Lumberjacks Look for Third Straight Win vs. No. 7/11 Illinois State
Football / October 04, 2017
| GAME 4: Northern Arizona (2-2, 2-0 Big Sky) vs. No. 7/11 Illinois State (4-0, 2-0 Missouri Valley) |
GAME NOTES (PDF)
FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. - The Northern Arizona football team returns to action Saturday looking for its third consecutive victory as it plays host to No. 7/11 Illinois State on Saturday in a non-conference showdown at the J. Lawrence Walkup Skydome.
Kickoff is slated for 4 p.m. PT for the Fox Sports Arizona Plus telecast. The game will also be aired on Fox College Sports Pacific and NAU-TV with
Mitch Strohman (play-by-play),
Kevin Stephens (color) and
Zach Worhack (sideline) on the call.
The game will also be available on the Lumberjack Radio Network beginning with the pregame show at 3 p.m.
Illinois State will represent the second opponent this season for the Lumberjacks that hails from the Missouri Valley Conference and Saturday's clash will mark the final game of the final contest of this season Big Sky/Missouri Valley Conference Challenge.
NAU will be meeting Illinois State for the first time when they square off on Saturday and the Lumberjacks will be seeking their first win over an opponent from the Missouri Valley Conference since it defeated South Dakota by a 22-16 margin on Sept. 21, 2013.
Illinois State enters Saturday's contest a perfect 4-0 on the season and ranked No. 7 in the FCS Coaches Top 25 and No. 11 in the STATS FCS Rankings. The Redbirds defense has only allowed a total of three touchdowns to their first four opponents and have the nation's second rank defensive unit in terms of yards allowed per game (166.5). The ISU defensive boasts eight returning starters from last season.
The Northern Arizona offensive attack will look to continue its own success against the Redbirds as it has tallied at least 400 yards of total offense in three of the first four games of 2017.
