SATURDAY'S SCORES
@Eastern Illinois 39, Southeast Missouri 20
@#18 Eastern Kentucky 55, Murray State 24
@Tennessee Tech 45, #23 UT Martin 44 (OT)
@Jacksonville State 38, Austin Peay 23
EASTERN ILLINOIS 39, SOUTHEAST MISSOURI 20
CHARLESTON, Ill. - Erik Lora broke one Ohio Valley Conference record. Head coach Dino Babers joined a select group of OVC coaches. Eastern Illinois returned to the top of the OVC as the Panthers won their sixth OVC crown since 2001 with a 39-20 win over Southeast Missouri on senior day Saturday afternoon at O’Brien Field.
EIU improved to 7-3 on the season, 6-1 in the OVC. The Panthers earned the title outright after UT Martin lost 45-44 in overtime at Tennessee Tech later in the day.
Lora caught 15 passes for 178 yards as he broke the OVC record for receiving yards in a season passing SEMO’s Willie Ponder (2002). Lora now has 1,479 yards this season which ranks 14th all-time on the FCS single season list. He has 115 catches on the season which is tied for 5th all-time on the FCS single season list.
Of Lora’s 15 receptions his biggest was a 43-yard touchdown pass from Jimmy Garoppolo with 40 seconds left in the third quarter which gave EIU a 23-20 lead and momentum to close out the game.
As for Babers he became only the fourth coach in OVC history to win the league title in his first season as a collegiate head coach. He joins Boots Donnelly (Austin Peay, 1977), Jason Simpson (UT Martin, 2006) and Dean Hood (Eastern Kentucky, 2008) in that select group.
The Panthers opened the game with some momentum as the defense stopped SEMO’s running attack with a 3-and-out. The offense drove down the field covering 60 yards in 10 plays with Jake Walker capping the drive with an 8-yard run. EIU settled for a Cameron Berra 24-yard field goal with 1:27 left in the first quarter after a pass was broken up in the end zone on third down by SEMO.
The Redhawks battled back and trailed 16-14 at the half as Renard Celestin scored on a 4-yard run and Scott Lathrop had a 1-yard run in the second quarter. EIU scored on a Sam Hendricks touchdown reception after the pass was tipped at the goal line and dropped in Hendricks hands. The extra point was no good.
SEMO took the lead to open the third quarter with back-to-back field goals by Drew Geldbach of 30 and 22 yards. The Panthers defense which had allowed SEMO to rush for 163 yards in the first half limited the Redhawks to only 31 yards on the ground in the second half. Lathrop ran for 102 yards to lead SEMO on the day. Levi Terrell had 96.
The defensive line did help make plays for the Panthers as they recorded ten tackles for loss for 47 yards and five sacks for 35 yards. Gristick was among three players tied for the team lead with nine tackles. Greg Mahan posted two sacks and 2.5 tackles for loss along with a quarterback hurry and seven tackles.
The EIU defense responded to Lora’s go ahead score as they held SEMO to two straight 3-and-outs with another series ending after five plays. EIU’s offense answered the call to each defensive stop by putting points on the board.
Berra knocked home his second field goal of the day from 40 yards out with 12:47 to play. Taylor Duncan and Walker both tacked on fourth quarter rushing touchdowns. Walker had 132 yards rushing. Duncan added 53. Jimmy Garoppolo was 25-of-35 for 257 yards and two touchdowns.
#18 EASTERN KENTUCKY 55, MURRAY STATE 24
RICHMOND, Ky. - Senior Day couldn’t have been much sweeter for the Eastern Kentucky University football team as the Colonels dominated the final 40 minutes of action in a 55-24 victory over Murray State Saturday at Roy Kidd Stadium.
The No. 18 Colonels conclude the regular season 8-3 overall and 6-2 in the Ohio Valley Conference.
However, Eastern Illinois’ victory over Southeast Missouri eliminated the Colonels from OVC title contention. EKU will have to wait until next Sunday to learn if it will make a 21st appearance in the NCAA Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) playoffs. ESPNU will air the playoff selection show on Sunday, Nov. 18 at 1:30 p.m.
The Colonels scored touchdowns on their first five possessions, and 10 of 13 possessions overall. The Racers (4-6, 3-4 OVC) put points on the board on their first four touches, but were held scoreless the rest of the game.
Early in the second quarter, Murray State took a 24-20 lead on an 18-yard touchdown pass from Casey Brockman to Walter Powell. However, EKU answered. On 3rd-and-11 at the EKU 24, senior Tyrone Goard made a one-handed catch over the middle, with a number of defenders converging, for 43 yards. On the ensuing play, fellow senior Matt Denham tied the school record for touchdowns in a game when he scored his fourth, racing in from 33 yards out.
After the Eastern defense stopped the Racers for the first time, the offense began to pull away. A trick play extended the Colonel lead to 34-24. On 3rd-and-10 at the Murray State 22, junior Deshaun Sands took the hand-off, ran to the right and then lofted a perfect pass to Goard in the right corner of the end zone for the score.
The Colonel defense kept the Racers off the board the rest of the way. Eastern forced a fumble on MSU’s first possession of the second half. Murray State punted on its second touch in the third quarter. After EKU went on top 48-24, the Racers were stopped on downs inside the Eastern Kentucky five-yard line.
Murray State entered the contest averaging more than 52 points per game against OVC opponents. Thanks to forcing two turnovers and recording six sacks, Eastern Kentucky held the Racers to their lowest point total since a week two loss at Central Arkansas. Senior linebacker Kevin Hamlin notched seven tackles, one sack and one interception.
Eastern Kentucky racked up season highs in total offense (666) and rushing yards (372). The Colonels converted 14-of-16 (87.5 percent) third-down attempts and held the ball for 38:29.
Denham reached 200 yards rushing for the sixth time in his career (214). He ran for three touchdowns and caught a scoring pass. Quarterback T.J. Pryor completed 14-of-20 passes for 230 yards while throwing for one touchdown and rushing for another. Meanwhile, Goard caught seven passes for 152 yards to go along with his touchdown.
Murray State quarterback Casey Brockman finished 34-for-47 for 343 yards, three touchdown and one interception. He completed his first 11 pass attempts. Powell caught eight passes for 133 yards and two touchdowns.
TENNESSEE TECH 45, #23 UT MARTIN 44 (OT)
COOKEVILLE, Tenn. - Sophomore quarterback Darian Stone accounted for 466 total yards to lead the Tennessee Tech offense, and several players stood out on defense including a tackle by Tommie McBride on a two-point conversion attempt that clinched a 45-44 overtime victory for the Golden Eagles Saturday against No. 23 UT Martin in Tucker Stadium.
Stone tied a school record by rushing for 190 yards on 25 carries and all passed for 277 yards and three touchdowns as the Golden Eagles matched one of the most explosive offenses in the Ohio Valley Conference. Tech piled up 575 total yards while UT Martin countered with 579 yards.
The Skyhawks, hoping to clinch a share of the OVC title, watched the Golden Eagles storm back in the fourth quarter after trailing 31-17 midway through the third.
Stone led Tech on scoring drives of 80, 79 and 80 yards to lift the Golden Eagles to a 38-31 lead with 1:10 remaining. The third score in that stretch was a 79-yard touchdown pass to Ryan Tilghman, the eighth-longest pass completion in Tech history.
But UTM pulled off a desperation pass with six seconds remaining when Derek Carr launched a 46-yard heave toward the end zone. Tech cornerback William Dillard appeared to make an interception to end the game, but the ball skipped out of his hands and into the hands of UTM receiver Chris Thompson for the score that sent the game to overtime.
Tech kept the ball on the ground for five of its six plays on its possession, getting a first down at the three on a carry by Bud Golden. Sophomore Doug Page plowed into the end zone with his second TD of the game and Zach Sharp’s sixth PAT made it a 45-38 Golden Eagle lead.
Carr completed a 12-yard pass for a first down, but was sacked on third down by Marcus Edwards, his second sack of the contest. On fourth-and-16, Carr found Jeremy Butler in the corner of the end zone for the improbable touchdown.
On the PAT attempt, holder James Satterfield passed up the chance to let kicker Cody Sandlin tie the game when he took the snap and ran toward to the right. McBride beat his blocker and reached Satterfield, forcing a fumble that bounced toward the Golden Eagle sideline and ended the game.
Tech rushed for a season-high 298 yards on 54 attempts, with Stone tying the school record for most rushing yards by a quarterback set by Randy Beaman in 1991. It was Stone’s second consecutive 100-yard rushing effort. Page added a career-best 81 yards on 18 carries, including a par of two-yard touchdowns.
Stone was 16-for-29 for 277 passing yards, with one interception and three touchdowns. Da’Rick Rogers had five catches for 80 yards and Cody Matthews added five catches for 61 yards and two touchdowns. He grabbed a 20-yard strike from Stone to open the scoring on the game’s opening drive, then hauled in another 20-yard TD on the first play of the fourth quarter. Tilghman had three catches for 123 yards.
Tevin Barksdale was UT Martin’s leading rusher with 71 yards on 16 carries as the Skyhawks gained 157 on the ground. Carr went 35-for-52 for 422 yards and four touchdowns in the losing effort. His top receiver, Jeremy Butler, finished with 13 catches for 142 yards and two touchdowns. Quentin Sims added six catches for 61 yards including a 10-yard TD in the first quarter, while Thompson finished with five catches for 74 yards.
A total of seven players reached double figures in tackles in the game, which included 174 offensive plays.
Freshman cornerback Demario Donnell, making his first career start, led Tech with a career-best 15 tackles and one pass breakup. Sophomore linebacker Tra’Darius Goff added 14 tackles, Dillard had 12 and Austin Tallant made 10 stops. Marcus Edwards, one of 18 seniors playing his final home game, had nine tackles, two quarterback sackes and caused a fumble.
For UTM, J’Vontez Blackmon and Ben Johnson had 13 tackles each, and Marquis Clemons added 11 stops.
JACKSONVILLE STATE 38, AUSTIN PEAY 23
JACKSONVILLE, Ala. - Jacksonville State began the second half trailing one-win Austin Peay by two points. They ended it with a 38-23 victory in front of an announced crowd of 11,523, running their record to 6-4 overall and 5-3 in the Ohio Valley Conference.
The defense, torched for 319 yards up to that point, buckled down, forcing a pair of three-and-outs. And the offense, on the field for only 22 plays in the first 30 minutes, went to work.
Senior quarterback Marques Ivory capped off a five-play, 66-yard drive with a 10-yard touchdown run off the read option. He followed that score with a 10-yard TD pass to Ealey five minutes later. Backup quarterback Coty Blanchard connected with Ealey again on the next drive from 27 yards out.
In a 10-minute span, Jacksonville State went from 16-14 down to the Governors (1-9, 0-7) to leading 35-16.
Austin Peay opened up firing, quarterback Jake Ryan in particular. He shrugged off a first-drive interception by leading back-to-back scoring drives, culminating in a touchdown passes of 24 yards to Mikhail Creech and 20 yards to Devin Stark.
The Gamecocks appeared to steady the ship when DaMarcus James crashed into the end zone from 7 yards out -- one play after a 71-yard reception by senior Alan Bonner -- less than two minutes into the second quarter. Ealey followed that with a 1-yard TD run six minutes later to knot the score at 14-all.
The Governors had some chances to tack on more points, but kicker Stephen Stansell missed a 30-yard field goal and had a 31-yarder blocked. They did get a bit of a momentum boost late in the half, however, when Jacksonville State had a special teams boo-boo. A punt snap near the goal line sailed over the head of Hamish MacInnes, who directed the ball out of the back of the end zone for a safety with 1:48 left in the second quarter.
After racing past Austin Peay in the third quarter, Jacksonville State had to weather several threats over the final 15 minutes. The Governors got within 35-23 on Ryan's 9-yard TD pass to Reco Williams at the 14:15 mark, and they reached the Gamecocks' 14- and 24-yard line on two other drives later in the quarter, only to turn the ball over on downs.
A 60-yard run by James (13 carries, 149 yards) with less than three minutes to play basically settled matters, leaving Ivory and his fellow seniors feeling good about their last game at home.