The start to the 2021 spring season for No. 22 Illinois State does not get any easier this week, as the Redbirds travel to Fargo, North Dakota, to take on the defending national champion and No. 5 ranked North Dakota State Bison at the Fargodome. The road trip is the second leg of a March swing that sees ISU play on the road against three team currently ranked in the FCS Top 10.

It was a tale of two defenses Saturday afternoon, as No. 13 Illinois State held No. 1 North Dakota State without a touchdown at home for the first time since 2002, but the defending national champion Bison were able to hold the Redbirds to just a field goal in a 9-3 victory in the quarterfinals of the FCS playoffs at the Fargodome back in December of 2019. 

When the 2021 spring campaign schedule was re-done after Indiana State announced it would not be competing, it surely did no favors to the Redbirds during the middle of the slate. After opening with games at Missouri State and hosting South Dakota, the Redbirds will play three of their next four games on the road all against opponents currently ranked in the Top 5 in the country. Road tilts at No. 3 Northern Iowa, No. 1 North Dakota State and No. 5 South Dakota State in the month of March will surely show what the Redbirds are made of. It doesn't get much easier when the calendar flips to April, as ISU hosts No. 24 ranked Southern Illinois at Hancock Stadium.

Game time is 2:30 pm central time Saturday afternoon.