Oct. 25--After losing in the FCS national championship game last season, Illinois State is eager to get back and take care of unfinished business.
But before the third-ranked Redbirds can worry about their ultimate goal, there's work to be done in the Missouri Valley Football Conference. And they took a big step in their title defense Saturday with a 48-28 victory over Western Illinois at Hancock Stadium.
Anthony Warrum had touchdown catches of 65 and 41 yards and alertly picked up a fumble in the end zone for a third score as the Redbirds (6-1, 4-0) pulled away late, scoring four unanswered touchdowns in the second half, to take sole possession of the MVFC lead.
The ISU line gave quarterback Tre Roberson time to throw, and the Leathernecks' early emphasis on stopping running back Marshaun Coprich helped open up the passing game.
"We had really good protection this week," said Warrum, who had four receptions for 170 yards. "Tre threw a couple perfect balls, and we were able to connect on a couple of big ones."
On a day full of big plays, Coprich saved one of the biggest for last, scoring on a career-long 83-yard scamper with 5:40 to play for the final margin.
"They were trying to stop me and playing a lot people in the box," said Coprich, who finished with 206 yards on 29 carries with two scores. "Anthony had a couple of deep shots, and then in the second half they started (playing) a normal defense and I had a chance for big ones."
Roberson passed for two touchdowns and rushed for two -- including a 65-yard sprint on the first ISU drive -- in the teams' first meeting when both were ranked since 1999.
"We had to minimize their big-play potential, and we didn't do a very good job of that," said WIU coach Bob Nielson, whose No. 20 Leathernecks (4-3, 3-1) fell out of a first-place tie. "We made some very young mistakes on defense. At the same time, I don't want to take from the fact that they've got some really good players and made those plays."
After WIU took a 28-21 lead on Devon Moore's 10-yard touchdown run with 8:25 left in the third quarter, ISU tied it on Roberson's 65-yard strike to Warrum and went ahead for good on a 19-yard Coprich run.
Warrum's fumble-recovery touchdown came with 11:17 to play after Coprich lost possession at the goal line.
"It's important whenever you start like we did to never panic," ISU linebacker Alex Donnelly said. "We know that you have to stay calm and trust in our abilities and the guys we have."
Jack McCarthy is a freelance reporter for the Chicago Tribune.
