Normal is a town in McLean County, Illinois, United States. As of the 2020 census, the town's population was 52,736. Normal is the smaller of two principal cities of the Bloomington–Normal metropolitan area, and is Illinois' seventh most populous community outside the Chicago metropolitan area. The main campus of Illinois' oldest public university, Illinois State University, a fully accredited four-year institution, is in Normal, as is Heartland Community College, a fully accredited two-year institution. Chris Koos has been Normal's mayor since 2003.
Illinois State University (ISU) is a public research university in Normal, Illinois. It was founded in 1857 as Illinois State Normal University and is the oldest public university in Illinois. The university emphasizes teaching and is recognized as one of the top ten largest producers of teachers in the US according to the American Association of Colleges of Teacher Education. It is classified among "R2: Doctoral Universities – High research activity".
Go, You Redbirds is the fight song for the athletic teams of Illinois State University. It was written in 1932 by Kenyon S. Fletcher. The words have been changed from time to time. Prior to the fight song we know today, the Illinois State fight song was "Normal Loyalty." At sporting events when an ISU athletic team enters the field or floor, the students and fans sing the first stanza of “Go, You Redbirds.” A new growing Redbird tradition amongst several redbird teams is to sing the fight song with the marching band to the home crowd after victories. The line "Lets win this game" is changed to "We've won this game."
Hancock Stadium is a 13,391-seat multi-purpose stadium in Normal, Illinois. It opened in 1963. It is home to the Illinois State University Redbirds football team as well as University High School. Central Catholic High School also played its games there through the 2004 season.
The Illinois State Redbirds are the athletic teams that represent Illinois State University in Normal, Illinois. Teams play at the NCAA Division I level. The football team competes in the Missouri Valley Football Conference while most other teams compete in the Missouri Valley Conference. The fight song is Go, You Redbirds.
Howard Joseph Hancock was an American football and baseball coach and college athletics administrator. He served as the head football coach at Oshkosh State Normal School—now known as the University of Wisconsin–Oshkosh from 1921 to 1928 and again in 1930 and at Illinois State Normal University—now known as Illinois State University—in Normal, Illinois, from 1931 until 1944, and compiling a career college football coaching record of 95–65–29. Hancock was the head baseball coach at Illinois State from 1933 to 1946, tallying a mark of 120–112–2, and also coached golf at the school. He was the athletic director at Oshkosh State from 1921 to 1931 and Illinois State from 1931 to 1961. Hancock Stadium, the home venue for the Illinois State Redbirds football team is named for him.
The Illinois State Redbirds men's basketball team represents Illinois State University, located in Normal, Illinois, in NCAA Division I basketball competition. They are currently led by head coach Ryan Pedon and play their home games at CEFCU Arena as a member of the Missouri Valley Conference. They have the distinction of earning the most National Invitation Tournament berths (14) without making the semifinals, and also have the longest current NCAA tournament drought among Missouri Valley Conference members.
The Indiana State Sycamores baseball team is the NCAA Division I baseball program of Indiana State University, located in Terre Haute, Indiana. It is a member of the Missouri Valley Conference. The team last played in the NCAA Division I Baseball Championship in 2023. Their first season was 1896. The Sycamores have had 12 All-Americans, 26 Major Leaguers, and more than 2,070 victories. The team's most successful season was in 1986, when the team appeared in the College World Series and finished with a record of 48–21. The Sycamores have appeared in the NCAA Division I Baseball Championship in 1979, 1983, 1984, 1987, 1989, 1995, 2012, 2014, 2019, 2021, and 2023.
The San Diego State Aztecs baseball team is the college baseball program that represents San Diego State University. The Aztecs compete in NCAA Division I as a member of the Mountain West Conference (MW). The team plays their home games at Tony Gwynn Stadium.
The Chicago Maroons men's basketball team is an NCAA Division III college basketball team competing in the University Athletic Association. Home games are played at the Gerald Ratner Athletics Center, located on the University of Chicago's campus in Chicago.
Duffy Bass Field is a baseball venue in Normal, Illinois, USA. It is home to the Illinois State Redbirds baseball team of the Division I Missouri Valley Conference. It was built in 1988 and has a capacity of 1,200 spectators, 1,000 of which is seated. The field is also home to the University High School Pioneers baseball team.
The Illinois State Redbirds women's basketball team represents Illinois State University, located in Normal, Illinois, in NCAA Division I basketball competition.
The Midwestern Conference, alternatively Conference of Midwestern Universities, was a college athletic conference which operated in Illinois and Indiana from 1970 to 1972. It was composed of schools which had recently moved from Division II to Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). The conference sponsored only men's sports; awarding championships in baseball, basketball, cross-country, golf, swimming, tennis, indoor & outdoor track and field, and wrestling.
Jack Thomas Stallings was an American college baseball head coach. He was the head coach of Wake Forest University, Florida State University, and Georgia Southern University. He also helped manage the United States national baseball team in 1970 and 1973 and was an administrator for the 1984 US Olympic Team and the 1988 US Olympic Team. With over 1,200 games won as a head coach, he ranks 28th all-time with the most wins by any Division I coach, with his 859–582–5 tenure at Georgia Southern being a record for most wins and games coached. His #1 jersey is retired by the program.
Paul Sterling DeJong is an American professional baseball shortstop for the Chicago White Sox of Major League Baseball (MLB). He has previously played in MLB for the St. Louis Cardinals, Toronto Blue Jays, and San Francisco Giants.
DeVaughn Akoon-Purcell is a Trinidadian-American professional basketball player for Lokomotiv Kuban of the VTB United League. He played college basketball for Eastern Oklahoma State and Illinois State. Standing at 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m), he usually plays the small forward position.
The 2017–18 Illinois State Redbirds women's basketball team represents Illinois State University during the 2017–18 NCAA Division I women's basketball season. The Redbirds, led by first year head coach Kristen Gillespie, play their home games at Redbird Arena and were members of the Missouri Valley Conference. They finished the season 14–16, 8–10 in MVC play to finish in sixth place. They lost in the quarterfinals of the Missouri Valley women's tournament to Northern Iowa.
The 2018–19 Illinois State Redbirds women's basketball team represents Illinois State University during the 2018–19 NCAA Division I women's basketball season. The Redbirds, led by first year head coach Kristen Gillespie, play their home games at Redbird Arena and were members of the Missouri Valley Conference. They finished the season 19–12, 11–7 in MVC play to finish in fourth place. They advanced to the semifinals of the Missouri Valley women's tournament where they lost to Drake. Despite having 19 wins, they were not invited to a postseason tournament.
The 2020–21 Illinois State Redbirds men's basketball team represented Illinois State University during the 2020–21 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Redbirds, led by ninth-year head coach Dan Muller, played their home games at Doug Collins Court at Redbird Arena in Normal, Illinois as members of the Missouri Valley Conference. In a season limited due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, they finished the season 7–18, 4–14 in MVC play to finish in 10th place. In the MVC tournament, they lost to Northern Iowa in the first round.
The 2021–22 Illinois State Redbirds men's basketball team represented Illinois State University during the 2021–22 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Redbirds played their home games at Doug Collins Court at Redbird Arena in Normal, Illinois as members of the Missouri Valley Conference. The team finished the season 13–20, 5–13 in MVC play to finish in eighth place. They defeated Indiana State in the first round of the MVC tournament before losing to Northern Iowa in the quarterfinals.
2024 Illinois State Redbirds baseball team 
