American college football season
The 2015 Illinois State Redbirds football team represented Illinois State University as a member of the Missouri Valley Football Conference (MVFC) during the 2015 NCAA Division I FCS football season. Led by seventh-year head coach Brock Spack, the Redbirds compiled an overall record of 10–3 with a mark of 7–1 in conference play, sharing the MVFC title with North Dakota State for the second consecutive season. Illinois State received an at-large bid to the NCAA Division I Football Championship playoffs. After a first-round bye, the Redbirds defeated Western Illinois in the second round, before losing to Richmond in the quarterfinals. The team played home games at Hancock Stadium in Normal, Illinois.
Schedule[edit]
Date | Time | Opponent | Rank | Site | TV | Result | Attendance |
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September 5 | 11:00 am | at Iowa* | No. 2 | | BTN | L 14–31 | 59,450 |
September 12 | 6:30 pm | Morgan State* | No. 4 | | CSN+/ESPN3 | W 67–14 | 13,391 |
September 19 | 6:00 pm | at Eastern Illinois* | No. 5 | | WMBD | W 34–31 OT | 8,104 |
October 3 | 12:00 pm | No. 7 Northern Iowa | No. 4 | - Hancock Stadium
- Normal, IL
| MVC TV/ESPN3 | W 21–13 | 13,391 |
October 10 | 6:00 pm | at No. 9 Youngstown State | No. 4 | | ESPN3 | W 31–29 | 17,715 |
October 17 | 2:00 pm | at Missouri State | No. 4 | | ESPN3 | W 38–2 | 14,212 |
October 24 | 2:00 pm | No. 20 Western Illinois | No. 3 | - Hancock Stadium
- Normal, IL
| CSNC/ESPN3 | W 48–28 | 13,391 |
October 31 | 12:00 pm | No. 21 Indiana State | No. 3 | - Hancock Stadium
- Normal, IL
| CSNC/ESPN3 | W 27–24 | 7,498 |
November 7 | 2:00 pm | at No. 11 South Dakota State | No. 2 | | ESPN3 | L 20–25 | 9,081 |
November 14 | 2:00 pm | at Southern Illinois | No. 6 | | MVC TV/ESPN3 | W 42–21 | 6,388 |
November 21 | 12:00 pm | South Dakota | No. 6 | - Hancock Stadium
- Normal, IL
| CSNC/ESPN3 | W 46–0 | 5,210 |
December 5 | 1:00 pm | Western Illinois* | No. 4 | | ESPN3 | W 36–19 | 6,124 |
December 11 | 6:30 pm | No. 12 Richmond* | No. 4 | - Hancock Stadium
- Normal, IL (NCAA Division I Quarterfinal)
| ESPN3 | L 27–39 | 5,356 |
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[1][2]
Game summaries[edit]
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
#2 Redbirds | 0 | 0 | 0 | 14 | 14 |
Hawkeyes | 7 | 10 | 7 | 7 | 31 |
Morgan State[edit]
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
Bears | 0 | 7 | 7 | 0 | 14 |
#4 Redbirds | 22 | 14 | 21 | 10 | 67 |
@ Eastern Illinois[edit]
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | OT | Total |
#5 Redbirds | 10 | 14 | 0 | 7 | 3 | 34 |
Panthers | 14 | 7 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 31 |
Northern Iowa[edit]
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
#7 Panthers | 0 | 7 | 3 | 3 | 13 |
#4 Redbirds | 0 | 0 | 7 | 14 | 21 |
@ Youngstown State[edit]
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
#4 Redbirds | 7 | 7 | 3 | 14 | 31 |
#9 Penguins | 6 | 3 | 3 | 17 | 29 |
@ Missouri State[edit]
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
#4 Redbirds | 14 | 17 | 7 | 0 | 38 |
Bears | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
Western Illinois[edit]
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
#20 Leathernecks | 7 | 14 | 7 | 0 | 28 |
#3 Redbirds | 14 | 7 | 14 | 13 | 48 |
Indiana State[edit]
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
#21 Sycamores | 0 | 21 | 3 | 0 | 24 |
#3 Redbirds | 2 | 7 | 7 | 11 | 27 |
@ South Dakota State[edit]
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
#2 Redbirds | 7 | 0 | 7 | 6 | 20 |
#11 Jackrabbits | 0 | 13 | 6 | 6 | 25 |
@ Southern Illinois[edit]
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
#6 Redbirds | 0 | 14 | 21 | 7 | 42 |
Salukis | 0 | 21 | 0 | 0 | 21 |
South Dakota[edit]
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
Coyotes | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
#6 Redbirds | 3 | 20 | 13 | 10 | 46 |
Western Illinois—NCAA Division I Second Round[edit]
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
Leathernecks | 3 | 3 | 6 | 7 | 19 |
#4 Redbirds | 7 | 0 | 8 | 21 | 36 |
Richmond—NCAA Division I Quarterfinal[edit]
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
#12 Spiders | 10 | 9 | 6 | 14 | 39 |
#4 Redbirds | 0 | 7 | 7 | 13 | 27 |
Ranking movements[edit]
Ranking movements
Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking
( ) = First-place votes | Week |
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Poll | Pre | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | Final |
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STATS FCS | 2 (3) | 4 (20) | 5 (6) | 4 (2) | 4 (2) | 4 (1) | 4 (1) | 3 (6) | 3 (3) | 2 (18) | 6 | 6 | 4 | 5 |
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Coaches | 2 | 5 (6) | 6 (1) | 5 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 (2) | 3 (20) | 2 (3) | 6 | 6 | 4 | 5 |
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References[edit]
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Bowls & rivalries | |
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Culture & lore | |
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People | |
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Seasons | |
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National championships in bold |