Illinois State safety Keondre Jackson (3) led the team with 11 tackles, seven of which were solo. (Photo by GoRedbirds.com)
By Dan Verdun
Following an impressive first-half defensive performance, Illinois State succumbed to an onslaught by FBS Iowa in the season opener for both teams.
The No. 25-ranked Hawkeyes broke open a 6-0 halftime contest with consecutive touchdown drives in the third quarter. From there, Iowa cruised to a 40-0 victory over ISU.
“Our defense did some great things in the first half,” Illinois State head coach Brock Spack said. “We needed a little help (from the offense) and had to get them (defense) some rest, and we didn’t get that right away. So they were gassed. Once they got to that point, it was very difficult.”
Spack, a former Big Ten linebacker and defensive coordinator compared it to a boxing match.
“You take those kind of shots for awhile, and then you have to take an extra possession or two in the first half. That adds up at the end of the fight, at the end of the game,” he said. “That’s what happened to us. We were just gassed.”
Iowa (1-0) was without head coach Kirk Ferentz, who sat out Saturday’s game with a school-imposed penalty for a recruiting violation that occurred in 2022. Ferentz is the longest-tenured head coach in FBS.
Hawkeye assistant Seth Wallace coached the team in Ferentz’s absence.
Solid Illinois State defense and first-half mistakes kept the Hawkeyes at bay, including a penalty that negated an apparent punt return touchdown.
“I just told them we need to pick up the pace a little bit (in the second half), our urgency needs to improve (and) the guys clearly responded,” Wallace said during the Big Ten Network postgame.
Early setbacks
Illinois State (0-1) suffered two major early setbacks: one before the game and one during the first half.
Redbird receiver Eddie Kasper – the nephew of Iowa legend Kevin Kasper – missed the game with an illness, according to the Big Ten Network broadcast.
The other occurred when Mason King, ISU’s leading returning rusher and last year’s Missouri Valley Football Conference Newcomer of the Year, left the game with a lower-leg injury early in the second quarter.
King’s injury was somewhat reminiscent of two years ago when top rusher Cole Mueller broke his leg in the season opener against Wisconsin. Prior to Saturday’s loss, that 2022 result was the last time ISU suffered a shutout defeat.
According to Spack’s post-game radio comments, x-rays showed “there was nothing broken.”
The 16th-year ISU head coach added, “He’s been kind of off and on all fall. He’s been banged up, so I don’t know what his issue was,” Spack said, explaining that King suffered a bruise to the lower part of his leg.
Second half surge
Iowa quarterback Cade McNamara began the second half by completing 11-of-12 passes for 166 yards and three touchdowns. The Hawkeyes utilized play-action passes and the receiving of true freshman Reese Vander Zee and Northwestern transfer Jacob Gill.
Iowa, which has allowed the fewest points in FBS over the last two seasons, held ISU to 189 yards of offense. The Redbirds managed just 56 rushing yards.
The Hawkeyes rolled up 492 total yards, the majority of which came in the second half. McNamara ended with 251 passing yards.
“We’ve got to find a way to play four full quarters,” ISU safety and leading tackler Keondre Jackson said.
Redbird QB rotation
Illinois State started returnee Tommy Rittenhouse in its two-quarterback rotation. Transfer Jake Rubley also played multiple series against the Hawkeyes.
Rittenhouse, a redshirt junior, went 10-for-20 for 119 passing yards. The St. Francis High School graduate threw one interception. He had five rushing yards on eight attempts. However, four sacks greatly affected that ground total.
Rubley, a junior transfer from Kansas State, was 2-for-7 for seven yards. He had one rush for four yards.
“Your quarterback has to play really good in a game like this, and we were just okay,” Spack said. “We’ve got to play better there to win a game like this.”
Rubley left the game with an injury to his left shoulder in the second half.
According to Spack, Rubley’s non-throwing shoulder had to be put back into place and he sat out the rest of the game as precaution.
“We’ll see where the quarterback deal goes,” Spack said.
True freshman Beckham Pellant played late in the game. The Chandler, Ariz. product completed two passes for seven yards. Pellant also fumbled.
Game changers
11:50, 2nd quarter: King, who led ISU with 983 yards and 13 touchdowns last fall, left the game with a lower-leg injury. The Redbirds used a rotation of Wenkers Wright, Seth Glatz, Josh Robinson and true freshman Dylan Ward following King’s departure.
1:04, 2nd quarter: Jackson broke up a pass at the goal line, forcing Iowa to settle for a field goal.
11:32, 3rd quarter: Vander Zee, a former two-sport prep star, made a sliding touchdown catch off play action. The touchdown capped a 7-play, 75-yard drive to open the second half and gave Iowa a 12-0 lead.
What it means
Illinois State is 1-5 against Big Ten opponents during Spack’s 16 seasons in Normal. The Redbirds defeated Northwestern, 9-7, in 2016.
Best ‘Birds
Prairie State Pigskin chooses the top three Illinois State players in the game:
Jackson, DB: The Freeport High School graduate led ISU with 11 tackles, seven of which were solo. In addition to his goal-line pass breakup, Jackson had an open-field tackle of Iowa punt returner Caiden Wetjen.
Lavoise-Deontae McCoy, LB: The Homewood-Flossmoor High School product had seven tackles, including one for loss. He also forced a fumble and broke up a pass.
Tye Niekamp, LB: Last year’s freshman sensation returned with a nine-tackle effort.
What’s next?
The Redbirds, ranked in the FCS Top 20, travel to FCS North Alabama Sept. 7 for a non-conference game. North Alabama lost its opener, 37-15, to Southeast Missouri State.
Dan Verdun is a co-founder of Prairie State Pigskin. He has written four books: NIU Huskies Football, EIU Panthers Football, ISU Redbirds Football and SIU Salukis Football.
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