2024 Illinois State Redbirds football team

2024 Illinois State Redbirds football
2024 Illinois State Redbirds football
NCAA Division I Playoffs
Conference	Missouri Valley Football Conference
Ranking
STATS	No. 14
FCS Coaches	No. 13
Record	9–3 (6–2 MVFC)
Head coach	Brock Spack (16th season);
Offensive coordinator	Tony Petersen (3rd season)
Defensive coordinator	Travis Niekamp (7th season)
Home stadium	Hancock Stadium
	Seasons ← 2023 2025 →

The 2024 Illinois State Redbirds football team will represent Illinois State University as a member of the Missouri Valley Football Conference (MVFC) during the 2024 NCAA Division I FCS football season. They will be led by 16th-year head coach Brock Spack.^[1] Illinois State will play home games at Hancock Stadium in Normal, Illinois.

2024 Missouri Valley Football Conference standings
v t e
Team	W		L	W		L
No. 2 South Dakota State +^	7	–	1	10	–	2
No. 3 North Dakota State +^	7	–	1	10	–	2
No. 4 South Dakota +^	7	–	1	9	–	2
Missouri State*	6	–	2	8	–	4
No. 11 Illinois State ^	6	–	2	9	–	3
Youngstown State	3	–	5	4	–	8
Indiana State	3	–	5	4	–	8
North Dakota	2	–	6	5	–	7
Southern Illinois	2	–	6	4	–	8
Northern Iowa	1	–	7	3	–	9
Murray State	0	–	8	1	–	11
* Ineligible for 2024 FCS playoffs due to transition to the FBS

+ – Conference co-champions ^ – FCS playoff participant As of November 25, 2024 Rankings from STATS Poll

Schedule

Date	Time	Opponent	Rank	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
August 31	11:00 a.m.	at No. 25 (FBS) Iowa*	No. 19	Kinnick Stadium Iowa City, IA	Big Ten Network	L 0–40	69,250
September 7	6:00 p.m.	at North Alabama*	No. 21	Braly Municipal Stadium Florence, AL	ESPN+	W 24–17	8,014
September 14	12:00 p.m.	Western Illinois*	No. 18	Hancock Stadium Normal, IL	ESPN+	W 51–34	12,440
September 21	6:00 p.m.	Eastern Illinois*	No. 17	Hancock Stadium Normal, IL	ESPN+	W 31–7	9,012
September 28	2:00 p.m.	No. 2 North Dakota State	No. 18	Hancock Stadium Normal, IL	ESPN+	L 10–42	11,687
October 5	6:00 p.m.	at No. 19 Southern Illinois	No. 18	Saluki Stadium Carbondale, IL	ESPN+	W 45–10	7,157
October 12	12:00 p.m.	Missouri State	No. 16	Hancock Stadium Normal, IL	ESPN+	L 7–41	6,232
October 19	2:00 p.m.	at Murray State	No. 21	Roy Stewart Stadium Murray, KY	ESPN+	W 40–32	15,991
November 2	2:00 p.m.	Youngstown State	No. 21	Hancock Stadium Normal, IL	ESPN+	W 23–16	6,381
November 9	1:00 p.m.	at Northern Iowa	No. 18	UNI-Dome Cedar Falls, IA	ESPN+	W 31–9	1,880
November 16	12:00 p.m.	at Indiana State	No. 17	Memorial Stadium Terre Haute, IN	ESPN+	W 31–19	3,188
November 23	12:00 p.m.	North Dakota	No. 14	Hancock Stadium Normal, IL	ESPN+	W 35–13	5,631
*Non-conference game Homecoming Rankings from STATS Poll released prior to the game All times are in Central time

^[2]^[3]

Game summaries

at No. 25 (FBS) Iowa

Pregame line	Over/under
Iowa –21.5	37.5

Game One – No. 19 Illinois State Redbirds (0-0) at No. 25 (FBS) Iowa Hawkeyes (0-0) – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
No. 19 Redbirds	0	0	0	0	0
No. 25 (FBS) Hawkeyes	3	3	13	21	40

at Kinnick Stadium • Iowa City, IA

Date: Saturday August 31, 2024
Game time: 11:00 AM CST
Game weather: Sunny; 76 °F (24 °C); Wind: NW 4 mph (6.4 km/h)
Game attendance: 69,250
Referee: Mark Kluczynski
TV announcers (BTN): Mark Followill (play-by-play), Anthony Herron (analyst), and Melanie Ricks (sideline)

Game information

First quarter

5:35 Iowa – Drew Stevens 41-yard field goal (Drive: 4 plays, 6 yards, 1:31; Iowa 3–0)

Second quarter

1:00 Iowa – Drew Stevens 28-yard field goal (Drive: 10 plays, 49 yards, 2:48; Iowa 6–0)

Third quarter

11:32 Iowa – Reece Vander Zee 7-yard pass from Cade McNamara (Two-Point Pass Conversion Failed) (Drive: 7 plays, 75 yards, 3:28; Iowa 12–0)
7:46 Iowa – Jacob Gill 31-yard pass from Cade McNamara (Drew Stevens kick) (Drive: 5 plays, 66 yards, 2:27; Iowa 19–0)

Fourth quarter

14:54 Iowa – Reece Vander Zee 19-yard pass from Cade McNamara (Drew Stevens kick) (Drive: 4 plays, 62 yards, 1:39; Iowa 26–0)
11:09 Iowa – Kaleb Johnson 64-yard run (Drew Stevens kick) (Drive: 4 plays, 77 yards, 2:04; Iowa 33–0)
5:48 Iowa – Kaleb Johnson 18-yard run (Drew Stevens kick) (Drive: 5 plays, 34 yards, 3:11; Iowa 40–0)

Statistics	ILST	IOWA
First downs	12	23
Total yards	189	492
Rushing yards	56	241
Passing yards	133	251
Passing: Comp–Att–Int	14–29–1	21–31–0
Time of possession	25:12	34:48

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Illinois State	Passing	Tommy Rittenhouse	10/20, 119 yards, INT
	Rushing	Wenkers Wright	9 carries, 36 yards
	Receiving	Xavier Loyd	4 receptions, 53 yards
Iowa	Passing	Cade McNamara	21/31, 251 yards, 3 TD
	Rushing	Kaleb Johnson	11 carries, 119 yards, 2 TD
	Receiving	Reece Vander Zee	5 receptions, 66 yards, 2 TD

at North Alabama

Pregame line	Over/under
ILST -13.5	50.5

Game Two – No. 21 Illinois State Redbirds (0–1) vs North Alabama Lions (0–2) – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
No. 21 Redbirds	7	7	10	0	24
Lions	3	0	7	7	17

at Braly Stadium • Florence, AL

Date: Saturday September 7, 2024
Game time: 6:00 PM CST
Game weather: SE at 9 miles per hour (14 km/h) • Weather: Sunny • Temp: 81 °F (27 °C)
Game attendance: 8,014
Referee: Jeremee Tate
TV announcers (ESPN+): Benjamin Ray (play-by-play) and Bryan Neece (analyst)

Game information

First quarter

(11:17) ILST – Mitch Bartol 18-yard pass from Tommy Rittenhouse (Ian Wagner kick) (Drive: 7 plays, 75 yards, 3:39; ILST 7-0)
(7:27) UNA – Scott Payne 25-yard field goal (Drive: 9 plays, 67 yards, 3:50; ILST 7-3)

Second quarter

(11:42) ILST – Tommy Rittenhouse 3-yard rush (Ian Wagner kick) (Drive: 9 plays, 65 yards, 3:18; ILST 14-3)

Third quarter

(6:17) UNA – Kobe Warden 15-yard pass from Ari Patu (Scott Payne kick) (Drive: 8 plays, 80 yards, 4:38; ILST 14-10)
(6:00) ILST – Tommy Rittenhouse 71-yard rush (Ian Wagner kick) (Drive: 1 play, 71 yards, 0:10; ILST 21-10)
(7:27) ILST – Ian Wagner 21-yard field goal (Drive: 13 plays, 83 yards, 4:48; ILST 24-10)

Fourth quarter

(10:57) UNA – Ari Patu 7-yard rush (Scott Payne kick) (Drive: 4 play, 72 yards, 1:25; ILST 21-17)

Statistics	ILST	UNA
First downs	20	17
Total yards	478	411
Rushing yards	325	83
Passing yards	153	328
Passing: Comp–Att–Int	16-26-1	21-36-1
Time of possession	30:31	29:29

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Illinois State	Passing	Tommy Rittenhouse	13/21, 142 yards, TD, INT
	Rushing	Wenkers Wright	26 carries, 153 yards
	Receiving	Dylan Ford	6 receptions, 52 yards
North Alabama	Passing	Ari Patu	21/36, 328 yards, TD, INT
	Rushing	Jayvian Allen	14 carries, 63 yards
	Receiving	Takairee Kenebrew	7 receptions, 129 yards

Western Illinois

Game Three – Western Illinois Leathernecks (0–2) vs No. 18 Illinois State Redbirds (1–1) – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Leathernecks	7	14	7	6	34
No. 18 Redbirds	14	10	14	13	51

at Hancock Stadium • Normal, IL

Date: September 14, 2024
Game time: 12:00 p.m.
Game weather: 0 °F (−18 °C)
Game attendance: 12,440
TV: ESPN+

Game information
First quarter Second quarter Third quarter Fourth quarter

Statistics	WIU	ILST
First downs
Total yards
Rushing yards
Passing yards
Passing: Comp–Att–Int
Time of possession

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Western Illinois	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving
Illinois State	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving

Eastern Illinois (Mid-America Classic)

Game Four – Eastern Illinois Panthers (1–2) vs No. 17 Illinois State Redbirds (2–1) – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Panthers	0	0	0	0	0
No. 17 Redbirds	0	0	0	0	0

at Hancock Stadium • Normal, IL

Date: September 21, 2024
Game time: 6:00 p.m.
Game weather: 0 °F (−18 °C)
TV: ESPN+

Game information
First quarter Second quarter Third quarter Fourth quarter

Statistics	EIU	ILST
First downs
Total yards
Rushing yards
Passing yards
Passing: Comp–Att–Int
Time of possession

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Eastern Illinois	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving
Illinois State	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving

No. 2 North Dakota State

Game Five – No. 2 North Dakota State Bison (3–1) vs No. 18 Illinois State Redbirds (3–1) – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
No. 2 Bison	7	7	21	7	42
No. 18 Redbirds	0	7	0	3	10

at Hancock Stadium • Normal, IL

Date: September 28, 2024
Game time: 2:00 p.m.
Game weather: Sunny, 73 °F (23 °C)
Game attendance: 11,687
Referee: Aaron Adams
TV: ESPN+

Game information

First quarter

(6:45) NDSU – Bryce Lance 7-yard pass from Cam Miller, Griffin Crosa kick (Drive: 11 plays, 64 yards, 6:47; North Dakota State 7-0)

Second quarter

(4:45) NDSU – Mekhi Collins 11-yard pass from Cam Miller, Griffin Crosa kick (Drive: 16 plays, 80 yards, 10:09; North Dakota State 14-0)
(2:56) ILST – Wenkers Wright 2-yard run, Ian Wagner kick (Drive: 5 plays, 74 yards, 1:43; North Dakota State 14-7)

Third quarter

(10:55) NDSU – Barika Kpeenu 40-yard pass from Cam Miller, Griffin Crosa kick (Drive: 7 plays, 69 yards, 4:01; North Dakota State 21-7)
(6:07) NDSU – CharMar Brown 14-yard run, Griffin Crosa kick (Drive: 6 plays, 51 yards, 3:05; North Dakota State 28-7)
(1:51) NDSU – Barika Kpeenu 9-yard run, Griffin Crosa kick (Drive: 4 plays, 48 yards, 2:25; North Dakota State 35-7)

Fourth quarter

(11:27) NDSU – Cole Payton 73-yard run, Griffin Crosa kick (Drive: 4 plays, 97 yards, 2:18; North Dakota State 42-7)
(5:44) ILST – Ian Wagner 38-yard field goal (Drive: 13 plays, 54 yards, 5:43; North Dakota State 42-10)

Statistics	NDSU	ILST
First downs	29	12
Total yards	544	206
Rushing yards	307	8
Passing yards	237	198
Passing: Comp–Att–Int	21–24–0	17–24–0
Time of possession	38:57	21:03

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
North Dakota State	Passing	Cam Miller	20/23, 216 yards, 3 TD
	Rushing	CharMar Brown	17 carries, 100 yards, TD
	Receiving	Bryce Lance	8 receptions, 65 yards, TD
Illinois State	Passing	Tommy Rittenhouse	10/14, 132 yards
	Rushing	Wenkers Wright	9 carries, 24 yards, TD
	Receiving	Xavier Lloyd	3 receptions, 52 yards

at No. 19 Southern Illinois

Game Six – No. 18 Illinois State Redbirds (3–2) vs No. 19 Southern Illinois Salukis (2–3) – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
No. 18 Redbirds	0	0	0	0	0
No. 19 Salukis	0	0	0	0	0

at Saluki Stadium • Carbondale, IL

Date: October 5, 2024
Game time: 6:00 p.m. CST
Game weather: 0 °F (−18 °C)
TV: ESPN+

Game information
First quarter Second quarter Third quarter Fourth quarter

Statistics	ILST	SIU
First downs
Total yards
Rushing yards
Passing yards
Passing: Comp–Att–Int
Time of possession

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Illinois State	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving
Southern Illinois	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving

Missouri State

Game Seven – Missouri State Bears (3–2) vs No. 16 Illinois State Redbirds (4–2) – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Bears	0	0	0	0	0
No. 18 Redbirds	0	0	0	0	0

at Hancock Stadium • Normal, IL

Date: October 12, 2024
Game time: 12:00 p.m.
Game weather: 0 °F (−18 °C)
TV: ESPN+

Game information
First quarter Second quarter Third quarter Fourth quarter

Statistics	MOST	ILST
First downs
Total yards
Rushing yards
Passing yards
Passing: Comp–Att–Int
Time of possession

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Missouri State	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving
Illinois State	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving

at Murray State

Game Eight – No. 21 Illinois State Redbirds (4–3) vs Murray State Racers (1–5) – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
No. 21 Redbirds	0	0	0	0	0
Racers	0	0	0	0	0

at Roy Stewart Stadium • Murray, KY

Date: Saturday October 19, 2024
Game time: 2:00 p.m.
Game weather: 0 °F (−18 °C)
TV: ESPN+

Game information
First quarter Second quarter Third quarter Fourth quarter

Statistics	ILST	MURR
First downs
Total yards
Rushing yards
Passing yards
Passing: Comp–Att–Int
Time of possession

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Illinois State	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving
Murray State	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving

Youngstown State

Game Nine – Youngstown State Penguins (3–6) vs No. 21 Illinois State Redbirds (5–3) – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Penguins	0	0	0	0	0
No. 21 Redbirds	0	0	0	0	0

at Hancock Stadium • Normal, IL

Date: Saturday November 2, 2024
Game time: 2:00 p.m.
Game weather: 0 °F (−18 °C)
TV: ESPN+

Game information
First quarter Second quarter Third quarter Fourth quarter

Statistics	YSU	ILST
First downs
Total yards
Rushing yards
Passing yards
Passing: Comp–Att–Int
Time of possession

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Youngstown State	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving
Illinois State	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving

at Northern Iowa

Game Ten – No. 18 Illinois State Redbirds (6–3) vs Northern Iowa Panthers (2–7) – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
No. 18 Redbirds	0	0	0	0	0
Panthers	0	0	0	0	0

at UNI-Dome • Cedar Falls, IA

Date: Saturday November 9, 2024
Game time: 1:00 p.m.
Game weather: 0 °F (−18 °C)
TV: ESPN+

Game information
First quarter Second quarter Third quarter Fourth quarter

Statistics	ILST	UNI
First downs
Total yards
Rushing yards
Passing yards
Passing: Comp–Att–Int
Time of possession

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Illinois State	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving
Northern Iowa	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving

at Indiana State

Game Eleven – No. 17 Illinois State Redbirds (7–3) vs Indiana State Sycamores (4–6) – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
No. 17 Redbirds	0	0	0	0	0
Sycamores	0	0	0	0	0

at Memorial Stadium • Terre Haute, IN

Date: Saturday November 16, 2024
Game time: 12:00 p.m.
Game weather: 0 °F (−18 °C)
TV: ESPN+

Game information
First quarter Second quarter Third quarter Fourth quarter

Statistics	ILST	INST
First downs
Total yards
Rushing yards
Passing yards
Passing: Comp–Att–Int
Time of possession

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Illinois State	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving
Indiana State	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving

North Dakota

Game Twelve – North Dakota Fighting Hawks (5–6) vs No. 14 Illinois State Redbirds (8–3) – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Fighting Hawks	0	0	0	0	0
No. 14 Redbirds	0	0	0	0	0

at Hancock Stadium • Normal, IL

Date: Saturday November 23, 2024
Game time: 12:00 p.m.
Game weather: 0 °F (−18 °C)
TV: ESPN+

Game information
First quarter Second quarter Third quarter Fourth quarter

Statistics	UND	ILST
First downs
Total yards
Rushing yards
Passing yards
Passing: Comp–Att–Int
Time of possession

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
North Dakota	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving
Illinois State	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving

References

^ "Football Coaches". Illinois State University Athletics. Retrieved March 9, 2024.
^ "2024 Illinois State Football Schedule". FBSchedules. Retrieved March 9, 2024.
^ "2024 Football Schedule". Illinois State Athletics. Retrieved March 9, 2024.

[1] "Football Coaches". Illinois State University Athletics. Retrieved March 9, 2024.

[2] "2024 Illinois State Football Schedule". FBSchedules. Retrieved March 9, 2024.

[3] "2024 Football Schedule". Illinois State Athletics. Retrieved March 9, 2024.

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[2]

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