By: WJBC Staff
CHARLESTON, Ill. – Holding the Panthers to a mere 14 total rushing yards on O’Brien Field, No. 14 Illinois State defeated Eastern Illinois, 44-13, in the 106th meeting of the Mid-America Classic to take home the trophy on Saturday evening.
The Redbird defense racked up six sacks and 11 tackles-for-loss in the victory and held EIU to just seven first downs and 117 yards of total offense. ISU was led by transfer linebacker Tyree Horton, who led the team with 11 tackles, two sacks and 3.5 tackles-for-loss for the Redbirds. Jason Harris also had nine tackles and a sack-fumble for the Redbirds in the win, while Adam Conley tallied four stops and two tackles-for-loss. The offense was balanced with 233 yards rushing and 218 yards passing in the contest.
Illinois State jumped out to an early 3-0 lead on a 35-yard field goal from Sean Slattery early in the first quarter. The score was set up on a sack by Harris that caused EIU quarterback Mitch Kimble to fumble as Matt Swaine dove on the ball at the 50 yard line. Later in the quarter, James Robinson looked to be bottled up at the line of scrimmage, but busted loose and scampered 22 yards for a touchdown to extend the Illinois State lead to 10-0 with 4:46 left in the first quarter.
Following a three-and-out by the Redbird defense that forced EIU punter Cody Edwards to kick from his own end zone, Spencer Schnell broke loose for a 36-yard return to the EIU 7-yard line. That set up Robison’s second touchdown run of the day, this one from one yard out, to extend the Redbird lead to 17-0 early in the second quarter.
A 15-yard blocked punt return for a touchdown by EIU’s Mack Weaver gave the Panthers their first points of the game, but the missed extra point attempt kept the score at 17-6 in favor of the Redbirds with 8:08 left before halftime. The Redbird running game continued to shine, as Markel Smith capped off a 4-play, 82-yard drive on the ensuing series with a 57-yard touchdown run to extend the lead and Slattery’s extra point make made the score 24-6 with 5:58 left in the quarter.
Slattery put a cap on a great first half for the Redbirds with a 27-yard field goal with 40 seconds left as the Redbirds took a 27-6 advantage into the locker room at the half. The ISU defense was dominant through the first 30 minutes of action, allowing -22 yards rushing to the Panthers and just 14 yards of total offense with just two first downs in the half.
The Panthers struck first in the second half, after taking advantage of a missed field goal by Slattery. EIU marched down the field and used 14 plays to drive 80 yards for the score as Scotty Gilkey bullied his way in from one yard out to make it a two-score game at 27-13 in favor of Illinois State with 6:04 left in the third quarter.
The Redbirds didn’t take long to answer, as Jake Kolbe connected with Robert Gillum for an 80-yard touchdown pass to get the seven points right back and widen the lead back to 34-13. The catch was the first for Gillum in his career and the longest touchdown pass of Kolbe’s career at ISU. On the following drive, Mitchell Brees picked off his second pass of the year and fell at the EIU 8-yard line to set up Slattery’s third field goal of the day that bolstered the advantage to 37-13 at the end of three quarters of play.
In the fourth quarter, Malachi Broadnax sealed the deal for the Redbirds with a 6-play, 69-yard scoring drive capped off by a 18-yard touchdown run, the first of his career, to finalize the game’s scoring at 44-13. The Redbirds continue their two-game road swing and open Missouri Valley Football Conference play next Saturday, when they travel to Springfield, Missouri, to face the Missouri State Bears. Kickoff is scheduled for 2 p.m. from Plaster Stadium.
