Rittenhouse throws for 3TDs and Illinois State airs it out in win over Indiana State

TERRE HAUTE, Ind. — Tommy Rittenhouse threw for 319 yards and three touchdowns and Illinois State beat Indiana State 31-19 on Saturday for its fourth straight win.

Indiana State scored first when Elijah Owens capped an opening drive that lasted 17 plays, 75 yards and spanned 9:19 by running it in from the 1.

Illinois State responded in similar fashion going 72 yards in 16 plays in nearly six minutes and getting on the board when Rittenhouse threw 6 yards to Xavier Lloyd.

The Redbirds (8-3, 5-2 Missouri Valley Football Conference) took the lead for good when Rittenhouse threw an 84-yard touchdown to Daniel Sobkowicz with 10:07 left before halftime. Ian Wagner kicked a 26-yard field goal with a 11 seconds before intermission for a 17-7 lead.

After the break, Rittenhouse threw an 8-yard touchdown to Sobkowicz, and almost six minutes later, Wenkers Wright had a 12-yard touchdown run to make it 31-7.

Sobkowicz had 156 receiving yards on eight catches with two touchdowns.

In the fourth, Owens threw an 18-yard touchdown to Zavion Taylor and a 6-yarder to Rashad Rochelle.

Owens threw for 213 yards and two touchdowns and ran for 64 yards and scored a touchdown for the Sycamores (4-7, 3-4).