2019 Western Illinois Football Schedule Announced

Tuesday, February 19, 2019

The upcoming slate will feature six games inside Hanson Field.

MACOMB, Ill. – The Western Illinois football team released its 2019 schedule Wednesday (Feb. 20), and the slate features six home games at Hanson Field with visits from Montana State and Tennessee Tech before Missouri Valley Football Conference showdowns against Missouri State, Illinois State, South Dakota, and Southern Illinois.

"We are looking forward to the 2019 season and every opportunity that we will have as a team," said head coach Jared Elliott. "This year, we have four out-of-conference games leading into Missouri Valley play that will all present different challenges against quality opponents. As always, our Missouri Valley schedule will require us to be at our best every week. Our preparation right now and throughout the course of our entire offseason will be critical to our success. We're taking it one game at a time starting with North Alabama."

The first two weeks of action pit the Leathernecks on the road at North Alabama (Aug. 29) and Colorado State (Sept. 7). For UNA, the season will mark its first as a member of the Big South Conference and completes its transition from an FCS independent. The Lions went 7-3 last year and concluded their campaign on a four-game winning streak.

Western hasn't hosted six games inside Hanson Field since the 2014 season where it also welcomed four 'Top 25' programs. The upcoming home calendar is expected to be just as challenging and starts with a rematch of last year's season-opener against Montana State.

The Leathernecks never trailed until the final minutes of a 26-23 setback in Bozeman, Mont., and the Bobcats finished the season in the second round of the Division I Football Championship where they fell to the two-time reigning national champs, North Dakota State.

"There is nothing better than being home on Hanson Field in front of our crowd," Elliott continued. "We are very excited about having a full six home game schedule this year."

Montana State and NDSU join Northern Iowa as WIU competition with recent postseason experience, and six of Western's 2019 opponents wrapped last season with winning records.

A year ago, the MVFC recorded its 24th straight season with two or more representatives in the FCS playoffs and has recorded the best league record in the tournament since 2010. Competing in arguably one of the best leagues in the nation, the Leathernecks open MVFC play Oct. 5 versus Missouri State. The conference opener is scheduled to take place inside Hanson Field and Western will rotate the rest of its 2019 schedule home and away.

Start times and television information for the 2019 schedule will be announced a later date. Visit GoLeathernecks.com and follow the team on Facebook and Twitter at @LeatherneckFootball and @WIUFootball, respectively, for additional updates.

2019 Schedule
Aug. 29 - at North Alabama
Sept. 7 - at Colorado State
Sept. 14 - Montana State
Sept. 21 - Tennessee Tech
Sept. 28 - BYE
Oct. 5 - Missouri State
Oct. 12 - at Indiana State
Oct. 19 - Illinois State
Oct. 26 - at Youngstown State
Nov. 2 - South Dakota
Nov. 9 - at North Dakota State
Nov. 16 - Southern Illinois
Nov. 23 - at Northern Iowa

Print Friendly Version

Upcoming Events and Recent Results

The upcoming slate will feature six games inside Hanson Field.

Related Videos

Related Stories