1986 Indiana State Sycamores football team

1986 Indiana State Sycamores football
Conference	Gateway Collegiate Athletic Conference
Record	3–8 (1–4 GCAC)
Head coach	Dennis Raetz (7th season)
Home stadium	Memorial Stadium
Seasons ←  1985 1987  →

1986 Gateway Collegiate Athletic Conference football standings

v t e	Conf.							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
No. 3 Eastern Illinois $^	5	–	1	–	0			11	–	2	–	0
No. 17 Southern Illinois	4	–	2	–	0			7	–	4	–	0
Northern Iowa	4	–	2	–	0			7	–	3	–	1
Illinois State	3	–	3	–	0			5	–	5	–	0
Western Illinois	2	–	4	–	0			6	–	5	–	0
SW Missouri State	1	–	5	–	0			3	–	7	–	0
Indiana State	1	–	5	–	0			3	–	8	–	0
$ – Conference champion ^ – NCAA Division I-AA playoff participant Rankings from NCAA Division I-AA Football Committee poll

The 1986 Indiana State Sycamores football team represented Indiana State University as a member of the Gateway Collegiate Athletic Conference (GCAC) during the 1986 NCAA Division I-AA football season. The Sycamores were led by seventh-year head coach Dennis Raetz and played their home games at Memorial Stadium. Indiana State finished the season 3–8 overall and 1–4 in GCAC play to finish in sixth place.

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Site	Result	Attendance	Source
September 6	St. Cloud State *	Memorial Stadium Terre Haute, IN	W 27–18		[1]
September 13	Southwest Missouri State	Memorial Stadium Terre Haute, IN	W 14–10		[2]
September 20	at Iowa State *	Cyclone Stadium Ames, IA	L 9–64	36,650	[3]
September 27	at Kansas *	Memorial Stadium Lawrence, KS	L 6–20	32,400	[4]
October 4	vs. Ball State *	Hoosier Dome Indianapolis, IN (rivalry)	L 3–16	8,325	[5]
October 11	at Southern Illinois	McAndrew Stadium Carbondale, IL	L 14–16	10,000	[6]
October 18	Illinois State	Memorial Stadium Terre Haute, IN	L 28–38		[7]
October 25	Buffalo State *	Memorial Stadium Terre Haute, IN	W 27–0	1,800	[8]
November 1	at Cincinnati *	Nippert Stadium Cincinnati, OH	L 14–46	19,369	[9]
November 8	No. 4 Eastern Illinois	Memorial Stadium Terre Haute, IN	L 14–31		[10]
November 13	at Northern Iowa	UNI-Dome Cedar Falls, IA	L 10–45	7,102	[11]
*Non-conference game Homecoming Rankings from NCAA Division I-AA Football Committee Poll released prior to the game

References

1. "Indiana State's rushing game too much for St. Cloud to handle". The Austin Daily Herald. September 7, 1986. Retrieved December 6, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
2. "Indiana State wins". The Times. September 14, 1986. Retrieved December 6, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
3. "Cyclone romp eases troubles". Quad-City Times. September 21, 1986. Retrieved December 6, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
4. "Snell's speed adds punch to Jayhawks' ground offense". The Kansas City Star. September 28, 1986. Retrieved December 6, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
5. "Defense keys Ball State win over Sycamores". The Indianapolis Star. October 5, 1986. Retrieved December 6, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
6. "S. Illinois 16, Indiana State 14". The Indianapolis Star. October 12, 1986. Retrieved December 6, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
7. "Illinois State holds off Indiana State". The Vincennes Sun-Commercial. October 19, 1986. Retrieved December 6, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
8. "Sycamores total 504 yards in 27–0 win over Bengals". The Buffalo News. October 26, 1986. Retrieved December 6, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
9. "Bearcats win a laugher, 46–14". The Cincinnati Enquirer. November 2, 1986. Retrieved December 6, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
10. "Eastern Illinois tops Sycamores". The South Bend Tribune. November 9, 1986. Retrieved December 6, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
11. "Smith's passing sparks Panthers". The Sioux City Journal. November 14, 1986. Retrieved December 6, 2024– via Newspapers.com.