by John Lock, siusalukis.com

BROOKINGS, S.D. – Ninth-ranked South Dakota State scored on all five first-half possessions en route to a 49-14 win over Southern Illinois on Saturday night.

SDSU was coming off a 19-7 loss to Youngstown State last week and exploded offensively in the first half. The score was 14-0 before the Salukis gained a first down. At halftime, the Jacks had five touchdowns and only three third downs; they were averaging more than eight yards per play. Conversely, SIU’s only extended drive ended in an interception.

“We didn’t stop them, but we didn’t do anything on offense to get the momentum back or make it a shootout,” SIU head coach Nick Hill said. “We’ve been down 14 and came back. You don’t like to do that, but we talk about it all the time. You never know how the game is going to go. We have to adapt and adjust to any circumstance. But we just couldn’t get anything going tonight.”

Defensively, the Salukis rebounded in the second half. SIU forced three turnovers and had a pair of sacks. Cody Crider forced a fumble in the third quarter that set up a Sam Straub touchdown run five plays later. The Salukis second touchdown was a highlight leaping grab from Raphael Leonard early in the fourth quarter. But the Jackrabbits also scored two second-half touchdowns to hand SIU its most lopsided loss since 2003.

“At halftime, we talked about fighting back,” Hill said. “We came out and fought hard. You saw that. We competed. I’m proud of that. We just talked about stacking good plays together. That’s how you get good drives and stops. But obviously, this game was won in the first half.”

For SIU (2-3, 0-2 MVFC), Darrell James caught six passes for 78 yards. Daquan Isom averaged five yards per rush on nine carries. SDSU improved to 4-1, 1-1 MVFC. Brady Mengarelli rushed for 220 yards and two scores. QB Taryn Christion, last year’s MVFC Offensive Player of the Year, threw for 216 yards and four touchdowns against no interceptions.

“They won the line of scrimmage on both sides,” Hill said. “You can tell they were frustrated with the way their game went last week. A lot of that wasn’t because they weren’t good on offense; they just never had the ball against Youngstown. But we weren’t able to do anything to keep their explosive players off the field. There is no excuse for giving up that many rushing yards. We knew that their explosive players would make explosive plays in this game; they have their entire career. But when you make it easy on them–when they’re rushing the ball and picking up every third down, and we’re not picking up third downs–it’s a recipe for a long, long night.”

Southern Illinois returns home for a matchup with nationally ranked Illinois State on Saturday for the annual Homecoming football game. Kickoff is set for 2 p.m. in Saluki Stadium.

Box Score

http://siusalukis.com/boxscore.aspx?path=football&id=7834

LINK TO THIS WEEK IN MVC FOOTBALL

http://valley-football.org/news/2017/10/2/valley-football-weekly-notebook-oct-2.aspx

QUICK HITS

• Southern Illinois faces No. 9 South Dakota State on Saturday night in Brookings.
• SIU and SDSU are 1-2 in the MVFC in fewest sacks allowed. The Salukis lead the nation in fewest sacks allowed.
• The Salukis have beaten at least one ranked opponent in 15 consecutive seasons. In four meetings while SDSU has been ranked, SIU is 2-2, with wins at No. 9 South Dakota State in 2009 and at No. 7 SDSU in 2013.
• SIU wide receivers Darrell James and Connor Iwema each eclipsed 1,000 career receiving yards last week.
• SIU and SDSU were 1-2 in the league in scoring and total offense last year. SDSU topped the league in scoring offense, while SIU led the league in total offense. The Jacks and Salukis played a 45-39 game in Carbondale that featured 1,092 yards of total offense (888 yards of passing).

SALUKIS AT SDSU

• SIU travel to Brookings, S.D., to a matchup with the ninth-ranked Jackrabbits of South Dakota State.
• SIU and SDSU did not play in 2014 or 2015, and the teams played in Carbondale last season. The last time SIU played in Brookings was a 27-24 win over No. 7 South Dakota State in 2013. No players on the 2017 Salukis played in that game.
• South Dakota State is ranked No. 9 in the FCS Coaches Poll and No. 8 in the STATS Media Poll.
o The Salukis are 17-35 all-time against top-10 ranked teams.
o Southern’s last win against a top-10 team was 24-17 at No. 4 Northern Iowa in 2013. SIU beat No. 7 South Dakota State the week prior to that win over Northern Iowa.
o The Salukis have beaten a ranked opponent in 15 consecutive seasons. Five of the remaining seven teams on the schedule are ranked in the top-25.
o The Salukis are 2-0 against ranked SDSU teams in Brookings. SIU won over No. 9 SDSU in 2009 and over No. 7 SDSU in 2013.
• SIU and SDSU were 1-2 in the league in scoring and total offense last year.
o SDSU topped the league in scoring offense, while SIU led the league in total offense.
o The Jacks and Salukis played a 45-39 game in Carbondale that featured 1,092 yards of total offense (888 yards of passing).
o The Salukis had the ball twice in the fourth quarter of that game with a chance to take the lead, but sacks ended both drives.
o Connor Iwema had six catches for 107 yards and a touchdown in that game, one of four career 100-yard games for Iwema.
• Over the last three seasons, SIU is 12-7 at home (.632) and 3-16 on the road (.158).

SALUKI DEFENSE SHOWING MARKED IMPROVEMENT

Saluki Defense 2016 2017
OPP Points Per Game 30.7 22.0
OPP Rush YPG 165.9 99.8
OPP Pass YPG 267.2 260.5
OPP Total YPG 433.1 360.2
Turnovers Forced PG 1.3 2.0
Tackles for Loss PG 6.2 8.0
Sacks Per Game 1.8 3.0
OPP Yards Per Play 5.8 4.8
• SIU limited Mississippi Valley State to negative-eight yards rushing in the season opener.
• Southern’s defense has already forced eight turnovers–more than halfway to its season totals from 2015 and 2016 (14 in each season).
• In the season opener against Mississippi Valley State, Southern Illinois piled up 16 tackles for loss and six sacks.
• SIU’s 16 TFLs during the season opener are tied for the most in FCS this season.
• The 16 TFLs are also the most for the program since at least 2006.
• The Salukis recorded 20 sacks all of last season, and they already have 12 this year.

 

O-LINE SURGE

Offensive Line First 7G of 2016 Since (8 Games)
Rush Yards 948 1,212
Rush YPG 135.4 151.5
Yards Per Rush 3.58 3.94
Sacks Allowed 24 (3.4 spg) 6 (0.75 spg)
Team Record 2-5
4-4
• Southern Illinois has gone 4-3 in its last seven games, dating back to last season. That has coincided with a surge in offensive line play.
• Starting quarterback Sam Straub has not been sacked this season. He has thrown 146 passes.
• The only sack Southern has given up was in the second half of a 55-3 blowout win over Mississippi Valley State.
• Austin Olsen was named MVFC Offensive Lineman of the Week after SIU put up 393 yards, 31 points and allowed no sacks at Memphis.

SIU NOTES PROVIDED BY John Lock of siusalukis.com

 

from John Lock siusalukis.com

Head coach Nick Hill met with the media Monday to discuss last week’s loss vs. Northern Iowa, the upcoming game at South Dakota State, SDSU’s talented offense, and much more. Below is a partial transcript.

Watch the complete press conference here » https://youtu.be/KVD2Tc8mPW4   

OPENING STATEMENT

After watching the film yesterday, I feel like that was a game that we needed to execute in certain areas in order to win. The guys came out with the right attitude. We had the right game plan. We did a lot of great things in certain areas at certain times. A lot of players had really good games. Ultimately, we have six keys to victory. The first is always the turnover margin. Anytime you turn it over three times and they only turn it over once, it’s an uphill battle. We played a pretty clean game for the most part. We couldn’t get things going in the first half. We will have to learn from those turnovers. We will do that. I like the way our guys came in yesterday with an eagerness to learn and get better from it. Our defense continues to take steps forward. We can continue to find ways to improve and make it even tougher on teams to score. We’re improving. We did some things that we expect to be better in games like that to win.

Moving on to South Dakota State, they’re an outstanding football team. Coach Stiegelmeier does a great job. He’s always been really good to me since I got the job. I have a ton of respect for him and how he does it at South Dakota State. Obviously, they have the player of the year coming back in the conference (QB Taryn Christion). They’re talented offensively. They do a great job defensively at understanding what they do and why they do it. They’re well coached and in the right spots. They have talented players on both sides of the football. It will be a great test for us on the road. They haven’t been home in a couple weeks. It will be a great crowd. I like how our team has been the first two weeks we’ve been on the road. I like how we approached Southeast Missouri and Memphis. It will be a similar type of atmosphere, maybe not quite as many people, but a similar atmosphere as we were in at Memphis. We have to be willing to go up there, accept the challenge and play well if we want to get a win.

What did you take from the Youngstown State vs. South Dakota State game?

Youngstown completely dominated time of possession. They had the ball for more than 45 minutes. (SDSU) only had 37 plays of offense, which I don’t know if I’ve ever seen a team have that few plays in a game. The best defense against talented players like (SDSU) has is to keep them on the sideline. That’s what Youngstown’s game plan was—run the ball and be good on third down to stay on the field. They went on some drives where they just grinder it out. They ran for over 300 yards. Anytime you can run for more than 300 yards, it’s usually going to work out in your favor, in terms of wins and losses. South Dakota State got some things going in their first two drives. They’re always going to move the football. They always do a good job early in their first possession or two. Going back to their playoff games last season against North Dakota State, they lost that game but they were up 10-0 early. They scored quickly. They get off to fast starts. They left some points on the board (against YSU). They were in the red zone and couldn’t punch it in. They had a couple turnovers. Anytime you’re facing a running quarterback, you have to do your job. Stay in your lane. Know your assignment. You have to tackle well. So many times, people have him (SDSU QB Taryn Christion), but then he makes an athletic play. He’s hard to bring down. He’s a big kid and a great football player. We talk about what a great league we have and what great players we have—he was voted as the best last year. He’s a talented player.

So how do you keep the ball for 45 minutes?

Yeah, I don’t know if we will do that. We will have a good game plan going in, as far as what we want to do on offense. Like I said last week, we have to execute that. We can’t turn it over three times. We have to be efficient with everything we do. We weren’t efficient vs. Northern Iowa as far as when we had the chances, being sound in everything we do and capitalizing on things. From every position—false starts, dropped passes, missed reads here and there. When it comes down to facing great teams, those things add up and you’re not clicking on all cylinders. We have to go up there and play well. We’re on the road playing a top-10 team. We have to execute at a high level and be efficient every time you have the football.

Will the Memphis game help, in terms of style of play and caliber of athletes?

I think so. Our guys have been on the road against a good team. That will help. Each game is different and we really have to hone in on what these guys do well and try to take that away. They do a good job of giving you a few new things every week, too. They will have a new formation and a new way to get their guys the football. They have been playing together a while. You have to think of ways to get them the ball, and they do a great job of that. Their offensive staff does a good job of moving them around. You’ll see (TE Dallas) Goedert in the backfield or a wide receiver lined up as an attached tight end. You have to know where they’re at all the time. You have to communicate. You have to do a good job being lined up and giving yourself a chance at the snap and then execute post-snap.

What challenges does Dallas Goedert present?

I was hoping he would go to the NFL Draft last year so we wouldn’t have to see him this year. He’s a good player. He makes plays, even when you have him covered. Part of that is he has a really good quarterback putting the ball in tight windows. He catches the ball well. You rarely see him drop ball. He runs well, and he has a big body. He uses his body to get open. We have to be physical and make him earn everything. At times last year, we didn’t do that. We gave him some deep ones, some easy ones. It will be tough to go through a four-quarter game without them getting going. We have to weather those storms. We have to tackle well and make them earn everything. We have to do a good job on offense. Even in the game against Youngstown, (WR Jake) Wieneke had three catches in one drive and they went down and scored. He had 60 yards receiving in one drive. They will get targeted a lot. They do a good job of that. We have to play our game and execute and be ready for a four-quarter game.

Your offensive line didn’t allow a sack again. How do you asses their performances?

They continue to do a good job, and Sam Straub does a good job. There were times when we gave up pressures, and Sam got the ball out. It was another game we didn’t give up a sack, which is always an emphasis. I think they’re doing a good job, but there’s a lot of room to improve, get a good push and create a new line of scrimmage. We have to continue to challenge those guys and raise our level of expectations in play there. We have to continue to get better. It wasn’t their best game. They played OK, but we have to get better.

 

—

 

 

From John Lock siusalukis.com

CARBONDALE, IL. – The Southern Illinois football program fought back from a 17-3 halftime deficit, but Northern Iowa hung on for a 24-17 win at Saluki Stadium on Saturday night. The Salukis twice had the ball with a chance to tie in the game’s final minutes, but interceptions ended both drives.

“That’s a tough one to lose at home,” SIU head coach Nick Hill said. “I felt like we had the opportunities to win that football game. We were battling uphill the entire night and didn’t execute a high enough level to win the football game. You have to execute consistently on a high basis, and we didn’t do that in the areas that we needed to.”

The Salukis (2-2, 0-1 MVFC) flew into UNI territory on the opening drive, but a penalty pushed SIU to the brink of field goal range. Matt Sotiropoulos’s 45-yard attempt hit the crossbar and bounced back onto the field. UNI (2-2, 1-0 MVFC) took the momentum and ran off 10 points before the Salukis gained another yard.

SIU kicked a field goal to get within a touchdown, but the Panthers immediately responded with a touchdown to take a 17-3 lead into halftime. Southern’s defense opened the third quarter strong, and the Salukis got within a touchdown after a 29-yard touchdown from Sam Straub to Darrell James on fourth-and-10. But UNI again answered with an immediate touchdown to push its lead out to two scores. That touchdown was the only second-half score Southern’s defense allowed.

“We’re four games in, so we have to take a honest evaluation and get better collectively,” Hill said. “I do think we have a good football team, and we showed that our defense is a lot better. That’s the first time we’ve held UNI under 40 points in four seasons. Our defense battled.”

Kyron Watson forced and recovered a fumble early in the fourth quarter, and the Salukis marked 54 yards in four plays to get back within seven, 24-17. After that, the defense forced three-straight punts, but the offense committed three-straight turnovers with a chance to tie the game–twice deep in Panther territory.

Jacob Varble fumbled after landing awkwardly inside the UNI 15-yard line. The Salukis got the ball back with 3:43 to play at its own 18, and SIU drove inside the UNI 10 with less than two minutes to go. Straub’s pass to Daquan Isom hit off his chest, and UNI’s Jake Hartford caught the deflection to end the threat. The Salukis got the ball back with 38 seconds and no timeouts, but Malcolm Washington ended the game with an interception on the second play of the drive.

“I was proud that we were able to make it close and have the opportunities to win the game; but to take that next step, you have to be able to go win that game,” Hill said. “That’s what the Missouri Valley is going to be like. We have to figure out how to get better from this game because it doesn’t get any easier.”

SIU fell to UNI for the fourth-straight year, the longest losing streak for either team in the series since the mid-1990s. The Salukis travel to South Dakota State for a matchup against the nationally ranked Jackrabbits next Saturday.

NOTES

The game was the annual Black Out Cancer game … This year, the jersey bidding raised more than $28,000 for the Southern Illinois Healthcare Cancer Institute … The Salukis fell to 5-2 in the seven years of the Black Out Cancer game … Darrell James surpassed 1,000 career receiving yards … Daquan Isom recorded his fourth career 100-yard rushing game … The Salukis did not allow a sack for the third-straight game and have allowed just one sack all season.

 

This week’s Missouri Valley Football Conference players of the week include RB Lance Dunn of North Dakota State, QB Sean McGuire of Western Illinois, LB Brett Taylor of Western Illinois, P/K Sean Slattery of Illinois State, and LB Jabril Cox of North Dakota State

Press Release From Mike Kern, Associate Commissioner- Missouri Valley Football Conference

Co-Offensive Players of the Week

RB Lance Dunn, North Dakota State

5-9, 211, Jr., Waterloo (Iowa) West High
Dunn scored four touchdowns on four plays in North Dakota State’s 56-0 win over Robert Morris. He had scoring runs of 61, 5 and 45 yards and a 10-yard touchdown reception to total 121 all-purpose yards. Dunn is the first NDSU player to score four touchdowns in a game since the 2010 playoffs. He leads the FCS with nine TDs through three games. (He scored every time he touched the ball.)

QB Sean McGuire, Western Illinois
6-3, 228, Jr., Franklin (Wis.) High
McGuire was integral in Western Illinois’ 52-10 win over FBS-school Coastal Carolina. The junior was 17-for-19 for 276 yards, three touchdowns and zero interceptions. He also caught a nine-yard touchdown pass from wide receiver Isaiah LeSure. It was the first time since 2010 (Matt Barr, 6 passing TDs, one rushing TD, 22-for-25) that a Western Illinois quarterback recorded more touchdowns than incompletions in one game. Western Illinois also improved to 3-0 for the third time in school history, and this specific starts marks the first time in program history that all three wins have come on the road to start a season. The Leathernecks also registered their largest margin of victory against an FBS school and Western’s 52 points shattered their previous high of 34 (Eastern Michigan, 2003) against an FBS squad. With last year’s win at Northern Illinois Western Illinois also won back-to-back contests against FBS squads for the first time since 2002 and 2003 (Northern Illinois and Eastern Michigan).

Defensive Player of the Week

LB Brett Taylor
6-2, 230, Sr., Macomb (Ill.) High
Taylor led Western Illinois with eight tackles and tied for the team-best with two tackles for loss in the Leathernecks’ 52-10 win over FBS-school Coastal Carolina. The senior has at least tied for the team lead in tackles in each of the last eight contests, including all three games this season. Taylor’s efforts helped Western Illinois improve to 3-0 for the third time in school history, and this specific starts marks the first time in program history that all three wins have come on the road to start a season. The 10 points the Leathernecks surrendered against Coastal Carolina was Western’s fewest allowed against an FBS school since shutting out Northern Illinois on Sept. 7, 1996. With last year’s win at Northern Illinois Western Illinois also won back-to-back contests against FBS squads for the first time since 2002 and 2003 (Northern Illinois and Eastern Michigan).

Special Teams

P/K Sean Slattery, Illinois State
6-0, 230, Sr., Rockford, Illinois
Senior kicker Sean Slattery was the game changer in the first half for the Redbirds, evening up the score at 6-all at the half. The Rockford, Illinois native began the game with a season-long 48-yard make in the first quarter, before knocking a 28-yard field goal in the second quarter. The senior was 4-for-4 on extra point attempts and kept dangerous Missouri State kick returner Deion Holliman at bay with four touchbacks on kickoffs.

Newcomer

LB Jabril Cox, North Dakota State
6-3, 227, RFr., Kansas City (Mo.) Raytown South High
Cox made a team-high eight tackles and had a fumble recovery that led to a touchdown in North Dakota State’s 56-0 win over Robert Morris. He was in on one tackle for loss and made four stops on kickoff coverage (three solos) as NDSU’s defense held RMU to 57 total yards and only one trip past midfield in 14 possessions. Cox leads the Bison with 15 total tackles and eight special teams tackles through three games.

 

OTHERS NOMINATED

Offense

QB Jake Kolbe, Illinois State — Career-best 312 passing yards (24-for-32), 1 TD run, 1 TD pass
QB Sam Straub, Southern Illinois — 290 pass yards (30-for-48), 4 TDs, 1 INT at Memphis

Defense

DE Adam Conley, Illinois State — 5 tackles (4 solo), 1 sack (10 yards), 2 TFLs (14 yards), blocked FG
S Ryan Neal, Southern Illinois — Game-high 10 tackles (8 solo), 1 PBU at Memphis
S Jared Beshore, Missouri State — Season-high 8 tackles (6 solo), 1 INT (33 yard return)

Special Teams

RS Deion Holliman, Missouri State — 137 all-purpose yards, 67 yards on 3 KOs
P Lane Reazin, Southern Illinois — 48.8 average on 5 punts, 2 50+ yarders, 1 inside the 20
PK Sam Crosa, Western Illinois — 1 FG (35 yards), 7-for-7 PATs

Newcomer

WR Raphael Leonard, Southern Illinois — 6 catches, 70 yards, 5 of 6 receptions went for 1st downs
LB Angelo Garbutt, Missouri State — 8 tackles (3 solo), .5 TFL, fumble recovery and QB hurry
LB Tyree Horton, Illinois State — 6 tackles, 1 TFL, 1 QB hurry

 

by John Lock – siusalukis.com

MEMPHIS, Tenn. – The Southern Illinois football team gave a highly touted Memphis team a fight, but the Salukis ultimately fell short, 44-31. SIU had a 21-17 lead at halftime, but Memphis outscored SIU 17-3 in the third quarter and held on for the win.

“I was proud of our guys,” SIU head coach Nick Hill said. “We didn’t come down here just to be proud of our effort and play it close and feel good. Really, we’ve never questioned this team’s effort. We knew they were going to come out here and play hard. They wouldn’t be travelling if they weren’t a guy that commits and plays hard and battles.”

Memphis was a 30-point favorite after beating nationally-ranked UCLA last weekend, and the Tigers came into the game ranked No. 31 in the FBS in both major polls. But Southern Illinois (2-1) dominated the Tigers in the first half. SIU rolled 78 yards on the opening drive of the game to set the tone. At the end of the first quarter, SIU had outgained Memphis 167-27.

“We started out hot. We just have to finish,” SIU safety Ryan Neal said. “That’s the thing about it. We’ve got to come out the canon and keep it on them. That’s the way you play the game.”

Memphis (3-0) controlled the second quarter and took a 17-14 lead; but with less than two minutes remaining before halftime, Sam Straub guided a five-play, 65-yard touchdown drive in less than a minute. Darrell James broke a tackle on the 33-yard touchdown reception, his second of the half. SIU led at the break, 21-17.

The Tigers won the game in the third quarter. They got the ball first and scored within 90 seconds. After an SIU 3-and-out, they scored again, this time a field goal to take a 27-21 lead.

Then, Southern controlled the ball for nearly nine minutes on its next possession, converting two fourth downs on a 16-play drive. But Memphis held Southern to a field goal, then immediately returned the ensuing kickoff 100 yards for a touchdown to take a 34-24 lead, its biggest of the game, with five second left in the quarter.

“On that drive, we only got three. Then they housed the kickoff. That’s tough to respond from, but I was happy with the way that we continued to come back and finish for four quarters,” Hill said

Memphis added a field goal to take a 37-24 lead, but the Salukis nearly came back to win anyway. Straub finished a 13-play drive with a touchdown pass to Jaylon Graham with five minutes to go. Southern’s defense appeared to get a defensive stop–which would have given SIU the ball back with a chance to win–but a facemask penalty was called on the play. Memphis took advantage of the break and punched in the touchdown to set the final score at 44-31.

The script felt familiar for SIU. Southern hasn’t been blown out of a game against an FBS opponent since a 35-3 loss at Illinois in 2010. But despite being close in every game since (SIU has outgaining its FBS foes cumulatively over those seven games), SIU fell to 0-7 in the so-called “guarantee games.” What this game in particular showed was that the Salukis can compete with a top-30 team in all of college football.

“We both put on our pads the same way. We both put on our helmets the same way. We both play football the same way. It really doesn’t matter,” Straub said of the FCS vs. FBS matchups. “We just try to come out here and compete and give it our all.”

Straub threw four touchdowns in the loss. Connor Iwema caught nine passes for 118 yards and a touchdown, and Raphael Leonard caught six passes for 70 yards. Defensively, Ryan Neal led the team with 10 tackles. Cody Crider(9), Kyron Watson (8 and a TFL) and Jeremy Chinn (7) also had big days on defense.

Southern Illinois opens conference play next weekend at home against Northern Iowa on Family Weekend. The Salukis are trying to snap a three-game losing streak against the Panthers. Kickoff is set for 6 p.m., and tickets are available at SIUSalukis.com or by calling 877-SALUKIS.