2023 Western Illinois Leathernecks football team

2023 Western Illinois Leathernecks football
ConferenceMissouri Valley Football Conference
Record0–11 (0–8 MVFC)
Head coach
Offensive coordinatorPat Denecke (1st season)
Defensive coordinatorTodd Drury (2nd season)
Home stadiumHanson Field
2023 Missouri Valley Football Conference standings
Conf. Overall
Team   W   L     W   L  
No. 1 South Dakota State $^   8 0     15 0  
No. 4 South Dakota ^   7 1     10 3  
No. 3 North Dakota State ^   5 3     11 4  
No. 19 Youngstown State ^   5 3     8 5  
No. 16 North Dakota ^   5 3     7 5  
Northern Iowa   5 3     6 5  
No. 12 Southern Illinois ^   4 4     8 5  
Illinois State   4 4     6 5  
Missouri State   3 5     4 7  
Murray State   1 7     2 9  
Indiana State   1 7     1 10  
Western Illinois   0 8     0 11  
  • $ – Conference champion
  • ^ – FCS playoff participant
Rankings from STATS Poll

The 2023 Western Illinois Leathernecks football team represented Western Illinois University as a member of the Missouri Valley Football Conference (MVFC) during the 2023 NCAA Division I FCS football season. They were led by second-year head coach Myers Hendrickson. The Leathernecks played their home games at Hanson Field in Macomb, Illinois. This was the final season for the Leathernecks in the MVFC before moving to the Ohio Valley Conference (OVC) for the 2024–25 season.

Schedule

DateTimeOpponentSiteTVResultAttendance
September 28:00 p.m.at New Mexico State*ESPN+L 21–5817,843
September 93:00 p.m.Illinois StateESPN+L 18–343,648
September 166:00 p.m.Lindenwood*
  • Hanson Field
  • Macomb, IL
ESPN+L 40–433,548
September 237:00 p.m.at Southern Utah*ESPN+L 17–376,504
October 71:00 p.m.at No. 16 North DakotaESPN+L 10–499,758
October 143:00 p.m.Missouri State
  • Hanson Field
  • Macomb, IL
ESPN+L 7–482,809
October 212:30 p.m.at No. 14 North Dakota StateESPN+L 7–5214,255
October 283:00 p.m.No. 11 Southern Illinois
  • Hanson Field
  • Macomb, IL
ESPN+L 0–632,636
November 41:00 p.m.at No. 18 Northern IowaESPN+L 6–508,051
November 1112:00 p.m.at Indiana StateESPN+L 6–273,151
November 181:00 p.m.No. 5 South Dakota
  • Hanson Field
  • Macomb, IL
ESPN+L 6–481,935
  • *Non-conference game
  • Homecoming
  • Rankings from STATS Poll released prior to the game
  • All times are in Central time

[1]

Game summaries

at New Mexico State

Western Illinois Leathernecks at New Mexico State Aggies – Game summary
Quarter 1 2 34Total
Leathernecks 0 14 7021
Aggies 6 14 172158

at Aggie Memorial Stadium, Las Cruces, New Mexico

  • Date: September 2
  • Game time: 7:00 p.m. MDT
  • Game weather: Sunny, 93 °F (34 °C)
  • Game attendance: 17,943
  • Referee: Rodney Burnette
  • TV announcers (ESPN+): Adam Young, Danny Knee, and Tatiana Favela
  • Box score, Recap
Game information
First quarter
  • NMSU – Star Thomas 20-yard run (kick failed), 11:29. Aggies 6–0. Drive: 7 plays, 70 yards, 3:24.

Second quarter

  • NMSU – Eli Stowers 4-yard run (Ethan Albertson kick), 14:53. Aggies 13–0. Drive: 11 plays, 81 yards, 5:15.
  • WIU – Jaylin Jackson 5-yard pass from Matt Morrissey (Owen Valek kick), 8:42. Aggies 13–7. Drive: 12 plays, 75 yards, 6:11.
  • NMSU – Monte Walkins 5-yard run (Ethan Albertson kick), 2:23. Aggies 20–7. Drive: 11 plays, 78 yards, 6:11.
  • WIU – Ludovick Choquette 21-yard run (Owen Valek kick), 0:05. Aggies 20–14. Drive: 10 plays, 75 yards, 2:18.

Third quarter

  • NMSU – Ethan Albertson 37-yard field goal, 11:34. Aggies 23–14. Drive: 7 plays, 41 yards, 2:21.
  • NMSU – Bryce Childress 75-yard pass from Diego Pavia (Ethan Albertson kick), 7:58. Aggies 30–14. Drive: 2 plays, 82 yards, 0:33.
  • NMSU – Jonathan Brady 80-yard pass from Diego Pavia (Ethan Albertson kick), 4:38. Aggies 37–14. Drive: 1 play, 80 yards, 0:12.
  • WIU – Donald McKinney 26-yard pass from Matt Morrissey (Owen Valek kick), 2:38. Aggies 37–21. Drive: 4 plays, 75 yards, 2:00.

Fourth quarter

  • NMSU – Star Thomas 25-yard run (Ethan Albertson kick), 11:18. Aggies 44–21. Drive: 11 plays, 75 yards, 6:20.
  • NMSU – Jordan Parker 63-yard pass from Eli Stowers (Ethan Albertson kick), 8:49. Aggies 51–21. Drive: 2 plays, 65 yards, 0:51.
  • NMSU – Makhilyn Young 3-yard run (Ethan Albertson kick), 4:13. Aggies 58–21. Drive: 5 plays, 61 yards, 2:45.
Statistics WIU NMSU
First downs 17 26
Total yards 278 650
Rushing yards 36 270
Passing yards 242 380
Turnovers 0 0
Time of possession 27:05 32:55
Team Category Player Statistics
Western Illinois Passing Matt Morrissey 17/31, 242 yards, 2 TD
Rushing Ludovick Choquette 11 rushes, 37 yards, TD
Receiving Seth Glatz 3 receptions, 73 yards
New Mexico State Passing Diego Pavia 16/20, 317 yards, 2 TD
Rushing Star Thomas 12 rushes, 96 yards, 2 TD
Receiving Jonathan Brady 4 receptions, 102 yards, TD

References

  1. ^ "2023 Western Illinois Football Schedule". FBSchedules. Retrieved March 26, 2023.