Getty The Northern Iowa Panthers face James Madison Friday. (Photo by David Purdy/Getty Images)
The Illinois State Redbirds (6-2) will host the Northern Iowa Panthers (5-3) at Hancock Stadium in Normal Illinois Saturday.
The game (1 p.m. ET start time) won’t be on regular TV anywhere, but you can watch it live right here on ESPN+, the digital streaming service from ESPN that has exclusive coverage of dozens of college football games and other live sports every week, all the 30-for-30 documentaries and additional original content (both video and written) all for $4.99 per month.
You can sign up for ESPN+ right here, and you can then watch Northern Iowa vs Illinois State live on your computer via ESPN.com, or on your phone (Android and iPhone compatible), tablet, Roku, Amazon Fire TV, Apple TV, Chromecast, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, or other streaming device via the ESPN app.
Northern Iowa vs Illinois State Preview
This will be a clash between two top ten teams, both in the Missouri-Valley Football Conference: No. 7 Illinois State and No. 9 Northern Iowa.
Illinois State is coming off a dominant defensive performance against Indiana State last weekend. Tied 7-7 at the half, the Redbirds dominated the second half while also forcing three fumbles on defense, winning 24-7. Senior running back James Robinson rushed for 180 yards and two touchdowns, leading the team. Robinson will likely be a big factor in this game, as well.
The Redbirds are averaging 23.6 points on offense, and they’re giving up just 16.6, so they’ve been winning games largely with dominant defense. They’ll be going up against a Panthers team that’s averaging just over 24 total points of offense per game, so they will need to put together another great effort on defense if they want to take this one.
Their showdown against the Panthers will be a big one, and Illinois State coach Brock Spack knows it. “It’s that time of year,” Spack said. “Everyone remembers games in November.” Illinois is coming into this game coasting on a three-game win streak, so October has been kind to them. They’re hoping November is just as kind.
The Panthers are coming off a dominating 29-6 win against Missouri State. They are led by freshman quarterback Will McElvain. McElvain threw for 238 yards and two touchdowns while running for another in the win against Missouri State. The Panthers have won two straight, and they’ll have their work cut out for them on the road in this one.
Sophomore Isaiah Weston will be McElvain’s top target. Weston has had four-straight 100-yard games, and he’ll be going up against a Redbirds secondary that’s giving up 203.5 yards per game in the air. If Westong and McElvain can connect, they have a shot at staying in–or perhaps even winning–this game.
Panthers head coach Mark Farley know it, and he seems to have a philosophy similar to the one employed by Spack: “They are all big going down the stretch here. You are in November now so it is a big deal,” he said.
The Redbirds are 5-4 against the Panthers since 2009, which, coincidentally, is the season Spack took over as head coach of the team.