MVFC Opens 6-0 vs. the FCS
The 2020-21 campaign had limited opportunities for non-conference matchups, but the Missouri Valley Football Conference started the 2021 fall campaign on a high note, recording a 6-0 record in the opening week against peer conferences.  Overall, the MVFC went 7-4, which included a 1-4 mark in five meetings against FBS schools.

Weekly Notebook (PDF)

Six Teams Ranked This Week
 The Missouri Valley Football Conference continues to dominate the Top 25 rankings, with six teams in both the Stats Perform and AFCA FCS top-25 polls after Week 1 games.  Four league teams are in the Top 9 of both sets of rankings.

Friday, Sept. 10
#9/7 North Dakota at Utah St., 8 p.m. CT (CBS Sports Network)

Saturday, Sept. 11
RV YSU at RV Michigan State, 11 a.m. CT (Big Ten Network)
Indiana State at Northwestern, 11 a.m. CT (Big Ten Network)
Northern Arizona at RV South Dakota, 1 p.m. CT (Midco/ESPN+)
Valparaiso at #5/4 NDSU, 2:30 p.m. CT (ABC ND/ESPN+)
RV Illinois State at Western Michigan, 4 p.m. CT (ESPN3)    
Lindenwood at #2/3 SDSU, 6 p.m. CT (Midco/ESPN3)
#8/9 S. Illinois at RV Kansas St., 6 p.m. CT (Big 12 Now/ESPN+)
#19/16 C. Arkansas at #23 Missouri St., 7 p.m. CT (ESPN+)    
W. Illinois at #4/5 Montana, 7 p.m. CT (ABC FOX MT/ESPN+)
#21/15 UNI at RV Sacramento State, 8 p.m. CT (ESPN+)

Top-25 designations list Stats Perform poll first, followed by the AFCA Coaches rankings.  "RV" - received votes   


MVFC Against the FBS
MVFC teams will face five FBS foes this weekend.  Counting South Dakota State’s win at Colorado State last Friday, Sept. 3, MVFC schools have combined for 47 wins all-time against FBS opponents.  The league had a streak of 10-straight seasons with at least one FBS win (2010-19), which was snapped last season -- only one meeting occurred last year.  During that last decade, the MVFC combined for 19 wins against FBS schools.  The FCS combined for six FBS wins during the first weekend of the 2021 fall season.

Against the Top 25
This past spring, MVFC teams combined for a total of 24 top-25 wins (six non-league games and 18 wins against league foes).  Southern Illinois recorded the league’s best non-league win, knocking off No. 3 Weber State in the playoffs.  This weekend, Missouri State (vs. UCA) and Western Illinois (at Montana) play ranked FCS programs.

Big Sky-MVFC Challenge Series
The 2021 season is the fifth year of the Big Sky-MVFC Challenge Series.  Last year’s series had no regular-season games, but the MVFC won both playoff meetings.  The previous three seasons (2017-19) featured 26 total regular-season matchups.  Following last Saturday’s UND win at Idaho State, MVFC schools have a 17-10 overall edge in games played and have won the series each season (5-3 in 2017, 5-3 in 2018, 6-4 in 2019).

Sept. 4 -- North Dakota at Idaho State    UND, 35-14
Sept. 11 -- Northern Arizona at South Dakota
Sept. 11 -- Western Illinois at Montana
Sept. 11 -- UNI at Sacramento State
Sept. 18 -- Eastern Washington at Western Illinois
Sept. 18 -- South Dakota at Cal Poly

644-Day Wait Pays off w/Win
Indiana State ran its current winning streak to three consecutive games. The streak started over the final two games of the 2019 season, and after a 644-day hiatus, was continued with the win over Eastern Illinois on Week Zero (Aug. 28).

Welcome Back
North Dakota State hosts Valparaiso this week in a rematch of NDSU’s first game as a Division I program in 2004. The Bison won that contest 52-0 before a crowd of 18,665 at the Fargodome, which at the time was a home-opener record and fifth largest home crowd on record. NDSU went 8-3 in that inaugural Division I season, but was ineligible for postseason play until 2008 due to NCAA reclassification rules. The Bison won 25-7 at No. 20/21 UC Davis in the regular-season finale to crack the FCS national rankings for the first time and finished the year No. 23.

South Dakota State the Favorite
For the first time since joining the Missouri Valley Football Conference for the 2008 season, South Dakota State has been tabbed as the league pre-season favorite in a poll conducted by league coaches, media and sports information directors.  SDSU received 24 first-place votes and 454 total points to edge North Dakota State, which earned 435 points and had 18 first-place tallies. 

Ground and Pound
Against Butler, the Redbirds racked up nearly 300 yards on the ground with five rushing scores. Cole Mueller led the way with 111 yards and two rushing touchdowns and Kevin Brown rushed for a career-high 81 yards. Sophomore Nigel White scored the game’s first touchdown for ISU and even quarterback Bryce Jefferson got in on the act with a pair of rushing scores.

Spack Ties the ISU Record
Illinois State’s season-opening win over Butler was a memorable one for head coach Brock Spack, who improved to 86-53 in his career at ISU and is now tied with Edwin Struck for the most wins in program history. The win also pushed Spack’s record in home openers to 12-1 at ISU and improved his non-conference record to 25-10 overall.

ILS .. Jefferson Does it All
QB Bryce Jefferson accounted for four touchdowns (two passing, two rushing) in Illinois State’s season-opening 49-7 win over Butler Saturday night, as the Redbird offense racked up 491 yards of total offense against the Bulldogs. Jefferson threw for 193 yards, including a 44-yard touchdown strike to Austin Nagel, and rushed for 37 yards on the ground with scores of 5 and 14 yards, respectively. 

Hendrix Sets ISU Mark
Dante Hendrix established a new Indiana State record with a catch in 22 consecutive games, surpassing the mark set by Robert Tonyan Jr. in the 2015-16 seasons. Hendrix has now caught at least one pass in every game since the streak started in the 2018 season against Eastern Illinois (Sept. 15, 2018).  Hendrix has also caught at least one pass in 23 of his 24 career games in the Indiana State Blue & White. He also has at least five receptions in 13 career games.

Thomas Leads ISU in Week 0
Michael Thomas’ second-half pick-six was the first Indiana State interception returned for a score since Rondell Green returned one 17 yards against Southern Illinois in 2017.  Thomas’ two INTs were also the first time an Indiana State player recorded multiple interceptions since Anthony Tucker snagged two against Southern Illinois in 2017.

INS .. Safety Dance
Inoke Moala’s late-game pressure that resulted in a safety marked the defense’s first safety since the 2014 season against Eastern Kentucky.  The defense’s 5.0 sack game tied with the program’s best under Mallory which was established back on August 31, 2017 against Eastern Illinois.

Bears in Home Openers
Missouri State goes into Saturday’s clash vs. 19-ranked Central Arkansas with a 68-37-4 record all-time in home openers, including a 27-10-2 mark in such games as a Division I program. Bears head coach Bobby Petrino is 12-3 in home openers as a head coach. This is the first time Missouri State has played a home opener against the same school in back-to-back seasons since 2002-03 vs. East Central (Okla.).

MSU .. Vick Continues to Climb
Bears standout wide receiver Damoriea Vick (Sr., Oklahoma City, Okla.) enters the week tied for 8th on MSU’s career receptions list (116) and 12th all-time in receiving yards (1,452). The All-MVFC performer needs just 34 catches and 769 yards to top Missouri State’s career charts in those categories. He has made 32 consecutive starts for the Bears and last year ranked 2nd in the MVFC and 13th nationally in receiving yards (596). 

MSU .. Burkett Sets Standard
Bears punter, Grant Burkett (So., Joplin, Mo.) averaged 49.0 yards on 6 attempts -- the fourth-best single-game average in MSU history -- to help the Bears win the field position battle at No. 22-ranked Oklahoma State in Week 1. Burkett pinned the Cowboys inside their own 20 three times and tallied 3 punts of 50 yards or better (long 53) in the game. His efforts were paramount in Missouri State’s comeback efforts in the second half in which Oklahoma State had eight possessions, resulting in six punts, a fumble and a field goal.

Defense Shines in Road Win
The Fighting Hawks defense recorded three interceptions by three different players at Idaho State, setting up three North Dakota scores for a total of 20 points in Pocatello.  The UND defense forced two turnover on downs situations against Idaho State, including a goal line stand at the one-yard line, where ISU did not gain a yard in four-straight downs.  

UND .. Weah Hits 100 Again
Otis Weah recorded the third 100-yard rushing game of his career with 114 yards on 22 carries. The Moorhead, Minn., product also rushed for three touchdowns, a new career-high. 

Schuster Leads UND Offense
    Quarterback Tommy Schuster was an efficient 14-for-18 with 183 yards, one touchdown and no interceptions, while guiding the offense to 368 total yards. He registered a quarterback rating of 181.51 against the Bengals defense. 

Another Home-Opening Win
North Dakota State won its sixth straight season opener and 23rd straight home opener 28-6 over Albany last week. Dominic Gonnella rushed for 135 yards and two touchdowns, including a 75-yard TD on the first play of the second half. The Bison scored 21 points off three Albany turnovers, outgained Albany 259-22 in rushing yards, and sacked quarterback Jeff Undercuffler three times while holding CAA leading rusher Karl Mofor to 21 yards on 11 carries.

NDSU .. Forcing Turnovers
North Dakota State forced three turnovers against Albany, which was the most by a Bison opponent in 16 games since Western Illinois committed four turnovers in a 57-21 Bison win at the Fargodome in 2019. Safety Dawson Weber notched his second career interception, cornerback Destin Talbert made his first interception, and linebacker Jackson Hankey recorded his first forced fumble and fumble recovery.

NDSU .. Johnson Tops 1,000
Junior running back Kobe Johnson, NDSU’s active leading rusher, surpassed 1,000 career rushing yards in the season-opener against Albany carrying 11 times for 77 yards in the win. Johnson is averaging 6.4 yards per carry over his 21-game career with a career-long 75 yard TD run at Youngstown State. He had a career-high 114 yards on 16 carries in last February’s home win over Youngstown State.

Hampton Leads Panther Offense
WR Quan Hampton led the Panther offense with 8 catches for 99 yards and 1 touchdown in the opener in Ames.  Hampton scored the first touchdown of the season on a 52-yard catch and run in the first quarter against #7 Iowa State.  The Panthers fell, 16-10.

UNI .. Lambert Tops ‘D’ Effort
LB Alfonzo Lambert put together a nine-tackle performance against #7 Iowa State in the opening game of the season for the Panthers. Recording a team-high 8 solo tackles Lambert forced a fumble along the sideline in the first quarter.  The UNI defensive unit held it’s on to one of the most prolific offenses in college football. The Panthers held the Cyclones to 335 total yards, holding Iowa State’s Brock Purdy to 199 yards passing. 

USD Defense Shines in Debut
South Dakota limited Big 12 foe Kansas to 245 yards of offense – the second-fewest the Coyotes have allowed since the start of the 2018 season. Kansas’ trio of running backs combined for 30 yards on 25 handoffs. All-Valley linebackers Jack Cochrane (13 tackles) and Brock Mogensen (7) combined for 4.0 tackles for loss and edge rusher Jacob Matthew totaled eight tackles and a sack.

Coyotes’ New Backs
Gone is 2,000-yard rusher Kai Henry, but in place of Henry were youngsters Travis Theis and Shomari Lawrence. Theis carried 18 times for a career-high 96 yards while Lawrence ran 11 times for a career-high 59 yards. Both ran for touchdowns of 25 yards or more. USD totaled 165 yards in all.

USD .. Northern Arizona Next
South Dakota matches up with the Big Sky’s Northern Arizona at home Saturday. It will be the Coyotes’ first home game inside the newly remodeled DakotaDome without fan limitations. The Coyotes and Lumberjacks split a home-and-home series back in 2013 and 2014 with the home team winning both games.

Home Opener Up Next
Saturday’s game against Lindenwood will mark the 25th home opener for South Dakota State head coach John Stiegelmeier. The Jackrabbits have compiled a 20-4 record in home openers under Coach Stig, including a 4-0 mark at Dana J. Dykhouse Stadium.  SDSU has won 10 consecutive home openers since a 24-14 loss to Illinois State in 2010.   The Jackrabbits’ home opener wraps up a busy week at Dana J. Dykhouse Stadium as the Jacks Bash 2 concert featuring Zac Brown Band, Fall Out Boy and Gabby Barrett helps kick off the home season Wednesday night. 
 
Oladokun Passes First Test
South Dakota State QB Chris Oladokun was impressive in his Jackrabbit debut Sept. 3 at Colorado State, throwing for two touchdowns and running for another as the Jackrabbits knocked off the Rams, 42-23. Oladokun became the fourth Jackrabbit quarterback in as many seasons to start a season opener. In 2018, Taryn Christion made his third consecutive start in the first game of a season, while J’Bore Gibbs inherited the starting role in 2019. True freshman Mark Gronowski won the starting quarterback battle for the 2020-21 opener and went on to lead the Jackrabbits to the FCS?national title game before suffering an injury in that game that will sideline him for the fall campaign. 
 
SDSU .. Sack Attack Continues
The Jackrabbit defense made life miserable for opposing teams’ quarterbacks during its 2020-21 postseason run, collecting 15 in their four playoff games.  SDSU picked up where it left off in the Sept. 3 season opener at Colorado State as the Jackrabbits posted three sacks in a 42-23 victory, with defensive tackle Caleb Sanders and reserve linebackers Graham Spalding and Kinser Madison credited with the sacks.  A first-team all-MVFC performer last season, Sanders has recorded a sack in four of the last five games dating back to last season. 

Another Big 12 Matchup
SIU has never met Kansas State in football.  And the Salukis have played only two Big 12 teams ever and are 0-4 in those games. SIU is 0-3 vs. Kansas and 0-1 vs. Oklahoma St. SIU’s last game versus a Big 12 team was a 42-0 loss at Kansas in 2000.  The Salukis are 4-35 lifetime vs. FBS teams.  The last SIU victory over an FBS team was Sept. 7, 2019, when the Salukis won at UMass, 45-20. 

SIU .. Baker Debuts With Record
Beginning a season as the Salukis’ starting QB for the first time in his 4 years at SIU, Baker set the school record for passing yards in one game when he passed for 460 yards in the win at SEMO on Sept. 2, 2021.  Twenty-two percent of the 460 yards came on the Salukis’ first play when Baker found WR Avante Cox for a 99-yard TD.  Baker’s 460 yards came while playing just 3 periods in a game SIU won, 47-21. He is one of just five SIU QBs to pass for 400 or more yards in a game. His head coach, Nick Hill, is also part of that 5-some having passed for 436 yards in a 2007 loss at Northern Iowa. 

SIU .. Cox Moves up SIU List
All-American and All-MVFC WR Avante Cox caught five passes for 187 yards in the season opener at SEMO.  The Walter Payton Award finalist is tied for 10th in career receptions at SIU (with Billy Reed) and is tied for 10th (with 5 others) in career receiving TDs.  Cox is 6th all-time at SIU in career receiving yards with 1,646.  Cox is bidding to become the first Saluki to lead his team in receptions in three consecutive seasons since Brent Little (2003-05).  He and QB Nic Baker were teammates at Rochester (Ill.) High School.   Meanwhile, sixth-year WR Landon Lenoir is in fourth place in career receptions at SIU with 147.  He is two receptions shy of #3 LaSteven McKinney (2011-14). Lenoir is fourth in career receiving yardage at SIU.

Strong Debut in FBS Loss
Last week, against the reigning Mid-American Conference champions, Ball State, on Thursday (9/2), WIU totaled 367 receiving yards, compared to the Cardinals’ 188.

WIU ... Against the Griz
This will be the fifth all-time meeting between WIU and Montana. The Leathernecks currently hold a 3-1 advantage, with the most recent outing happening Sept. 15, 2018 (Western won at home, 31-27).

WIU .. Record-Book Additions
Dennis Houston and Connor Sampson slid into the WIU single-game record books following their performances on Thursday night. Houston tallied the fourth-best mark in receiving yards (237), while Sampson took the 15th best spot in receiving yards. Sampson also notched his sixth career game of 30 or more completions (finishing with 30 against the Cardinals).

YSU .. Impressive Debut
Redshirt freshman QB Demeatric Crenshaw had a dynamic starting debut for the Penguins.  Crenshaw engineered a late fourth-quarter drive to help the Guins tie the contest as time expired vs. UIW. It was the first time since Oct. 1, 2018, vs. Southern Illinois that the Penguins rallied in the fourth quarter to earn a victory.  For the game, he completed 9-of-12 passes for 112 yards and a touchdown. He rushed for 81 yards on 20 carries and scored two TDs.

YSU .. Big Offensive Night
The Penguins finished with 351 yards rushing and 463 yards of total offense vs. UIW. In the spring, YSU’s best rushing effort was 303 yards vs. South Dakota. The Penguins also had a high of 387 yards against the Coyotes. The 351 yards rushing were the most since a 454-yard performance against Howard in 2019. The 44 points were a marked improvement from the spring. YSU had a spring-best 28 points vs. USD and averaged 15.4 points in the seven spring contests.

YSU .. Turner Eclipses 1,000
TB Christian Turner has been one of the most versatile players in school history during his Penguins career.  Following his 28-yard rushing performance vs. UIW, he eclipsed the 1,000-yard mark for his career. He now has 1,025 yards on 222 attempts. Turner has caught 78 passes for 634 yards as well. That total ranks him third in school history in career grabs for a running back.