Victor Dawson Scores Twice as Illinois State Beats Murray State 35-14

Illinois State did not need fireworks on Saturday at Hancock Stadium. It needed a steady run game, a defense that could get off the field on third down, and one or two shots down the field from Beckham Pellant. It got all three, pulled away in the fourth quarter, and beat Murray State 35-14 to move to 7-2 overall and 3-2 in the Missouri Valley Football Conference.

Victor Dawson carried 22 times for 99 yards and two touchdowns, Seth Glatz added 67 yards and a score, and Pellant threw for 248 yards and two touchdowns on only 13 completions. Ethan Loss caught only two passes, for 67 and 50 yards. That is the shape of this Redbirds offense when it is working: grind for 228 rushing yards on 53 carries, then make the safeties pay for creeping up.

Murray State, now 1-8 and 0-5 in the league, hung around for three quarters. The Racers were down only 21-14 late in the third quarter after Baxter Wright found Trey Firestone for a touchdown. Then the field flipped, the Racers went three-and-out from their own 4, and Illinois State scored the final 14 points.

How the game unfolded

Murray State moved the ball on its first possession, reaching the Illinois State 40 before Solomon Oduma came through for a sack that ended the drive. Illinois State answered quickly. Facing third-and-2 at its own 19, Pellant found Loss for 67 yards, and Dawson finished the five-play, 89-yard drive with an 11-yard touchdown run at 9:55 of the first quarter.

The Racers had a chance to answer late in the quarter. Jaxon Potter caught a 30-yard pass to the Illinois State 14, but the drive stalled and Tyler Dorn missed a 30-yard field goal. Illinois State then gave one back on the first play of the second quarter, failing on fourth-and-9 at the Murray State 38.

Murray State made that stop count. On third-and-3, Jawaun Northington broke a 42-yard touchdown run, and Dorn's extra point tied it 7-7 with 13:20 left in the half. Northington finished with 74 yards on only seven carries.

Illinois State took the lead back just before the break. Glatz plunged in from a yard out with 1:33 left in the second quarter, and the Redbirds went into halftime up 14-7.

The third quarter opened with the play of the day. Pellant went deep to Loss again, this time for a 50-yard touchdown at 12:35, and Illinois State led 21-7. Murray State answered with its best drive of the afternoon, nine plays and 76 yards over 4:31, capped when Wright, coming in at quarterback, hit Firestone for a 6-yard touchdown at 7:49. It was 21-14.

Illinois State had a chance to stretch the lead again, but Michael Cosentino missed a 41-yard field goal at 3:47 after a 10-play drive. That left the door open for Murray State. It never got through it.

The turning point

The game changed on plays that will not make a highlight package. After the missed field goal, Travis Jones came up with a sack that forced a Murray State punt. Illinois State's own drive stalled, but H. Futch dropped a 34-yard punt that pinned the Racers at their own 4.

From there, Murray State had nowhere to go. Tye Niekamp and M. Kaplan combined on a sack, the Racers went three-and-out, and I. Willis returned the ensuing punt 21 yards to the Murray State 34. Illinois State needed eight plays and 3:25 to cover those 34 yards, and Pellant capped it early in the fourth quarter with a 5-yard touchdown pass to Dylan Lord. That made it 28-14 and turned a one-score game into a two-score game.

Murray State never threatened again. On its next possession, Rico Clay intercepted Collin Shannon at the Illinois State 20 and returned it 37 yards at 9:46. Five plays and 61 yards later, Dawson ran it in from 14 yards out at 7:44. The big play on that drive was another Pellant strike to Lord, a 39-yard completion on third-and-10. Cosentino's fifth extra point made it 35-14.

Star players

Victor Dawson, RB, Illinois State. Dawson's 99 yards came on 22 carries, a 4.5 average, and both touchdowns came at moments that mattered: the opening score and the one that put the game away. Dawson was the main reason Illinois State held the ball for 36:23.

Beckham Pellant, QB, Illinois State. The completion percentage was modest at 13 of 27, and Dylan Rowsey intercepted Pellant once. But Pellant averaged 9.2 yards per attempt and hit the three biggest passing plays of the game: 67 and 50 yards to Loss, and 39 to Lord on third-and-10. Pellant also ran four times for 17 yards.

Ethan Loss and Dylan Lord, Illinois State. Loss finished with 117 yards on two catches. Lord led the team with five catches for 80 yards and the touchdown that broke the game open.

The Illinois State front. Tye Niekamp and Dexter Niekamp each had six tackles and 2.5 tackles for loss, and Dexter Niekamp broke up two passes. Oduma had a sack and 1.5 tackles for loss, Jones added a sack, and Wyatt Mueller led the team with eight tackles.

Jaxon Potter, WR, Murray State. Potter was the best player on the field for the Racers, catching seven passes for 131 yards with a long of 37. Firestone caught eight balls for 60 yards and the touchdown. On defense, Rowsey had 11 tackles and the interception, and Klayton Ingram, Jayden Walker and Ryan McCall each made 10 tackles.

Stats that matter

476 to 304. Illinois State outgained Murray State by 172 yards.

8 of 17 vs. 2 of 12. Third down told the story. Illinois State converted nearly half its chances and kept drives alive. Murray State converted twice, and the Illinois State pass rush was a big part of that. The Redbirds finished with three sacks and a long list of tackles for loss.

36:23. Illinois State's time of possession wore down a Murray State defense that had four players reach double-digit tackles. Tackle totals like that measure snaps more than success.

2 to 1. Murray State threw two interceptions, both by Shannon, who finished 14 of 27 for 169 yards. Illinois State threw one. The Clay interception led directly to the final touchdown.

What it means

For Illinois State, this was the kind of game good teams take care of without drama, and the Redbirds did, despite a failed fourth down in the second quarter and a missed field goal in the third. At 7-2, Illinois State has followed last week's 17-10 homecoming win over Indiana State with another win built on defense and the run game.

The league picture is less comfortable. At 3-2 in the Missouri Valley, Illinois State is chasing a group of contenders with fewer conference losses, including Youngstown State, South Dakota and South Dakota State, based on ESPN's standings. Next up is a trip to North Dakota on Nov. 7.

Brock Spack's team has also now beaten Murray State in each of the last three meetings, after a 40-32 win in 2024 and a 46-32 win at Murray last October.

For Murray State, the season has become about finding pieces for next year. The Racers came in off a 42-9 loss at South Dakota State and looked much more competitive here, especially through the air with Potter. They trailed a 6-2 team by only a touchdown entering the fourth quarter. But the inability to convert on third down, and two turnovers, kept them from turning a competitive game into a real upset bid.

The take

Illinois State is not going to blow many people away with its passing numbers, and Pellant's 48 percent completion rate is something to watch against better pass defenses. But this offense is built to punish teams that sell out against the run, and Loss and Lord showed exactly how. The defense did the rest, holding Murray State to 96 rushing yards and two third-down conversions.

The concern is the kicking game and the empty trips. A missed field goal and a failed fourth down would cost Illinois State against a top team in this league. Against Murray State, it only delayed the inevitable.

For the full numbers, see the ESPN box score (opens in a new tab).

Sources: ESPN box score, play-by-play and standings; Illinois State's 2026 schedule (Wikipedia). More college football coverage on Undrafted.

Photos: Illinois State Athletics (file photo).