The 1987 Illinois State Redbirds football team represented Illinois State University as a member of the Gateway Collegiate Athletic Conference (GCAC) during the 1987 NCAA Division I-AA football season. In their seventh year under head coach Bob Otolski, the Redbirds compiled an overall record of 3–7, with a mark of 0–6 in conference play, and placed seventh in the GCAC. Illinois State played home games at Hancock Stadium in Normal, Illinois.