# 2024 Illinois State Redbirds football team

The 2024 Illinois State Redbirds football team represented Illinois State University as a member of the Missouri Valley Football Conference (MVFC) during the 2024 NCAA Division I FCS football season. They were led by 16th-year head coach Brock Spack. Illinois State played their home games at Hancock Stadium in Normal, Illinois.

## Preseason
### MVFC poll

The MVFC released it preseason prediction poll on July 22, 2024. The Redbirds were predicted to finish sixth in the conference.
MVFC media poll :
| Predicted finish | Team | Votes (1st place) |
| 1 | South Dakota State | 482 (42) |
| 2 | North Dakota State | 437 (1) |
| 3 | South Dakota | 371 |
| 4 | Southern Illinois | 293 |
| 5 | North Dakota | 276 |
| 6 | Illinois State | 264 |
| 7 | Youngtown State | 255 |
| 8 | Northern Iowa | 227 |
| 9 | Missouri State | 164 (1) |
| 10 | Indiana State | 68 |
| 11 | Murray State | 67 |

## Schedule

| Date | Time | Opponent | Rank | Site | TV | Result | Attendance |
| August 31 | 11:00 a.m. | at No. 25 (FBS) Iowa* | No. 19 | Kinnick StadiumIowa City, IA | BTN | L 0–40 | 69,250 |
| September 7 | 6:00 p.m. | at North Alabama* | No. 21 | Braly Municipal StadiumFlorence, AL | ESPN+ | W 24–17 | 8,014 |
| September 14 | 12:00 p.m. | Western Illinois* | No. 18 | Hancock StadiumNormal, IL | ESPN+ | W 51–34 | 12,440 |
| September 21 | 6:00 p.m. | Eastern Illinois* | No. 17 | Hancock StadiumNormal, IL | ESPN+ | W 31–7 | 9,012 |
| September 28 | 2:00 p.m. | No. 2 North Dakota State | No. 18 | Hancock StadiumNormal, IL | ESPN+ | L 10–42 | 11,687 |
| October 5 | 6:00 p.m. | at No. 19 Southern Illinois | No. 18 | Saluki StadiumCarbondale, IL | ESPN+ | W 45–10 | 7,157 |
| October 12 | 12:00 p.m. | Missouri State | No. 16 | Hancock StadiumNormal, IL | ESPN+ | L 7–41 | 6,232 |
| October 19 | 2:00 p.m. | at Murray State | No. 21 | Roy Stewart StadiumMurray, KY | ESPN+ | W 40–32 | 15,991 |
| November 2 | 2:00 p.m. | Youngstown State | No. 21 | Hancock StadiumNormal, IL | ESPN+ | W 23–16 | 6,381 |
| November 9 | 1:00 p.m. | at Northern Iowa | No. 18 | UNI-DomeCedar Falls, IA | ESPN+ | W 31–9 | 1,880 |
| November 16 | 12:00 p.m. | at Indiana State | No. 17 | Memorial StadiumTerre Haute, IN | ESPN+ | W 31–19 | 3,188 |
| November 23 | 12:00 p.m. | North Dakota | No. 14 | Hancock StadiumNormal, IL | ESPN+ | W 35–13 | 5,631 |
| November 30 | 11:00 a.m. | at No. 16 Southeast Missouri State* | No. 11 | Houck StadiumCape Girardeau, MO (NCAA Division I First Round) | ESPN+ | W 35–27 | |
| December 7 | 3:00 p.m. | at No. 5 UC Davis* | No. 11 | UC Davis Health StadiumDavis, CA (NCAA Division I Second Round) | ESPN+ | L 10–42 | 6,317 |
| *Non-conference gameHomecomingRankings from STATS Poll released prior to the gameAll times are in Central time ||||||||

## Game summaries
### at No. 25 (FBS) Iowa

| Pregame line | Over/under |
| Iowa –21.5 | 37.5 |
| 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)
| 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 |
| Illinois State | Rushing | Wenkers Wright | 9 carries, 36 yards |
| Illinois State | Receiving | Xavier Loyd | 4 receptions, 53 yards |
| Iowa | Passing | Cade McNamara | 21/31, 251 yards, 3 TD |
| Iowa | Rushing | Kaleb Johnson | 11 carries, 119 yards, 2 TD |
| Iowa | Receiving | Reece Vander Zee | 5 receptions, 66 yards, 2 TD |

### at North Alabama

| Pregame line | Over/under |
| ILST -13.5 | 50.5 |
| 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)
| 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 |
| Illinois State | Rushing | Wenkers Wright | 26 carries, 153 yards |
| Illinois State | Receiving | Dylan Ford | 6 receptions, 52 yards |
| North Alabama | Passing | Ari Patu | 21/36, 328 yards, TD, INT |
| North Alabama | Rushing | Jayvian Allen | 14 carries, 63 yards |
| North Alabama | Receiving | Takairee Kenebrew | 7 receptions, 129 yards |

### Western Illinois

| 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+
* Statistics
* First downs
* Total yards
* Rushing yards
* Passing yards
* Passing: Comp–Att–Int
* Time of possession
| Team | Category |
| Western Illinois | Passing |
| Western Illinois | Rushing |
| Western Illinois | Receiving |
| Illinois State | Passing |
| Illinois State | Rushing |
| Illinois State | Receiving |

### Eastern Illinois (Mid-America Classic)

| 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+
* Statistics
* First downs
* Total yards
* Rushing yards
* Passing yards
* Passing: Comp–Att–Int
* Time of possession
| Team | Category |
| Eastern Illinois | Passing |
| Eastern Illinois | Rushing |
| Eastern Illinois | Receiving |
| Illinois State | Passing |
| Illinois State | Rushing |
| Illinois State | Receiving |

### No. 2 North Dakota State

| 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+
| 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 |
| North Dakota State | Rushing | CharMar Brown | 17 carries, 100 yards, TD |
| North Dakota State | Receiving | Bryce Lance | 8 receptions, 65 yards, TD |
| Illinois State | Passing | Tommy Rittenhouse | 10/14, 132 yards |
| Illinois State | Rushing | Wenkers Wright | 9 carries, 24 yards, TD |
| Illinois State | Receiving | Xavier Lloyd | 3 receptions, 52 yards |

### at No. 19 Southern Illinois

| 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+
* Statistics
* First downs
* Total yards
* Rushing yards
* Passing yards
* Passing: Comp–Att–Int
* Time of possession
| Team | Category |
| Illinois State | Passing |
| Illinois State | Rushing |
| Illinois State | Receiving |
| Southern Illinois | Passing |
| Southern Illinois | Rushing |
| Southern Illinois | Receiving |

### Missouri State

| 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+
* Statistics
* First downs
* Total yards
* Rushing yards
* Passing yards
* Passing: Comp–Att–Int
* Time of possession
| Team | Category |
| Missouri State | Passing |
| Missouri State | Rushing |
| Missouri State | Receiving |
| Illinois State | Passing |
| Illinois State | Rushing |
| Illinois State | Receiving |

### at Murray State

| 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+
* Statistics
* First downs
* Total yards
* Rushing yards
* Passing yards
* Passing: Comp–Att–Int
* Time of possession
| Team | Category |
| Illinois State | Passing |
| Illinois State | Rushing |
| Illinois State | Receiving |
| Murray State | Passing |
| Murray State | Rushing |
| Murray State | Receiving |

### Youngstown State

| 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+
* Statistics
* First downs
* Total yards
* Rushing yards
* Passing yards
* Passing: Comp–Att–Int
* Time of possession
| Team | Category |
| Youngstown State | Passing |
| Youngstown State | Rushing |
| Youngstown State | Receiving |
| Illinois State | Passing |
| Illinois State | Rushing |
| Illinois State | Receiving |

### at Northern Iowa

| 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+
* Statistics
* First downs
* Total yards
* Rushing yards
* Passing yards
* Passing: Comp–Att–Int
* Time of possession
| Team | Category |
| Illinois State | Passing |
| Illinois State | Rushing |
| Illinois State | Receiving |
| Northern Iowa | Passing |
| Northern Iowa | Rushing |
| Northern Iowa | Receiving |

### at Indiana State

| 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+
* Statistics
* First downs
* Total yards
* Rushing yards
* Passing yards
* Passing: Comp–Att–Int
* Time of possession
| Team | Category |
| Illinois State | Passing |
| Illinois State | Rushing |
| Illinois State | Receiving |
| Indiana State | Passing |
| Indiana State | Rushing |
| Indiana State | Receiving |

### North Dakota

| 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+
* Statistics
* First downs
* Total yards
* Rushing yards
* Passing yards
* Passing: Comp–Att–Int
* Time of possession
| Team | Category |
| North Dakota | Passing |
| North Dakota | Rushing |
| North Dakota | Receiving |
| Illinois State | Passing |
| Illinois State | Rushing |
| Illinois State | Receiving |

### No. 16 Southeast Missouri State (NCAA Division I Playoff–First Round)

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| No. 11 Redbirds | 7 | 21 | 7 | 0 | 35 |
| No. 16 Redhawks | 7 | 0 | 7 | 13 | 27 |
at Houck Stadium • Cape Girardeau, MO
* Date: Saturday November 30, 2024
* Game time: 12:00 p.m.
* Game weather: Cloudy, 32 °F (0 °C)
* Game attendance: 0
* Referee: Preston Clipper
* TV announcers (ESPN+): Shawn Kenney (play-by-play) and Jay Sonnhalter (analyst)
| Statistics | ILST | SEMO |
| First downs | 14 | 34 |
| Total yards | 322 | 602 |
| Rushing yards | 45 | 35 |
| Passing yards | 277 | 567 |
| Passing: Comp–Att–Int | 24–36–0 | 48–85–5 |
| Time of possession | 25:33 | 34:27 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Illinois State | Passing | Tommy Rittenhouse | 24/36, 277 yards, 2 TD |
| Illinois State | Rushing | Wenkers Wright | 12 carries, 17 yards, 1 TD |
| Illinois State | Receiving | Daniel Sobkowicz | 7 receptions, 136 yards, 1 TD |
| Southeast Missouri State | Passing | Paxton DeLaurent | 48/85, 567 yards, 4 TD, 5 INT |
| Southeast Missouri State | Rushing | Brandon Epton Jr. | 6 carries, 32 yards |
| Southeast Missouri State | Receiving | Cam Pedro | 11 receptions, 149 yards |