Illinois State left guard Woodard takes improvement, mentorship seriously

Landon Woodard, who is starting at left guard this season, is in his second year as a starter along the Illinois State offensive line. (Photo by GoRedbirds.com)

By Barry Bottino 

Mention Landon Woodard’s name to Illinois State head coach Brock Spack and the compliments flow with ease.

“I’m always impressed with Landon. He’s one of my favorite guys,” said Spack, who is in his 17^th season coaching ISU. “He’s a hard worker and a big, physical, tough guy. He’s worked really hard. He’s a big part of our front.”

When the No. 16/17 Redbirds (6-3 overall, 3-2 Missouri Valley Football Conference) hit the road to play Indiana State (3-6, 1-4) at noon Saturday, Woodard will take the field as the MVFC’s reigning Offensive Lineman of the Week.

“It was definitely one of the goals I had coming into the season,” said Woodard, a 6-foot-5, 330-pound senior left guard from Waukesha, Wis. “It makes me hungry for another one.”

While Woodard — who started at right guard last year — said he has improved his pass protection, pad level, knee bending and footwork, he also has taken a strong interest in helping others improve.

“We’ve got some younger guys who are getting better, and that’s because the older guys take them under their wing,” Spack said.

For Woodard, guiding young players is a natural progression as part of the ISU program.

“It’s important for young guys to come in and have someone to learn from,” he said. “I had great mentors that I learned from. I had (former Redbirds) Hunter Zambrano and Ryan Gudaitis a couple years ago. I was able to pick their brains.

“Being able to pass that down to younger guys, I don’t see it as a job,” he said. “I see it as something I get to do. I get to watch them become better players than hopefully I will ever be.”

In last week’s 31-16 victory against Northern Iowa, Woodard earned a 90 grade while helping running back Victor Dawson rush for 101 yards. The game featured ISU piling up 430 total yards, including 202 on the ground.

“We’ve been really clicking together as a unit,” Woodard said of the O-line. “We’ve been focused on communication and moving as a group of one.”

This week’s opponent

The unranked Sycamores pulled off one of the biggest upsets of the FCS season by winning at then-No. 4/5 South Dakota State. How did they do it? The defense collected three turnovers and wide receiver Rashad Rochelle returned a kickoff 95 yards for a score and caught TD passes of 14 and 57 yards. “I’m so proud of this football team,” head coach Curt Mallory said. “I told Rashad, ‘You’re getting the ball today.’ When he got it in his hands, he made some big plays.” Defensively, Mallory said holding SDSU to field goals was important early, and the Sycamores having a halftime lead was an important confidence boost. … Rochelle ranks fifth in the MVFC with 116.75 all-purpose yards a game. … Safety Kimal Clark, who had 15 tackles and a sack against SDSU, ranks seventh in the nation with 11.1 tackles per game. He’s one of only five FCS players with 100 or more tackles this season. … Junior quarterback Keegan Patterson, whose career began at FBS Southern California, has thrown for five touchdowns and three interceptions since taking over in Week 2 when returning starter Elijah Owens suffered a shoulder injury. … Despite having a halftime lead Saturday, the Sycamores have not performed well in the first half all season. The team has been outscored 183-78 in the first two quarters through nine games.

Kickoff: Noon; TV: ESPN-Plus; Radio: WJBC.com

Key matchup to watch

Redbird run game vs. Indiana State front seven: Even with Wenkers Wright getting banged up last weekend, the Redbirds have relied on a deep group of running backs that average nearly 170 yards a game. The Sycamores, meanwhile, have the second-worst run defense in the MVFC at 240 yards allowed per game.

What’s at stake?

With each week, wins become more important for playoff seeding. The Redbirds can secure a stronger hold on a potential playoff spot with a victory against Indiana State.

Quick hits

On Monday, Spack told Prairie State Pigskin the team should get a key offensive player – All-American wide receiver Daniel Sobkowicz — back from injury for Saturday’s game. “We’re going watch him all week. We expect him to be available.” He also said safety Jack Dwyer is expected to play. A day later, The Vidette – Illinois State’s student newspaper – reported that injured running back Wenkers Wright and Sobkowicz both practiced that morning in full pads and should be “good to go” against Indiana State. … With three games left in the season, playoff projections are commonplace on national blogs and social media. “I haven’t looked at one,” Spack said. “There’s a lot of football yet to be played. You saw what happened last weekend. That turned our league upside down a little bit.” With six wins, going 3-0 or 2-1 down the stretch against Indiana State, South Dakota State and Southern Illinois would provide the Redbirds with a strong case for a playoff spot. … In the past two weeks – victories against South Dakota and Northern Iowa – the Redbirds have allowed 14.5 points a game, nearly two touchdowns fewer than their season average of 27.6. “I would say those two games are our best (of the season),” Spack said of his defense. “We’ve put two back to back, so that’s encouraging.” … Through nine games, senior quarterback Tommy Rittenhouse has thrown 21 touchdowns and four interceptions. In 14 games last season, he threw 17 TDs and threw seven picks. His completion percentage this fall is 64.4%, only slightly lower than last season’s 66.4%. … Junior linebacker Tye Niekamp ranks third in the MVFC and 18^th nationally in tackles with 9.3 per game. He needs 30 tackles this season to reach 300 for his career.

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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