By: Austin Duncan
YOUNGSTOWN, OHIO- Illinois State head football coach Brock Spack did something he had not done in his tenure at the helm of the Redbirds, beat No. 7 Youngstown State 31-29 at Stambaugh Stadium.
The No. 4 Redbirds took the opening drive down to the Youngstown State one yard line but were unable to capitalize, failing on a fourth and goal situation.
The next drive Illinois State defensive back Josh Burch intercepted a pass from YSU quarterback Hunter Wells and returned it 26 yards to the house, giving the Redbirds an early 7-0 lead.
Youngstown State answered back with a 3 yard run by Shane Kuhn, the extra point was no good making the score 6-0.
The game continued to go back and forth but it was ISU with a 14-9 halftime advantage.
YSU came out of the locker room hot, scoring on a 36 yard field goal by Zak Kennedy, held ISU to a field goal of their own, and added another touchdown by Shane Kuhn to give the Penguins a 20-17 lead at the 13:37 mark of the fourth quarter.
Illinois State quarterback, Tre Roberson, who had missed time in last week’s game against Northern Iowa with a thumb injury, took over for the remainder of the game. Roberson connected with receiver Anthony Warrum on a 39 yard pass to give the Redbirds the lead for good. All-American running back Marshaun Coprich added a 19 yard touchdown run inflating the ISU lead to 31-23 with 04:18 remaining.
YSU had one more opportunity to win, scoring on a 13 yard touchdown pass from Hunter Wells to Martin Ruiz, cutting the margin to just two points with 00:32 seconds to play. The Penguins elected to go for two. Wells ran the ball up the middle, and it was initially called a successful two-point conversion. After review of the play, it was determined Wells’ knee was down prior to the ball crossing the endzone.
Illinois State was paced by Tre Roberson, who did not start, throwing for 130 yards, and a touchdown, while rushing for 90 yards including a 58 yard touchdown. Marshaun Coprich added 131 yards and a touchdown. Anthony Warrum had five catches for 86 yards and a score.
The Redbirds improve to 4-1 on the season and a 2-0 mark in the MVFC. They currently sit tied for first in the MVFC with North Dakota State and Western Illinois. This was ISU’s second straight win over an FCS top 10 opponent as they defeated Northern Iowa last week.
ISU returns to action next week as they travel to Springfield, Missouri to play Missouri State. Kickoff is scheduled for 2:00 p.m. Redbird Preview will begin at 1:00 p.m.
