SATURDAY'S SCORES
Murray State 41, @Eastern Kentucky 28
UT Martin 33, @#24 Eastern Illinois 17
#2 Jacksonville State 17, @Southeast Missouri 10
Tennessee State 41, @Austin Peay 40
@Tennessee 55,
Tennessee Tech 0
MURRAY STATE 41, EASTERN KENTUCKY 28
RICHMOND, Ky. - The Murray State football team used a 31-0 second-half run to overcome a 18-7 halftime deficit and beat Eastern Kentucky, 41-28, Saturday at Roy Kidd Stadium in Richmond. The Racers have now won three consecutive games and four of their last five.
The win Saturday gives MSU its first three-game win streak since 2011. The win also breaks a string of five-straight losses for the Racers in Richmond, as they had not won at Roy Kidd Stadium since 2004.
After giving up a safety to begin the second half, Murray State scored 31 consecutive points to take a commanding 38-20 lead over the Colonels. Eastern Kentucky scored late in the fourth quarter to cut the lead to 10 at 38-28, however a Connor Mitchell field goal with 1:38 left in the game pushed the lead to 41-28, virtually sealing the win for the Racers.
The 31 consecutive points by Murray State included three touchdown passes from KD Humphries, two of which were to Jordon Gandy, a second Mareio McGraw Rushing touchdown and a Connor Mitchell Field goal.
Jordon Gandy put up 218 yards on six catches, two of which went for touchdowns. He had a long catch of 74 in the game, on which he scored, as well as big catches of 58, 47 and 22 yards. His 218 yards on Saturday was the third highest total in school history, eclipsing Marcus Harris’ 213 yards against Missouri State in 2010. Gandy was 37 yards shy of tying Harvey Tanner’s school record of 255 yards set nearly 50 years ago in 1967.
Humphries completed 21-of-33 passes Saturday for 331 total yards and three touchdowns. He now needs just 55 yards and one touchdown to take over as MSU’s all-time leader in passing yards and passing touchdowns, respectively, passing current wide receivers coach Casey Brockman. In addition, Humphries needs just 65 yards to become just the second quarterback in OVC history to pass for 10,000 plus yards joining EIU’s Jimmy Garoppolo in the elite club.
The Murray State defense forced three turnovers and the special teams added a fourth, while the offense gave up just one, to boost the Racers’ turnover margin to +5, after being -6 just three weeks ago. Troy-Wayne Quinn, Derrick Shaw and Demetric Johnson all forced fumbles in the game, while Zachary Wade, Jordon Gandy and Chris Stahl all had recoveries.
Wade tallied 17 tackles for Murray State Saturday, a season-high for a Racer defensive player.
Tyler Swafford was 22-for-46 for 289 yards with one rushing touchdown and one interception to lead the EKU offense. Dan Crimmins caught six passes for 124 yards, while Ryan Markus tallied 82 yard on nine receptions. Jeffrey Canaday led the Eastern Kentucky defense with 17 tackles on the day to go along with 2.0 tackles-for-loss for a total of nine yards.
UT MARTIN 33, #24 EASTERN ILLINOIS 17
CHARLESTON, Ill. - The University of Tennessee at Martin went on the road and knocked off nationally ranked Ohio Valley Conference foe No. 24 Eastern Illinois 33-17 on Saturday afternoon to keep the team’s championship hopes alive. The Skyhawks forced the Panthers into a season-high seven turnovers while limiting their opponent to just 297 yards of total offense.
The Skyhawks (6-4, 5-1 OVC) picked up their fourth consecutive OVC victory behind a stingy defense effort and timely conversions en route to the program’s first win over a ranked opponent of the season. UT Martin jumped out to an early lead for the seventh time this season while forcing a season-high seven turnovers which ranked as the most since forcing seven against Eastern Illinois on Oct. 23, 2004.
Four different Skyhawks tallied interceptions in the contest with Sheldon Dawson tallying a first quarter pick before the trio of Chris Williams-Hall, Kahlid Hagens and Joseph Este each tallied interceptions in the fourth quarter. UT Martin also forced a pair of fumbles while recovering three on the day as Kevin Prather, Jr. stripped a pair of fumbles loose while joining Hagens and Este with recoveries. The contest also marked the third consecutive game and fourth time this season that the Skyhawks have held their opponent to fewer than 300 yards of total offense.
UT Martin tallied nine tackles for loss in the contest led by senior Damani Taylor with two of his three tackles going for loss. Prather and Hagens paced the team with nine tackles on the day while the trio of James Gilleylen, Joseph Este and Tae Martin tallied six each.
On the offensive side of the ball it was senior running back Ladevin Fair who led the way for the Skyhawks. Fair paced the squad in carries for the second straight week with 17 while tallying 60 yards and two touchdowns. Sophomore tailback Jaimiee Bowe also got in the endzone following 16 carries for 62 yards.
No. 24 Eastern Illinois (5-5, 3-4 OVC) struggled to get much going while being held under 300 yards of total offense for the second consecutive week. The Panthers leaned heavily on bright spot Devin Church who tallied 13 carries for 101 yards and a touchdown while the quarterback trio of Austin Green, Bud Martin and Jared Pilson combined to complete just 12-of-26 passes for one touchdown and four interceptions.
Like for much of the season, UT Martin would not only get on the board first in the contest for the seventh time this season, but would rely on its defense to preserve the shutout on the Panthers opening drive. Following a turnover on downs on the offensive side, the defense would keep Eastern Illinois out of the redzone as Prather stripped and recovered a fumble to stall the potential scoring drive.
After taking over on UT Martin’s own 28 following the recovery, Troy Cook would look down the field to find Caylon Weathers for a 12-yard completion. Back-to-back rushes by Fair would notch yet another first down while moving across midfield. With the Skyhawks on the 50, Eastern Illinois would commit three personal fouls over the following four plays to set up first and goal from the EIU five-yard line. Benefitting for the other team’s miscues, Fair would make the Panthers pay by rumbling into the endzone for a five-yard touchdown – the fourth of the season.
The game would take a sloppy turn on the following two drives. Eastern Illinois would begin its ensuing drive on the seven before looking to the air. On second and eight, the Panthers would look for a deep pass but Dawson would tally an interception and return the ball 22 yards for his second pick of the season. With prime field position, the Skyhawks would not capitalize as Cook was intercepted on the following play be Bradley Dewberry to end the drive.
Eastern Illinois would overcome the six-point deficit on the opening drive of the second quarter. Utilizing a two-quarterback system, the Panthers would start the drive with Green under center by completing back-to-back passes for a total of 23 yards. A quarterback keeper by Green later in the drive went for 14 yards to set up first and goal before turning the reigns over to Pilson. With a new quarterback in the fold, Pilson would hit Addison Bounds for a 10-yard touchdown in the corner of the endzone to take a 7-6 lead.
UT Martin would look to quickly take back the lead on the following drive. Facing third and short, Cook would find senior Kyle Kerrick for a 27-yard completion down the home sideline. With the ball near midfield, Fair would tally a pair of carries to notch a first down and move into enemy territory before a personal foul later in the drive moved the Skyhawks inside the redzone once again. The drive would nearly stall following a false start penalty but a 12-yard completion from Cook to Ben Axline on third-and-long would continue the drive and set up first and goal from the two. Needing just a few yards to reach the endzone, the Skyhawks would feed the ball to Jaimiee Bowe who broke the plain and scored his sixth touchdown of the season.
The Panthers would surge towards the endzone in the final minutes of the first half, highlighted by a 35-yard carry by Church to move the home squad inside the 10. Threatening with second and goal, Church would race towards the endzone where Prather jarred the ball loose for his second forced fumble as Hagens recovered the fumble to eliminate the scoring threat.
Facing a 13-7 deficit at the end of the first half, Eastern Illinois would look to cut into the margin on its second drive of the third quarter. Following a poor punt to set up prime field position, the Panthers would take over on the Skyhawks 36. The Panthers would tally a pair of first downs before seeing the drive stall at the nine, resulting in a 26-yard field goal by Nick Bruno to make it a three-point contest.
UT Martin would respond to the field goal with one of its own on the ensuing drive. The Skyhawks would go 34 yards on nine plays before junior Brett Arkelian tallied his first career field goal with a 20-yard attempt.
With the fourth quarter opening with just a six-point margin, the Skyhawks looked to find some breathing room by turning to their defense once again. After Eastern Illinois would start its drive on its 17, Skyhawk corner Williams-Hall tallied his second interception of the season before returning it 18-yards. With prime field position, the Skyhawks would turn to Fair who tallied four carries before finding the endzone for the second time in the contest to give the visitors a 23-10 lead.
Eastern Illinois would answer right back on the following drive. Four big plays of 13 yards or more would summarize the drive before Church broke free for a 27-yard rushing touchdown to make the score a one-possession game.
Needing to put the game away, the Skyhawks looked to milk the clock while finding some breathing room in the final minutes. The Skyhawks would be successful as the team strung together a nine-play, 47-yard drive which chewed up almost four minutes of clock before Mitch Mersman tallied a 42-yard field goal to stretch the margin.
With a bit of breathing room, UT Martin would turn to its defense to close out the contest. With Eastern Illinois turning the game over to its third quarterback of the afternoon Martin, the Skyhawks would rudely introduce him to the game. On his first pass of the following drive, Hagens would tally his second forced turnover of the contest by returning an interception 52 yards for a touchdown – the team’s sixth defensive touchdown of the season. On the next drive, the Skyhawks would completely put the game away as Este notched his third interception of the year to secure the victory.
#2 JACKSONVILLE STATE 17, SOUTHEAST MISSOURI 10
CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo. - The No. 1 defense in the FCS tightened its clamp on that ranking against Southeast Missouri.
Top-ranked Jacksonville State moved a step closer to its third straight Ohio Valley Conference championship with a 17-10 win over the Redhawks on homecoming at Houck Stadium. Senior quarterback Eli Jenkins passed for 144 yards and one touchdown to become the Gamecocks' career passing leader, eclipsing Ed Lett's 34-year-old mark.
Jacksonville State's offense sputtered for the second time in three weeks but managed to produce enough points to turn back SEMO's late upset bid. The Gamecocks improved to 8-1, 5-0 in the OVC, with their 22nd consecutive conference victory.
It was a bizarre and contentious afternoon from the opening kickoff.
The hard-hitting showdown saw the teams penalized a combined 25 times for 214 yards; Jacksonville State not get over the 100-yard rushing mark until deep into the fourth quarter; Jenkins on the bench for part of the second quarter and most of the fourth; and the Redhawks end up with zero yards on 28 carries, a new record for fewest rushing yards allowed in Jacksonville State's Division I history.
The Gamecocks' first game of the season as the No. 1 team in the FCS wasn't decided until Dalton Campbell fell on an onside kick after SEMO drew to within 17-10 on Ryan McCrum's 23-yard field goal with 24 seconds remaining.
The Redhawks (3-6, 3-3) had driven 83 yards in 14 plays after recovering a fumble as the Gamecocks were trying to run out the clock in the final minutes.
SEMO's zero net rushing yards broke the old mark of 11 yards on 26 attempts by Murray State in 2001.
Southeast Missouri finished with 206 total yards - all through the air. Jacksonville State began the day ranked first in FCS at total defense at 259.6 yards per game.
Jenkins became JSU's all-time passing leader when he hit Jamari Hester on a 16-yard completion to start the fourth quarter. It turned out to be his last completion before turning the reins over to backup quarterback Bryant Horn.
Jenkins connected with Josh Barge for a 20-yard touchdown pass deep into the first quarter to give the Gamecocks a 7-0 lead they never relinquished.
Cade Stinnett boosted JSU's lead to 10-0 with a 45-yard field goal with 5:02 left in the second.
Horn, who came on in relief in the second quarter for the first time, tossed an 11-yard touchdown pass to Josh Clemons with 1:19 remaining before halftime. Clemons' first career TD catch extended Jacksonville State's lead to 17-0 at halftime.
Jaylen Hill and Siran Neal had interceptions for the Gamecocks. Neal and Joel McCandless were credited with nine tackles each.
TENNESSEE STATE 41, AUSTIIN PEAY 40
CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. - Freshman Steven Newbold caught his second touchdown of the game with 1.7 seconds left and Lane Clark kicked the extra point to give the Tennessee State football team a 41-40 road win over Austin Peay at Fortera Stadium on Saturday night.
A six-play, 81-yard touchdown drive led by senior quarterback Ronald Butler turned out to be the difference for TSU, which improved to 6-3 overall and 3-2 in Ohio Valley Conference play. On the final offensive play for the Tigers, Butler eluded the pass rush, stepped up in the pocket and delivered a 21-yard strike to Newbold in the corner of the endzone.
Butler turned in another strong performance with four passing touchdowns and two rushing touchdowns to go with 342 yards of total offense.
On the other side of the ball, Antonio Justice, Jr. led the Tigers’ defense with nine tackles, 1.5 for a loss and one sack.
TENNESSEE 55, TENNESSEE TECH 0
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. - The result was not really ever in doubt, but that didn't stop the Tennessee Tech football team on Saturday.
Facing the University of Tennessee, the Golden Eagles were outmanned and outgunned by their Football Bowl Subdivision bigger brothers, but they were undeterred.
The 55-0 defeat? Not unexpected, especially from a Volunteer team that had something to prove after a three-game skid.
Tech (3-6) may have lost the day, but the experience gained will prove to be valuable down the line.
In front of 98,343 fans – the largest crowd for a Tech game in program history – the Golden Eagles also saw another best tied as Dontez Byrd matched the best tally for a Tech player in catches against an FBS opponent, tying the nine catches Brock McCoin had against Houston last season.
Byrd ended the game with 121 yards on nine catches.
Offensively, Tech struggled, but that was much more the quality of opponent the Golden Eagles faced than miscues – though Tech did have its share of turnovers as well with one interception. Tech also turned the ball over six times on failed fourth-down conversions, but just twice in its own territory.
Numbers-wise, Tech put together 224 yards on 74 plays, while the Volunteers (6-3) had 471 yards on 52 plays.
Michael Birdsong threw for 164 yards on 17-for-35 passing, while Andrew Goldsmith led Tech with 39 yards on seven carries and Yeedee Thaenrat had 33 yards on 14 totes.
Joshua Dobbs and Josh Malone hooked up for two quick scores – a 30-yd pass and a 43-yd pass – to put the Volunteers up quickly, then John Kelly closed out the first-quarter scoring with a 73-yard touchdown run.
Dobbs threw another touchdown strike to Jauan Jennings, then Carlin Fils-Aime ran for the first of his two touchdown runs. Aaron Medley put a 19-yard field goal through the uprights as the first half concluded, Tech trailing 38-0.
Fils-Aime ran for his second touchdown in the third quarter, then, in the fourth, Medley kicked a 42-yard field. Marquez Callaway put the final touchdown on the board, returning a punt 62 yards for a score.
Dobbs completed 12 of his 13 passes for 183 yards and three touchdowns. Quinten Dormady threw for 109 yards on 9-for-13 attempts in relief.
John Kelly ran for 104 yards on seven carries, while Malone caught five passes for 112 yards.