Wikipedia

2018 Western Illinois Leathernecks football team

The 2018 Western Illinois Leathernecks football team represented Western Illinois University in the 2018 NCAA Division I FCS football season. They were led by first-year head coach Jared Elliott and played their home games at Hanson Field. They were a member of the Missouri Valley Football Conference (MVFC). They finished the season 5–6, 4–4 in MVFC play to finish in fifth place.

2018 Western Illinois Leathernecks football
ConferenceMissouri Valley Football Conference
Record5–6 (4–4 MVFC)
Head coach
Co-offensive coordinatorTy Howle (1st season)
Co-offensive coordinatorDavid Rocco (1st season)
Defensive coordinatorTyler Stockton (1st season)
Home stadiumHanson Field
Seasons
← 2017
2019 →
2018 Missouri Valley Football Conference standings
Conf Overall
Team   W   L     W   L  
No. 1 North Dakota State $^   8 – 0     15 – 0  
No. 3 South Dakota State ^   6 – 2     10 – 3  
No. 23 Northern Iowa ^   5 – 3     7 – 6  
Indiana State   5 – 3     7 – 4  
Western Illinois   4 – 4     5 – 6  
Illinois State   3 – 5     6 – 5  
Youngstown State   3 – 5     4 – 7  
South Dakota   3 – 5     4 – 7  
Missouri State   2 – 6     4 – 7  
Southern Illinois   1 – 7     2 – 9  
  • $ – Conference champion
  • ^ – FCS playoff participant
Rankings from STATS Poll

Preseason

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Award watch lists

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Award Player Position Year
Buck Buchanan Award[1] Khalen Saunders DE SR

Preseason MVFC poll

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The MVFC released their preseason poll on July 29, 2018, with the Leathernecks predicted to finish in seventh place.[2]

Predicted finish Team Votes (1st place)
1 North Dakota State 390 (39)
2 South Dakota State 270
3 Northern Iowa 258
4 Youngstown State 248
5 Illinois State 248
6 South Dakota 206
7 Western Illinois 163
8 Southern Illinois 139
9 Missouri State 90
10 Indiana State 41

Preseason All-MVFC Teams

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The Leathernecks placed five at six positions players on the preseason all-MVFC teams.[3]

Schedule

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DateTimeOpponentSiteTVResultAttendance
August 308:00 p.m.at Montana State*
SWXL 23–2618,507
September 86:30 p.m.at Illinois*
BTNL 14–3439,252
September 153:00 p.m.No. 15 Montana*
ESPN+W 31–274,011
September 293:00 p.m.Youngstown State* 
  • Hanson Field
  • Macomb, IL
ESPN3W 45–384,352
October 62:00 p.m.at No. 15 Illinois State
ESPN+L 16–338,516
October 136:00 p.m.No. 1 North Dakota State
  • Hanson Field
  • Macomb, IL
ESPN+L 7–342,709
October 202:00 p.m.at Missouri State
ESPN+W 31–1412,109
October 271:00 p.m.No. 17 Northern Iowa*
  • Hanson Field
  • Macomb, IL
ESPN+W 37–172,832
November 31:00 p.m.at Southern Illinois
ESPN3W 34–314,780
November 101:00 p.m.at South Dakota
ESPN+L 12–178,761
November 171:00 p.m.Indiana State*
  • Hanson Field
  • Macomb, IL
ESPN3L 13–155,822
  • *Non-conference game
  •  Homecoming
  • Rankings from STATS Poll released prior to the game
  • All times are in Central time

Game summaries

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At Montana State

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1 2 3 4 Total
Leathernecks 7 6 7 3 23
Bobcats 3 3 14 6 26
See also: 2018 Montana State Bobcats football team

At Illinois

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1 2 3 4 Total
Leathernecks 7 0 7 0 14
Fighting Illini 0 14 10 10 34
See also: 2018 Illinois Fighting Illini football team

Montana

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1 2 3 4 Total
No. 15 Grizzlies 18 0 3 6 27
Leathernecks 14 3 0 14 31
See also: 2018 Montana Grizzlies football team

Youngstown State

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1 2 3 4 Total
Penguins 7 0 10 21 38
Leathernecks 6 10 14 15 45
See also: 2018 Youngstown State Penguins football team

At Illinois State

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1 2 3 4 Total
Leathernecks 6 7 3 0 16
No. 15 Redbirds 2 10 0 21 33
See also: 2018 Illinois State Redbirds football team

North Dakota State

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1 2 3 4 Total
No. 1 Bison 3 14 7 10 34
Leathernecks 0 7 0 0 7
See also: 2018 North Dakota State Bison football team

At Missouri State

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1 2 3 4 Total
Leathernecks 7 3 7 14 31
Bears 7 0 0 7 14
See also: 2018 Missouri State Bears football team

Northern Iowa

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1 2 3 4 Total
No. 17 Panthers 3 7 0 7 17
Leathernecks 0 16 7 14 37
See also: 2018 Northern Iowa Panthers football team

At Southern Illinois

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1 2 3 4 Total
Leathernecks 7 7 0 20 34
Salukis 7 10 14 0 31
See also: 2018 Southern Illinois Salukis football team

At South Dakota

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1 2 3 4 Total
Leathernecks 3 0 0 9 12
Coyotes 7 0 3 7 17
See also: 2018 South Dakota Coyotes football team

Indiana State

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1 2 3 4 Total
Sycamores 3 6 3 3 15
Leathernecks 3 0 10 0 13
See also: 2018 Indiana State Sycamores football team

Players drafted into the NFL

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See also: 2019 NFL Draft
Round Pick Player Position NFL Club
3 84 Khalen Saunders DT Kansas City Chiefs

References

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  1. ^ "FCS football: 2018 Buck Buchanan Award watch list announced". August 2, 2018. Retrieved August 2, 2018.
  2. ^ "North Dakota State Picked to Win 2018 MVFC Title".
  3. ^ "Preseason All-Conf and Team (PDF) - Missouri Valley Football Conference" (PDF).
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