Our side
MoneylineSDST to win
ours 93%
Projected score
17–43
EIU – SDST
2026-09-26 · 7:00 PM
Dana J. Dykhouse Stadium · Brookings, SD
Early season
The books
No book has priced this game. Nothing to compare, and no ticket to build.
Series
South Dakota State lead
1–0
· 1 meeting since 2012
2025 unit ranks —
last completed season, from games actually played
Run game
edge South Dakota State Jackrabbits
203 ranks
Eastern Illinois Panthers #233 rush offense
South Dakota State Jackrabbits #30 run defense
Pass game
edge South Dakota State Jackrabbits
154 ranks
Eastern Illinois Panthers #247 pass offense
South Dakota State Jackrabbits #93 pass defense
Run game
edge Eastern Illinois Panthers
85 ranks
South Dakota State Jackrabbits #107 rush offense
Eastern Illinois Panthers #22 run defense
Pass game
edge South Dakota State Jackrabbits
143 ranks
South Dakota State Jackrabbits #111 pass offense
Eastern Illinois Panthers #254 pass defense
Eastern Illinois Panthers
Run-heavy · 58% run
Ball-control
South Dakota State Jackrabbits
Run-heavy · 60% run
Avg pace
Ranked by team-unit strength
(rush & pass offense vs. run & pass defense) across all 265
D1 teams, not by individual players. Identity, tempo and unit strength are measured from the
2025 season.
The evidence 2025 production and power ratings · supporting the number above
Who carried each team in 2025
Eastern Illinois Panthers
RB
Charles Kellom
297 rush yds · 4 TD · 9 rec
#14 RB
LB
Ja'Wuan Nickson
21 tkl · 0.5 sacks · 4.5 TFL
#36 LB
DL
Isaac Engle
7 tkl · 1.0 sacks · 3.0 TFL
#253 DL
DL
Aidan Archibald
4 tkl · 2.0 sacks · 2.0 TFL
#340 DL
South Dakota State Jackrabbits
K
Tristan Alvano
6 FG · 17 XP · 35 pts
#4 K
P
Max Pelham
10 punts · 47.9 yd avg
#3 P
TE
Greyton Gannon
5 rec · 81 yds · 2 TD
#36 TE
WR
Grahm Goering
13 rec · 254 yds
#127 WR
Top-rated players from last season, ranked within their
position across D1. A grade measures what a player produced, and no
2026 game has been played yet — so this is who produced for
these programs in 2025, not a claim about who is on the field this year.
Power breakdown
Def is higher = better. The projection assumes a 2.4-pt home edge (0 at neutral sites).
Where the number comes from
Eastern Illinois offense vs South Dakota State defense-5.8 pts
South Dakota State offense vs Eastern Illinois defense+14.3 pts
Efficiency adjustment · EPA, success rate, explosiveness+2.5 pts
Power projection before adjustment+23.8
Travel · context onlyAway team travels 554 mi
The projection carries an efficiency adjustment —
a residual from season-to-date EPA, success rate and explosiveness, which earned its place by
walk-forward test (margin error 12.90 → 12.72 across seven held-out seasons).
Situational spots are shown for context, not baked in: travel, altitude and rest
were tested against 6,000+ games and the power and efficiency ratings already account for them.
Adding them again would double-count.