# 2012 Illinois State Redbirds football team

The 2012 Illinois State Redbirds football team represented Illinois State University as a member of the Missouri Valley Football Conference (MVFC) during the 2012 NCAA Division I FCS football season. Led by fourth-year head coach Brock Spack, the Redbirds compiled an overall record of 9–4 with a mark of 5–3 in conference play, placing in a three-way tie for third in the MVFC. Illinois State received an at-large bid to the NCAA Division I Football Championship playoffs. After a first-round bye, the Redbirds defeated Appalachian State in the second round before falling to Eastern Washington in the quarterfinals. The team played home games at Hancock Stadium in Normal, Illinois.
Illinois State averaged 6,511 fans per home game in 2012 while the East Side of Hancock Stadium was being renovated. Two games were sold out, against Eastern Illinois and Southern Illinois.

## Schedule

| Date | Time | Opponent | Rank | Site | TV | Result | Attendance |
| September 1 | 12:00 pm | Dayton* | No. 19 | Hancock StadiumNormal, IL | | W 56–14 | 4,840 |
| September 8 | 1:00 pm | at Eastern Michigan* | No. 18 | Rynearson StadiumYpsilanti, MI | CSNC | W 31–14 | 7,654 |
| September 15 | 1:00 pm | Eastern Illinois* | No. 15 | Hancock StadiumNormal, IL (Mid-America Classic) | | W 54–51 $^{2OT}$ | 7,700 |
| September 22 | 3:00 pm | at Western Illinois | No. 15 | Hanson FieldMacomb, IL | CSNC | W 23–3 | 16,033 |
| September 29 | 2:00 pm | at South Dakota | No. 13 | DakotaDomeVermillion, SD | | W 34–31 | 7,863 |
| October 6 | 1:00 pm | Southern Illinois | No. 9 | Hancock StadiumNormal, IL | CSNC | L 0–17 | 8,000 |
| October 13 | 1:00 pm | No. 8 Youngstown State | No. 14 | Hancock StadiumNormal, IL | CSNC | W 35–28 | 5,557 |
| October 20 | 1:00 pm | Missouri State | No. 11 | Hancock StadiumNormal, IL | | L 17–24 | 6,180 |
| October 27 | 4:00 pm | at Northern Iowa | No. 17 | UNI-DomeCedar Falls, IA | CSNC | W 33–21 | 9,946 |
| November 3 | 1:00 pm | at No. 14 Indiana State | No. 17 | Memorial StadiumTerre Haute, IN | CSNC | W 17–10 | 6,008 |
| November 17 | 1:00 pm | No. 1 North Dakota State | No. 11 | Hancock StadiumNormal, IL | ESPN3 | L 20–38 | 6,793 |
| December 1 | 1:00 pm | at No. 7 Appalachian State* | No. 16 | Kidd Brewer StadiumBoone, NC (NCAA Division I Second Round) | ESPN3 | W 38–37 $^{OT}$ | 16,719 |
| December 8 | 5:00 pm | at No. 4 Eastern Washington* | No. 16 | Roos FieldCheney, WA (NCAA Division I Quarterfinal) | ESPN3 | L 35–51 | 7,512 |
| *Non-conference gameRankings from The Sports Network Poll released prior to the gameAll times are in Central time |||||||||

## Ranking movements

Ranking movements Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking :
| | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week |
| Poll | Pre | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | Final |
| Sports Network | 19 | 18 | 15 | 15 | 13 | 9 | 14 | 11 | 17 | 17 | 15 | 11 | 16 | 8 |
| Coaches | 20 | 19 | 17 | 15 | 12 | 11 | 16 | 13 | 17 | 15 | 15 | 11 | 15 | 9 |

## Players drafted in the NFL

| Draft year | Player | Position | Round | Overall | NFL team |
| 2013 | Nate Palmer | LB | 6 | 193 | Green Bay Packers |