ISU Sycamores prepared for Gateway play at No. 9 Southern Illinois

CARBONDALE, IL (9-30-2006) – The Indiana State Sycamores continue year two of the “Lou West Era” on Saturday, Sept. 30 when they travel to Southern Illinois for the Gateway Football Conference opener for both clubs. Tonight’s contest is set for a 7:00 p.m. (ET) kick at SIU’s McAndrew Field (17,324). The game will carried live on WSDM 92.7 FM. Brian Fritz and Pete Emmert will call the action once again for the WTWO NewsChannel 2 Radio Network. The game can also be heard live on www.USA-365.com.

A Little History: This is the 102nd season of college football at Indiana State University, dating back to 1896. The university did not field teams from 1899-1900; 1908 or from 1910-1919. ISU owns an all-time record of 337 wins, 426 losses and 22 ties on the gridiron. Indiana State is competing for the 22nd consecutive season as a member of the Gateway Football Conference.

Playing In All Directions: Tonight’s game against Southern Illinois is the third in a series of road contests that will take the Sycamores to all four corners of the state of Illinois in 2006. This season ISU lost at Eastern Illinois, 31-21, and at Northern Illinois 48-14 last week, while they travel to Southern Illinois today, and travel to Western Illinois on Nov. 4.

Versus Ranked Opponents: Indiana State enters tonight’s battle against Southern Illinois, facing the Salukis with a No. 9 national ranking by CSN Coaches Poll as well as a No. 10 ranking by The Sports Network. All-time the Sycamores are 8-53 against ranked opponents, including a mark of 6-40 versus ranked Gateway opponents. ISU’s best victory against a highly-ranked opponent was over No. 10 Northern Iowa in 1990. The last time ISU defeated a ranked opponent came in 1999, when the Sycamores topped No. 19 Western Illinois on October 23 by a score of 39-36.

The Indiana State Coach — Indiana State head coach Lou West is 0-15 with the Sycamores as a collegiate head coach. Tonight’s game is coach West’s second against Southern Illinois, dropping last season’s Homecoming contest against the Salukis by a score of 42-20. West is 0-7 all-time in Gateway Football Conference contests, and is 0-1 in conference lid lifters. Last season, the Sycamores dropped a 38-28 decision against Western Kentucky in the first Gateway Conference contest under West.

The Southern Illinois Head Coach — Southern Illinois is led by Jerry Kill, who is in his sixth season as the Salukis’ head coach. Kill is 37-26 with SIU, after starting his career 1-20. Kill is 3-2 all-time against the Sycamores, having won each of the past three meetings with ISU. He is 86-51 in his 14th season as a collegiate head coach.

The Series — Indiana State and Southern Illinois meet for the 44th time on the gridiron tonight. The Sycamores lead the Salukis by a count of 23-20. In Carbondale, Southern has the better mark, winning 11 of 19 meetings. The Salukis have won each of the past three contests in the series, following a nine-game winning streak for the Sycamores. SIU won in last year’s Homecoming contest by a 42-20 margin. ISU’s last victory in the series was a 21-14 victory in Carbondale at the end of the 2002 campaign. The Salukis dominated the last time these two teams met in Carbondale, a 59-10 victory for SIU. The Sycamores are 1-2 when they meet the Salukis in a Gateway Football Conference opening game.

The Injury Report — Out for today’s game are WR Markus Naves (foot) and WR Bryant Kent (neck). Probable for today’s game are LB Andy Jones (chest), WR Sam Logan (back), and LB Jayden Everett (shoulder).

The Scouting Report — Southern Illinois is a member of the Gateway Football Conference and play their home contests at McAndrew Stadium in Carbondale, Ill. The Salukis posted a 9-4 record in 2005, tying for the league championship with a 5-2 record. This season, SIU is a perfect 3-0, winning contests against Lock Haven and Arkansas-Pine Bluff as well as Big Ten foe Indiana. SIU’s victory over Indiana was the first for a Gateway school against the Big Ten in league history.

What’s Transpired — Indiana State started off the 2006 campaign with a valiant effort at Purdue on September 2. Although the Sycamores fell to the Big Ten Boilers by a count of 60-35, Indiana State trailed just 26-21 at the half, and were within five points (33-28) late in the third quarter. In the season’s second game, the Sycamores led No. 20 Eastern Illinois by a score of 9-3 at the half, but could not prevail as the Sycamores fell 31-21 to the Panthers in week two. ISU trailed Murray State by a score of 31-14 in week three at the half, and grabbed control of the momentum in the third quarter to get within 31-26, but Murray scored the game’s next 21 points en route to a 59-40 Racer victory. In week four, Northern Illinois senior tailback Garrett Wolfe raced for 198 yards and four touchdowns as the Sycamores fell to the Huskies 48-14. At NIU, Tony West paced the Sycamores with 62 rushing yards.

Live Internet Radio coverage on www.USA-365.com begins at 5:40 p.m., CDT / 6:40 p.m., EDT.