EIU Football Game Selected As Game of Week on ESPN3 Saturday

The November 7 Jacksonville State at Eastern Illinois game has been selected as a "Wildcard Selection" in the league's Game of the Week football package on ESPN3. The game will kickoff at 1 p.m. CT at O'Brien Field.

When the league's eight-contest Game of the Week schedule was announced in July the Oct. 31, Nov. 7, Nov. 14 and Nov. 21 games were deemed "Wildcard" dates where the matchup would not be announced until roughly two weeks prior to the contest.

Eastern Illinois and Jacksonville State have played 12 times since the Gamecocks joined the OVC prior to the 2003 season, with each program winning six times. Jacksonville State won 27-20 a year ago which snapped a two-game winning streak in the series for Eastern Illinois. The home team has won four-straight in the series after the road team won all four matchups between 2007 and 2010.

This marks the third-straight season the league has produced the Game of the Week package in conjunction with WebStream Sports. WebStream Sports, an Indianapolis-based company which is a proven leader in video production, streaming video and content creation. The company, founded in 2006, produces more than 1,000 events annually.

Kevin Ingram, host of "The Wake Up Zone" on 104.5 The Zone in Nashville, will handle play-by-play duties while Bob Belvin, on-air talent and contributor at 100.7 FM/AM 540 (ESPN Clarksville), will provide analysis. The duo has worked together each of the past three years in the league's TV package.

ESPN3 is ESPN's live multi-screen sports network, a destination that delivers thousands of exclusive sports events annually.  It is accessible online at WatchESPN.com, on smartphones and tablets via the WatchESPN app and streamed on televisions through Amazon Fire TV and Fire TV Stick, Apple TV, Chromecast, Roku, Xbox 360 and Xbox One.  The network is currently available to more than 99 million homes at no additional cost to fans who receive their high-speed Internet connection or video subscription from an affiliated service provider.  The network is also available at no cost to approximately 21 million U.S. college students and U.S.-based military personnel via computers, smartphones and tablets connected to on-campus educational and on-base military broadband and Wi-Fi networks.

Panthers Move Up to Rank Third Team Also Receiving Votes

Eastern Illinois football is one of 14 schools with an unblemished conference record heading into the first week of November.  After a 34-20 win over Murray State on Saturday to move to 5-3 overall, 5-0 in the OVC, Eastern Illinois moved up to rank as the third team also receiving votes in both FCS Top 25 football polls on Monday.  
 
EIU is 28th in both rankings as the Panthers get set to host number one ranked Jacksonville State on Saturday with a 1 p.m. kickoff at O’Brien Field.  Fans can call the EIU ticket office at 217-581-2106 to purchase tickets or online at www.eiupanthertickets.com
 
In the FCS Coaches Top 25 Jacksonville State climbed to number one in the poll with 23 of 26 first place votes.  Previously unbeaten Coastal Carolina had been number one but dropped to eighth after a loss against Charleston Southern.  Illinois State, which beat EIU in overtime back in September is second with the other three first place votes.  Chattanooga and Eastern Washington are third and fourth with McNeese State and North Dakota State tied for fifth.  Richmond, Coast Carolina, Portland State and Sam Houston State round out the top ten.  South Dakota State is 11th with William & Mary, Charleston Southern, James Madison, Harvard, North Carolina A&T, Fordham, Southern Utah, Eastern Kentucky and Northern Iowa in the top twenty.  The final five ranked schools are Youngstown State, The Citadel, Montana, Montana State and Bethune-Cookman.     Indiana State and Dartmouth, which were both ranked last week, were the first two schools also receiving votes followed by Eastern Illinois and Towson.
 
In the STATS Top 25 Media poll Jacksonville State remained number one with 139 first place votes.  Illinois State had 18 first place votes in second place.  McNeese State and Portland State each picked up a first place vote as they were ranked ninth and tenth in the poll.  Chattanooga, Eastern Washington, Richmond, North Dakota State, Sam Houston State and Coastal Carolina were ranked third through eighth.  South Dakota State led off the next group of schools in 11th with William & Mary, Harvard, James Madison, Charleston Southern, Fordham, Northern Iowa, Eastern Kentucky, North Carolina A&T and Southern Utah closing out top twenty.  Youngstown State, Montana, Indiana State, Dartmouth and The Citadel were the final five schools in the poll.  Montana State, Grambling State and Eastern Illinois were the first three schools also receiving votes.
 
There are now just three teams with an unbeaten record in the FCS with McNeese State at 8-0, Harvard at 7-0 and Dayton at 8-0.