Week Three Preview: Coach Spack Talks Rivalry and Resilience as Redbirds Gear Up for Western Illinois

Image Courtesy of Redbird Athletics

NORMAL, Ill. – Coach Spack spoke with the media again following the Redbirds’ Week 2 tight victory 24-17 over North Alabama. He touched on a big point in his press conference: how important rivalry games are, not just to ISU but to college football in general. Coach Spack also mentioned the fact that Western is not one to be overlooked, as the scores of their past games may be telling a different story.

Week 3 features a non-conference rivalry matchup between the 1-1 Illinois State Redbirds and the 0-2 Western Illinois Leathernecks. As mentioned previously, that 0-2 record should not fool you. As Coach Spack talked in his press conference on Tuesday, he mentioned the level their opponents are playing at. A Week 1 loss of 54-15 against NIU, who just recently took down #5 ranked Notre Dame in South Bend. The Huskies are now ranked #25 in the country.

They also faced an undefeated Big Ten team in Indiana who beat them 77-3. This is a Hoosier team that has only given up 10 points in their 2 games this season. This speaks to the level of competition the Leathernecks have played in and is a big reason Coach Spack is making sure the ISU fans, players and coaching staff do not overlook Western Illinois.

Coach Spack also praised Junior Running Back Wenkers Wright for his performance in last week’s game, where he had 26 rushes for 153 yards, rushing for almost 6 yards a carry. Wenkers became a key part of the game and will continue to be a big part of the Redbird rushing attack, with Walter Payton Award Watch List Player Mason King being ruled out for the rest of the season, with season-ending surgery, per Coach Spack. Wright will be facing a Leatherneck rushing defense that has given up over 600 rushing yards in just their first 2 games this season.

As the press conference was getting started, Coach Spack touched on some injuries that had arisen amidst the first 2 weeks of the season. As previously mentioned, Mason King is out for the season with a season-ending surgery, and Garrett Steffen is also out for the season with a season-ending surgery. Amir Abdullah is being considered week to week, and Hunter Zambrano will be missing this week’s game.

“They are a vastly improved team”, said Coach Spack in his Tuesday press conference. The Redbird defense will have to step up this week, as the Leathernecks are a team that can move the ball down the field very effectively. The Redbirds came into this rivalry, leading the series 6-2 with a 2-game win streak heading into this matchup. This is the Redbird’s home opener before a stretch of 3 in a row at home. This Saturday’s Week 3 rivalry matchup will take place at Hancock Stadium, with kickoff set for 12 pm CT.