They were led by fourth-year head coach Jerry Kill and played their home games at McAndrew Stadium in Carbondale, Illinois.
The team received an automatic bid to the Division I-AA playoffs, where they lost to Eastern Washington in the first round.
9 in The Sports Network's postseason ranking of FCS teams.
[2] Running back Brandon Jacobs, a transfer from Auburn, rushed for 992 yards and 19 touchdowns during the season.
This college football 2000s season article is a stub.