Western Illinois wide receiver Tristin Duncan led all players Saturday in WIU’s season opener against Northern Illinois with five receptions. (Photo by GoLeathernecks.com)
By Barry Bottino
As a walk-on wide receiver at Western Illinois, Tristin Duncan beat long odds to earn a starting job in last weekend’s season opener at FBS Northern Illinois.
But just being on the field is a victory in itself for Duncan, who spent six days in a hospital with severe injuries when he was involved in a car crash as a senior at Effingham High School.
“I’m just happy to be here and happy to have a chance,” said Duncan, a junior who arrived in Macomb in January as a transfer from California’s Saddleback College. “Being a walk-on and being able to say you started against an FBS opponent is surreal.”
Duncan is expected to get his second career start at 6 p.m. Friday when Western visits the Indiana University.
On Oct. 20, 2020, Duncan said he was working for a local pizza delivery service in his hometown.
“It was wet and raining and I was driving … an old car that just didn’t have great tires on it,” he said. “I was coming down a hill and what we think happened was I started to hydroplane, tapped the brakes, lost control of my car and then slid into oncoming traffic.”
He collided with a pickup truck in a collision that totaled both vehicles.
“I had two brain bleeds, one in the front and on in the back of my head,” Duncan said.
He spent several days in an intensive care unit, then began his recovery.
“At first, it was slow, and things were a little foggy,” Duncan said. “But I played my senior season in the (COVID-19) spring of 2021 about five or six months after the accident.
“To date, I don’t have any residual injuries or anything. I’ve been super fortunate. God was definitely with me.”
After the accident, Duncan’s recruitment slowed and he ended up committing to Division II Truman State in Missouri but left for Saddleback after only one season.
In his first start at the Division I FCS level Saturday in DeKalb, Duncan led all receivers in the game with five catches while posting 68 receiving yards, including a 29-yard gain. He also made a catch over the middle in the first quarter and ran for a 50-yard touchdown, but it was nullified by penalty.
“Tristin’s a guy that we’ve used as an example to our team,” WIU head coach Joe Davis said. “He practices how he plays. He practices very, very hard. He plays whatever position you ask of him.”
Since he arrived on campus, Duncan’s effort and playmaking continually stood out.
“In spring football, he just kept showing up every single day, and even through the fall, fending off some transfers we brought in, to become a starter,” Davis said. “He’s definitely a guy we will continue to build on as the season progresses.”
Duncan’s path back to Illinois was thanks to a connection with Western offensive coordinator and offensive line coach Brad Wilson, a former assistant coach at the University of Indianapolis.
“He recruited me to go to Indy,” said Duncan, who joined tight end Alex Williams as walk-on starters against NIU. “I was thinking about going to Indy, then I got in the car accident, so it never ended up happening.”
Though Duncan didn’t know Davis, he followed Eastern Illinois football – where Davis was the offensive coordinator the past two years – since he grew up just 30 miles south of Charleston, and because EIU is his mother’s alma mater.
“I liked Coach Wilson. I knew he was a good guy,” Duncan said. “When I saw that he and Coach Davis were here (at WIU), I thought, ‘This sounds like a really good place.’”
This week’s opponent
The Big Ten Conference’s Indiana Hoosiers won their season opener at home last weekend, beating Florida International, 31-7. … Indiana’s new head coach, Curt Cignetti, brought in 30 players from the transfer portal in the off-season, including 14 from James Madison, where he previously coached. … Twelve transfers started against FIU for the Hoosiers. … New quarterback Kurtis Rourke, who started 34 games over the past four seasons at Ohio University, finished the game 15-for-24 passing for 180 yards and a touchdown. … Running back Ty Son Lawton, a seventh-year senior, rushed for 74 yards and two touchdowns in the opener. … Indiana’s defense held FIU to 53 yards rushing and 182 total yards while collecting four sacks.
Kickoff: 6 p.m.; TV: Big Ten Network; Radio: Q981fm.com
Key matchup to watch
WIU offensive line vs. Indiana front seven: The Leathernecks allowed only one sack against NIU, which came on the first play of the game. For a team that gave up 50 sacks a year ago, the performance was a big improvement. Western will need to be just as sharp against a Big Ten opponent that had four sacks and eight tackles for loss in its season opener. IU linebackers Aiden Fisher and Jailin Walker combined for 20 tackles against FIU.
What’s at stake?
With a win, Western would earn its first non-conference victory since a 31-27 decision against Montana in Macomb on Sept. 15, 2018.
Quick hits
Davis is hoping Western makes its biggest gains from Week 1 to Week 2 defensively. The Leathernecks gave up numerous big plays to NIU. “I was a little surprised at the lack of defensive execution,” WIU’s head coach said. “I thought from what I saw in fall camp, we would have a little more tenacity.” … WIU kicker Antonio Chadha, a transfer from FBS Western Kentucky, made field goals of 44 and 46 yards Saturday against Northern Illinois. In doing so, Chadha became the first Western kicker to connect on a pair of field goals of 40 yards or longer in a single game in seven years. Sam Crosa had 44- and 45-yard field goals in the FCS playoffs on Nov. 25, 2017. The Leathernecks lost that day, 21-19, at Weber State in a first-round postseason game. … Western is aiming find consistency by trying to “master the mundane,” Davis said. “Many of the big moments in a team’s season really come down to the first- and second-day installations,” WIU’s coach said. “Some of your base calls that you have the ability to consistently execute in very big moments. We had some of those moments Saturday and were a little bit hit or miss in all three phases. We’re just trying to move forward and be really, really good at the basics of our system.” … Entering the season opener in DeKalb, only WIU’s five starting offensive linemen had started a Division I football game on the Leathernecks’ offense. … Now in his second season at Western after transferring from Arkansas State, running back Torrance Farmer Jr. scored his first collegiate touchdown against NIU on a 27-yard reception in the fourth quarter Saturday.
Barry Bottino is a co-founder of Prairie State Pigskin and a 19-year veteran of three Illinois newspapers. He has covered college athletics since 1995.
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