Micah Barnhart reaps rewards of staying at Illinois State
NORMAL – Through an Illinois State football career that dates back to 2021, offensive lineman Micah Barnhart has kept his focus on the task at hand.
"I kind of just take it one day at a time. What do I have tomorrow?," Barnhart said. "I try not to look too much into the future."
For three seasons with the Redbirds, Barnhart's tomorrow was blocking on the ISU practice squad, a group that mimics the offense of the upcoming opponent for the first string defense.
Many would have grown weary of holding the same, behind the scenes task for such an extended period. Yet Barnhart maintained faith as well as a positive outlook.
Barnhart's patience has paid off handsomely this fall, and the Redbirds are delighted he was still on campus when it did.
The Canton native has not only earned his first playing time this season, he will start at guard for the third straight game Saturday when 16th-ranked ISU travels to Indiana State for a noon (Central) Missouri Valley Football Conference game at Memorial Stadium in Terre Haute.
"I love it here. It's been a great experience for me," Barnhart said of staying at ISU. "I really love my coaches and teammates, and it's close to home."
Barnhart was promoted from the practice squad late in the 2023 season to provide depth on the offensive line but did not see action. He has played in five games this season including starting nods the past two weeks.
"The most impressive thing about him is he's been here going on four, five years, and he's just always stayed the course and always tried to get better," ISU offensive line coach Harold Etheridge said.
"As the season was going on we had guys banged up. He cared and wanted to contribute. So we gave him that chance and he took it and ran with it. Kudos to him."
Barnhart insists he was merely following Etheridge's teachings.
"Coach Etheridge always preaches about getting better every day and preparing the same whether you're playing or not," said Barnhart. "It's being able to be ready for your opportunity."
As the Redbirds lost several linemen for a few games or the entire season in the case of All-American Hunter Zambrano, Barnhart has joined center Ryan Gudaitis, guard Landon Woodard and tackles JJ Guedet and Jake Pope to stabilize an ISU rushing attack that has averaged 219 yards on the ground in three straight wins.
"Micah has really earned his playing time," ISU head coach Brock Spack said. "He's got persistence. He's hung in there and gotten better and better and now he's on the field full time and has done a good job. He could have easily walked away. He didn't do that. He kept fighting. He got our attention."
Spack hailed Barnhart as "one of our better guys in the weight room. He's a very strong kid. He's a big frame guy but he can bend and he's fairly athletic."
The 6-foot-4 Barnhart credited trimming from the 315-pound range to about 290 with accelerating his path to playing time.
"The biggest thing was my flexibility, working on my hips and ankles," he said. "Being able to move a little better and the flexibility are the two biggest things."
Despite his emergence, Barnhart has little or no chance of becoming the most famous ISU football player from Canton. That distinction belongs to College Football Hall of Fame linebacker Boomer Grigsby.
"I grew up around Boomer. His mom runs the YMCA back home so we grew up running around the Y. My dad and mom both knew Boomer so I met him a couple times," Barnhart said.
"Whenever he comes back and talks he always stops and says hello. I have a pretty good relationship with him. I think he's proud you keep the Canton tradition going of coming here and being able to play and hopefully doing well."
Scouting the Sycamores
Indiana State (4-6 overall, 3-3 in the Valley) is 4-1 at Memorial Stadium this season. The latest home win came over then-No. 15 North Dakota 35-31 on Nov. 2.
Sycamores redshirt freshman quarterback Elijah Owens leads the team with 474 yards rushing and has completed 68.7 percent of his passes for 1,336 yards.
'He's having a heckuva season. He's getting better every outing," said Spack. "He's a dangerous guy. We know a lot about him because of where he's from (Jacksonville). He fits what they do, and he makes them a lot better."
Indiana State receiver Rashad Rochelle owns 45 catches for 412 yards and is a threat on punt and kickoff returns.
"Coach (Curt) Mallory is a defensive coach," Spack said. "They are always pretty salty on defense. They play very hard."
Playoff ponderings
At 7-3 overall and 4-2 in league play, ISU is well positioned to be the fourth MVFC team picked for the FCS playoffs after North Dakota State, South Dakota State and South Dakota.
Missouri State is 8-2 and 6-0 in the Valley, but the Bears are not eligible for the playoffs because they are moving to Conference USA and the FBS level in 2025.
One win over their final two games and an 8-4 record would seem to be a worthy playoff resume for the Redbirds, who close the regular season with a Nov. 23 home game against North Dakota.
"Yes, but I've been fooled before. You never know how some scenarios come out," said Spack. "Any team out of our league with eight wins, I think it would be a tragic thing not to get in. Let's win this game and the next one and see what happens."
If the Redbirds finish the regular season at 9-3, they could insert themselves into the discussion of the top eight playoff seeds. Those eight teams receive a first-round bye in the 24-team playoff bracket.
"There would be a chance of that," the ISU coach said. "That would be really valuable."
If the Redbirds are selected for the playoffs, they will not have a first round home game because Hancock Stadium is hosting the Illinois High School Association state championship games that weekend.
Saluting Eash, Farley
Two of Spack's coaching contemporaries, Illinois Wesleyan's Norm Eash and Northern Iowa's Mark Farley, announced recently they will retire after this season.
"I wanted to congratulate Coach Eash for the great career he's had. We've become good friends over the speaking tours, and it's been a lot of fun to be around him for me," said Spack.
"Coach Farley, I love competing in the same league with him. He's an excellent football coach. Both men have a lot to be proud of with the legacy they leave behind."
