smith’s NDSU and SDSU meet in Brookings this week for the 14th annual Bears rushing record to help the offense roll up 624 yards of total of- Dakota Marker game, established in 2004 when the two teams be- fense—its best single-game total in 10 years. He also teamed up with gan Division I competition. The trophy is a 75-pound model replica of J.T. Granato to complete 14 straight passes in the first half, good for the original quartzite monuments placed at half-mile intervals along the second-longest streak in program history. the state border in 1891-1892. NDSU leads the series 8-5 but had a six-game win streak snapped last year in Fargo. The series is split 3-3 in Brookings since 2004 with NDSU winning the last three visits. NORTHERN IOWA PANTHERS SOUTH DAKOTA COYOTES (4-4, 3-2 MVFC) (7-1, 4-1 MVFC) S2 at Iowa State L, 24-42 0-1, 0-0 S2 at Drake W, 77-7 1-0, 0-0 S9 Cal Poly W, 45-38 (ot) 1-1, 0-0 S9 at Bowling Green W, 35-27 2-0, 0-0 S16 at Southern Utah L, 21-24 1-2, 0-0 S16 #10 North Dakota W, 45-7 3-0, 0-0 S30 *at Southern Illinois W, 24-17 2-2, 1-0 S30 *at #13 Western Illinois W, 38-33 4-0, 1-0 O7 *#15 Western Illinois L, 29-38 2-3, 1-1 O7 *#3 Youngstown State W, 31-28 5-0, 2-0 O14 *at #7 South Dakota St. W, 38-18 3-3, 2-1 O14 *Indiana State W, 56-6 6-0, 3-0 O21 *#9 Youngstown State W, 19-14 4-3, 3-1 O21 *at #24 Illinois State L, 21-37 6-1, 3-1 O28 *at #2 North Dakota St. L, 14-30 4-4, 3-2 O28 *Southern Illinois W, 42-0 7-1, 4-1 N4 *#6 South Dakota PSN / ESPN3 1:00 p.m. N4 *at UNI ESPN3 1:00 p.m. N11 *at Missouri State ESPN3 2:00 p.m. N11 *at North Dakota State ESPN3 2:30 p.m. N18 *Indiana State ESPN3 4:00 p.m. N18 *South Dakota State Midco / ESPN3 2:00 p.m. *MVFC game *MVFC game

Against the Yotes Seven Wins UNI (4-4, 3-2 MVFC) continues its stretch against top-10 foes as South Dakota has reached the seven-win plateau for the first time the Panthers welcome South Dakota (7-1, 4-1 MVFC) on Saturday at at the Division I level and overall since 2006. The Coyotes have also 1 p.m. CT. The game will mark UNI’s fourth-straight contest against recorded four wins inside MVFC play for the first time. South Dakota a top-10 foe this season. UNI is 2-1 during the top-10 stretch so far. last reached the postseason in 2006 at the Division II level. UNI has won seven out of the last nine meetings. The Panthers are 6-2 against USD under Mark Farley. UNI and USD have played 47 times on the gridiron, with the first meeting coming in 1899. The Inside the Shutout Panthers have dominated the series, leading 27-19-1 overall. UNI has South Dakota ran two interceptions back for touchdowns and won seven out of the last nine meetings. forced five turnovers in all in earning its first shutout inside MVFC play. The Coyotes’ 42-0 win against Southern Illinois was their first shutout since blanking Drake 52-0 in 2015. In three trips inside the Clutch Cats red zone, the Salukis missed a field goal, were stopped near the goal This season, the Panthers have been extremely efficient in the red line on fourth down, and saw safety Andrew Gray return an intercep- zone with UNI scoring on 23 out of 25 attempts. UNI ranks sixth in tion a program-record 97 yards for a touchdown. the FCS for red zone offense. UNI has earned the majority of its red zone scores through the air, with 13 passing TDs inside the 20. That total is tied for sixth in the FCS. Defensive Pressure The Coyotes sacked Southern Illinois three times last week after the Salukis had taken three sacks all season. South Dakota ranks Gauntlet Continues second nationally in tackles-for-loss and fifth for sacks. Twenty-seven UNI continues its stretch against top-10 foes this Saturday, with the USD players have recorded a TFL and 16 have registered a sack. Panthers facing their fourth top-10 opponent in the last three weeks. Sophomore defensive end leads the team with 15 TFL and five sacks. Two weeks ago, the Panthers capped a two-game winning streak over top-10 foes after beating No. 9 Youngstown State and No. 7 South Dakota State in back-to-back weeks. The back-to-back top-10 wins UNI is Next were the most since 2014’s victories over No. 6 Illinois State (Nov. 1) South Dakota takes the number two scoring offense and the and No. 1 North Dakota State (Nov. 8). number 15 scoring defense to UNI this week to take on the Panthers inside the UNI-Dome. The two programs have split the last four meet- ings with South Dakota winning 28-25 in Vermillion last season and Fountain Leaps into Record Books 38-31 in double overtime during 2013. USD is going for its fourth Senior Daurice Fountain has put up monster numbers in his final road win of the season, which would be its most since 2000. season at UNI. The 6-foot-1 receiver has hauled in seven touchdowns this season, with 668 yards receiving. This season, Fountain has earned three 100-yard receiving games (all in consecutive weeks). The senior has 128 catches as a Panther, which is tied for 10th all- time, while his 18 career TDs are tied for eighth all-time at UNI. SOUTH DAKOTA ST. JACKRABBITS SOUTHERN ILLINOIS SALUKIS (6-2, 3-2 MVFC) (4-4, 2-3 MVFC) A31 Duquesne W, 51-13 1-0, 0-0 S9 Mississippi Valley State W, 55-3 1-0, 0-0 S9 at Montana State W, 31-27 2-0, 0-0 S16 at SE Missouri State W, 35-17 2-0, 0-0 S16 Drake W, 51-10 3-0, 0-0 S23 at Memphis L, 31-44 2-1, 0-0 S30 *at #5 Youngstown State L, 7-19 3-1, 0-1 S30 *#20 UNI L, 17-24 2-2, 0-1 O7 *Southern Illinois W, 49-14 4-1, 1-1 O7 *at #8 South Dakota St. L, 14-49 2-3, 0-2 O14 *UNI L, 18-38 4-2, 1-2 O14 *#15 Illinois State W, 42-7 3-3, 1-2 O21 *at Missouri State W, 62-30 5-2, 2-2 O21 *at Indiana State W, 45-24 4-3, 2-2 O28 *at #12 Western Illinois W, 52-24 6-2, 3-2 O28 *at #6 South Dakota L, 0-42 4-4, 2-3 N4 *#2 North Dakota State Midco / ESPN3 2:00 p.m. N4 *Missouri State ESPN3 1:00 p.m. N11 *Illinois State Midco / ESPN3 2:00 p.m. N11 *Youngstown State ESPN3 1:00 p.m. N18 *at South Dakota Midco / ESPN3 2:00 p.m. N18 *at Western Illinois ESPN3 1:00 p.m. *MVFC game *MVFC game

Points Galore Defensive Stand South Dakota State’s combined 114 points over its last two games The Southern Illinois defense has made huge strides this season. marks the most points the Jackrabbits have scored in a two-game Last week, the Salukis faced one of the most high-powered offenses span in the Division I era (since 2004). SDSU racked up a single- in the country. South Dakota came into the game on pace to set a game-best 62 points in a road win at Missouri State Oct. 21, followed league record for total offense at more than 560 yards per game. The by a 52-point effort against Western Illinois a week later. The Jackrab- Salukis held the Coyotes to 280 yards of total offense. For the sea- bits’ previous high in the Division I era was 111 in the first two games son, the Salukis are allowing just 370 yards of total offense per game, of the 2005 season in wins over Wisconsin-La Crosse (42-13) and which is more than a 60 yard per game improvement over last year. Valparaiso (69-6). The program record for points over a two-game span is 134, which was set by the 1954 squad. That Jackrabbit team posted back-to-back shutouts of 66-0 and 68-0 over Mankato State Darrell James Shines and Augustana (S.D.), respectively. SDSU has topped the 50-point In the season opener, wide receiver Darrell James had just one mark four times this season and ranks fourth nationally in scoring catch for eight years. Since then, he has been dominant. In the seven offense at 40.1 points per game. games since, James has averaged 5.6 catches for 94.8 yards per game. James has back-to-back 100-yard games entering Saturday’s game vs. Missouri State, and he will try to be the first SIU player since Third-Down Efficiency MyCole Pruitt with three-straight 100-yard games. South Dakota State currently leads the Football Championship Subdivision by converting on 56 percent (51-of-91) of its third-down attempts this season. The Jackrabbits remained in the top spot in the Ryan Neal Ending Career Strong category after being successful on 7-of-11 third-down plays Oct. 28 Senior Ryan Neal is ending his career strong for the improved at Western Illinois. The Jackrabbits also have been efficient on third Saluki defense. Neal is Southern’s leading tackler with 64 tackles downs on the defensive side of the ball over the last four games, limit- this season, including a team-best 12 tackles last week. He has three ing the opposition to a 31.3 percent (15-of-48) success rate. 10+ tackles games this season, and he surpassed 200 career tack- les earlier this season. Touchdown, Touchdown, Touchdown Jackrabbit wide receiver Jake Wieneke posted the 15th multi- touchdown game of his stellar career by hauling in three TD recep- tions Oct. 28 at Western Illinois. Wieneke increased his career touch- down receptions total to 54, moving into third place in FCS history. A three-time All-American, Wieneke has caught at least one touch- down in 32 of 47 career games. He also ranks fourth in FCS history with 4,671 receiving yards, and needs only 23 yards to pass Jerry Rice (4,693 yards for Mississippi Valley State from 1981-84) for third. WESTERN ILLINOIS LEATHERNECKS YOUNGSTOWN STATE PENGUINS (5-3, 2-3 MVFC) (3-5, 1-4 MVFC) A31 at Tennessee Tech W, 41-14 1-0, 0-0 S2 at Pittsburgh L, 21-28 (ot) 0-1, 0-0 S9 at Northern Arizona W, 38-20 2-0, 0-0 S9 Robert Morris W, 30-0 1-1, 0-0 S23 at Coastal Carolina W, 52-10 3-0, 0-0 S16 Central Connecticut St. W, 59-9 2-1, 0-0 S30 *#10 South Dakota L, 33-38 3-1, 0-1 S30 *#4 South Dakota State W, 19-7 3-1, 1-0 O7 *at #21 UNI W, 38-29 4-1, 1-1 O7 *at #6 South Dakota L, 28-31 3-2, 1-1 O14 *Missouri State W, 49-30 5-1, 2-1 O14 *#2 North Dakota State L, 24-27 (ot) 3-3, 1-2 O21 *at #2 North Dakota St. L, 12-24 5-2, 2-2 O21 *at UNI L, 14-19 3-4, 1-3 O28 *#8 South Dakota St. L, 24-52 5-3, 2-3 O28 *#16 Illinois State L, 0-35 3-5, 1-4 N4 *at #12 Illinois State ESPN3 Noon N4 *at Indiana State ESPN3 1:00 p.m. ET N11 *at Indiana State ESPN3 Noon N11 *at Southern Illinois ESPN3 2:00 p.m. ET N18 *Southern Illinois ESPN3 1:00 p.m. N18 *Missouri State ESPN3 Noon ET *MVFC game *MVFC game

100th Meeting With Redbirds Pass Defense Stands Out In its storied football history, Western Illinois has never seen an The Penguins held Illinois State to just 42 yards passing on six opponent more than Illinois State, and Saturday’s contest will be the completions. This year, YSU has held seven of eight opponents to 100th meeting between the two schools. The Leathernecks lead the fewer than 160 yards passing in a contest. YSU has allowed just all-time series 50-46-3, but have lost seven games in a row to the seven passing touchdowns on the year. YSU is allowing just 144.5 Redbirds. In three of the last four contests between the programs, yards passing per contest. Last season YSU allowed 191.1 yards Western Illinois has seen a second half lead dissipate into a loss. passing per game and 26 touchdowns. Red Alert Dellovade Another Big Game Western Illinois has taken advantage of nearly every opportunity For the second straight week, junior LB Armand Dellovade had when bringing the ball inside the opponent’s 20-yard line this season. a standout game for the Penguins. Dellovade had 11 total tackles, The Leathernecks lead the Missouri Valley Football Conference and including 10 solo stops, against Illinois State. Dellovade was coming rank fourth nationally in red zone scoring at 92.6 percent. Western’s off a career-high 15-tackle effort at UNI the week before. His 10 solo only misses in the red zone this year have come when they got inside stops vs. the Redbirds are a career-best effort. For the season, Del- the 20 and ran out the clock during their final drive at Northern Ari- lovade has 58 total tackles, including 31 solo stops. zona and when they turned the ball over on downs from inside the 5 at North Dakota State. The best red zone performance of the season for the Leathernecks came at Coastal Carolina, where they finished Indiana State Series 7-for-7 in the red zone. The Penguins and Sycamores have played every season since 1997. The last three games in the series have been determined by a total of nine points. YSU won last year’s game 13-10 at Stambaugh Catch a Star Stadium. The previous two contests were decided on final-play field Western wide receiver Jaelon Acklin entered this season with 21 goals. Indiana State won 27-24 in 2015 during a snowstorm in Terre career catches for 364 yards and two receiving touchdowns. However, Haute and handed the Penguins a 27-24 loss in overtime in 2014. the senior has blown up in 2017, catching 58 balls for 1,002 yards YSU leads the all-time series by a 21-5 margin, including 11 wins at and eight receiving touchdowns. The Mountain View, Mo., native Memorial Stadium. is second in the nation in receiving yards (1,002), third in receiv- ing yards per game (125.3), fourth in total touchdowns (11), fifth in all-purpose yards per game (150.25), eighth in receptions per game Schuler Has Been Solid (7.3) and ninth in receiving touchdowns (eight). Acklin is the eighth Sophomore punter Mark Schuler had a strong effort against Illinois Leatherneck to ever post a 1,000-yard receiving season. State. Schuler tied his career high for punts with eight and averaged 40.5 yards per attempt against the Redbirds. This season he has played in six games – did not punt against Robert Morris and Central Connecticut – and has 31 punts for an average of 42.2 yards per boot. He has placed nine kicks inside the opponents’ 20-yard line and has five kicks of more than 50 yards on the campaign. Last season he averaged 42.5 yards per punt.