Redbirds set a stadium record in a historic performance against St. Francis

Image courtesy of Illinois State Athletics

NORMAL, Ill. — Since 2000, the Illinois State football team had not seen a scoreboard light up quite like this. 

The Redbirds defeated St. Francis 76-0 Saturday, setting a stadium record for points at Hancock Stadium. 

After emerging as one of the Redbird’s standout players in last season’s playoff surge, the Walter Payton Award watch-list candidate Victor Dawson picked up right where he left off, continuing to make his presence felt on the field.

Head coach Brock Spack immediately made it known that they were feeding Dawson touches to move the chains early. Dawson carried the ball five times for 30 yards before punching in a 1-yard touchdown himself for the first Redbird touchdown of the 2026 season.

At the 3:10 mark of the first quarter, with ISU up 14-0, Dawson liked a hole he saw, made a few players miss and made his way to the left sideline for a 32-yard gain right in front of the end zone at the 1-yard line. 

After the extraordinary run play, Dawson looked a little shaken up as he was slow making his way to the huddle. Shortly afterwards, While Dawson was on the sideline, a gator took him to the fences outside Hancock Stadium where he was taken to the back of an ambulance and eventually taken to the hospital.

“He’s fine,” Spack said. “We’ll find out if there’s gonna be a time loss with this injury. I don’t think it’s going to be any season ending thing.”

Moments later, Gage Roy threw a perfect ball to Dylan Lord who executed on the fade route for the easy touchdown to give the Redbirds 21 unanswered points.

With the Redbirds star running back exiting the game, you would think the run game would weaken. If anything, it got even stronger.

Seth Glatz and Tyler Lofton provided the Redbirds with a one-two punch in the running game. Glatz wasted no time making an impact, breaking loose for a 53-yard touchdown run in the first. 

Lofton followed with an explosive performance of his own, rushing for a career-high 119 yards and two touchdowns, including an 85-yard sprint to the end zone. He also added a 9-yard receiving touchdown where he plowed over his opponent for the score as Hancock Stadium erupted in excitement.

Beckham Pellant made the first appearance on the field amid the ongoing quarterback battle. Roy was perfect through the air, completing 10 of 10 passes for 85 yards and two touchdowns. Pellant matched him, completing all six of his attempts for 114 yards and two touchdowns.

“The competition goes into next week,” Spack said. “You’re gonna need two. It seems every year a quarterback will get nicked up so you need it’s nice to have two guys like that.”

Lord explained his experience with the two quarterbacks after his night of three catches for 69 yards: 

“I like both to be honest,” Lord said. “Having two quarterbacks that are super good that you can’t decide who’s playing or who’s starting, that’s a good problem to have.”

On the defensive end, the highlight play of the game other than holding St. Francis scoreless, was Dexter Niekamp’s interception in the second quarter for a 58 yard return. It was unfortunately called back to ISU’s own 25-yard line after an illegal block in the back during the return.

“No matter who you’re playing, anytime you get a shut out, it’s a big deal.” Niekamp said. “You should have pride in that.”

The scoreboard showed a historic 76-0 victory, but Spack was quick to point out that the Redbirds still have work to do. With the quarterback battle continuing and Dawson’s status uncertain, Illinois State will turn its attention to the areas that need improvement before its next test.

“We’re happy with what we did tonight, but not ecstatic.” Spack said. “I think there’s a lot that we can do to get better down the road.”

For all things Redbird football, stay tuned to wznd.com.