How to watch South Dakota State's Hobo Day game against Indiana State
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South Dakota State swept their old North Central Conference rivals. They went to North Dakota and won in consecutive weeks. They slayed the No. 1 team in the nation to become the No. 1 team themselves.
But can they win on Hobo Day?
The Jacks are a mere 5-5 in their last 10 homecoming games, a disappointing record for a team that’s been to the playoffs in each of those seasons. Three of those losses came to Northern Iowa, however, and it’s likely that someone in the administration got the memo to never schedule the Panthers on Hobo Day ever again.
This year’s Hobo Day foe is Indiana State, and while the Sycamores’ 1-6 record makes them appear to be sacrificial lambs for what should be a lively crowd, the Terre Haute Trees have been competitive all season.
Here’s how to watch and what to know about the game:
INDIANA STATE (1-6) AT SOUTH DAKOTA STATE (7-1)
WHEN/WHERE: 2 p.m. Saturday at Dana J. Dykhouse Stadium
TV: Midco Sports
STREAMING: ESPN+ and Midco Sports Plus
RADIO: WNAX-AM 570; Jackrabbit radio affiliates
COACHES: ISU – Curt Mallory (6th year, 18-34); SDSU – John Stiegelmeier (26th year, 192-112)
SERIES: SDSU leads 9-2
LAST TIME: SDSU won 44-0 in Terre Haute last year
LAST WEEK: Indiana State lost 27-21 to Illinois State; SDSU won 49-35 at North Dakota
RANKINGS: SDSU is the No. 1 ranked team in FCS
About Indiana State University football
The Sycamores come to Brookings on a six-game losing skid. They opened the year with a 17-14 overtime win over North Alabama, then took a pair of non-conference beatings: 56-0 to Purdue and 49-14 to Montana.
From there Indiana State began Missouri Valley Football Conference play, and it’s been a frustrating run for them. The Sycamores are 0-4 in league play, but all four defeats have been one-score losses. They lost 20-14 at Northern Iowa, and gave then-No. 1 North Dakota State a scare at Memorial Stadium the following week, in a 31-26 loss. Last week they fell behind Illinois State 20-0 in the first quarter before fighting back in a 27-21 loss.
More:FCS Top 25: Matt Zimmer's latest rankings
The ISU offense struggled in non-conference play but has picked it up in Valley games. Justin Dinka has rushed for 637 yards and averages almost 7 yards per carry, while freshman Cade Chambers has asserted himself as the top quarterback. He’s thrown for 705 yards and seven touchdowns and also scored four touchdowns on the ground. Dante Hendrix is his top target with 32 catches for 549 yards. As usual, ISU has a huge offensive line, one that’s allowed 18 sacks in seven games. The Sycamores are converting on only 26 percent of third downs.
The ISU defense has allowed 35 points per game. Geoffrey Brown (63 tackles, two sacks), Rylan Cole (59 tackles, three interceptions) and Kris Reid (25 tackles, 3.5 sacks) are the top producers.
The Sycamores are coached by Curt Mallory, the son of former Miami, Colorado and Indiana (among others) coach Bill Mallory. His brothers Doug and Mike are assistants in the NFL. After going 0-11 in his first year in charge in 2017, Mallory’s teams have gone 7-4, 5-7 and 5-6 last year (Indiana State opted out of the spring pandemic season).
About South Dakota State football
The Jacks are going for their eighth straight win, which would be a new program record for the Division I era. Getting it would move them closer to a Valley title, playoff berth and bye, and also give them a Hobo Day win for the first time since they beat Southern Illinois 28-10 in 2019.
SDSU will be thin at linebacker, with Adam Bock out, Graham Spalding suspended for the first half and others nursing nagging injuries. Running back Isaiah Davis is also questionable with the shoulder injury that caused him to miss last week’s game.
The Jacks will be hoping for a better start to the game, having fallen behind by 14 points in the first half of each of their last two games. Special teams is another area SDSU needs to see improvement this week – they had three punts blocked or partially blocked last week and also gave up a 61-yard punt return that set up a touchdown.
Quarterback Mark Gronowski has thrown for 1,468 yards and 13 touchdowns to go with six rushing touchdowns.
This article originally appeared on Sioux Falls Argus Leader: South Dakota State football vs. Indiana State: How to watch, game time
