SATURDAY'S SCORES
@Ball State 28,
Tennessee Tech 13
#14 Illinois State 44,
@Eastern Illinois 13
@Missouri State 28,
Murray State 21
#22 Tennessee State 24, Florida A&M 13 (Tampa, Fla.)
UT Martin 21, @#15 Chattanooga 7
Southern Illinois 35,
@Southeast Missouri 17
@Austin Peay 69, Morehead State 13
BALL STATE 28, TENNESSEE TECH 13
MUNCIE, Ind. - In what was a closer contest than many probably expected, the Golden Eagles hung in with their Football Bowl Subdivision brothers out of the Mid-American Conference, Ball State, and battled to the end, falling 28-13 on Saturday in Muncie, Ind.
For the Golden Eagles (0-3), it was the closest contest against an FBS opponent since a 42-32 loss to Ohio in 1990. However, Tech does fall to 0-32 in contests against FBS schools.
But the bright side was that the Golden Eagles certainly didn’t back down against the Cardinals. Andrew Goldsmith rushed for a three-yard touchdown among his 13 carries for 64 yards and 121 all-purpose yards.
Tech actually ended up with a trio of players over the century mark in all-purpose yardage as Rodrick Napper (111) and Dontez Byrd (110) also eclipsed the plateau.
The Golden Eagles also got a pair of field goals from Nick Madonia from 37 and 21 yards out to add to their scoring.As a team, Tech compiled a respectable 355 yards of total offense, despite a slow start.
However, the Golden Eagles definitely made things a little uncomfortable for the fans in Schuemann Stadium in the fourth quarter. As Morgan Hagee lined up for a 52-yard field goal, Josh Cunningham rushed in and blocked the try, with the Golden Eagles recovering the loose ball at their own 35.
Tech was able to drive into Cardinal territory, but turned the ball over on downs for the first time this season at the BSU 42. Ball State responded, driving down to the Tech 13, but Elliott Normand forced and Joe Robertson recovered a fumble, giving the Golden Eagles another chance.
And Tech capitalized, driving the ball to the Cardinal 4 in five plays, including a 46-yard pass from Andre Sale to Byrd. Once Tech was in a 1st-and-goal situation, however, Ball State was able to push Tech back to the 24 with a holding penalty against the Golden Eagles and a 10-yard sack. Sale attempted a pass to Donte Horton on 4th and 24, but the pass sailed incomplete, ending Tech’s last chance to make some noise as the Cardinals were able to go into victory formation and kneel out the clock.
Sale ended the game with 239 yards passing as he went 19-for-34 with one interception. Luke Ward was also saddled with an interception as he went 0-for-1 passing.
Tech however was able to force BSU quarterback Riley Neal into two interceptions as Normand and A.J. Flemister each picked off passes. Aderick Moore led the Golden Eagles with 12 tackles, while Deontay Wilson had nine and Normand stopped eight.
In addition to Goldsmith’s 64 yards and a touchdown on 13 carries, Yeedee Thaenrat looked fresh following his injury against Kennesaw State, rushing for 62 yards on nine carries. Byrd caught seven passes for 93 yards, while Goldsmith had two catches for 57 yards
For Ball State (2-1), Neal threw for 238 yards on 23-for-31 passing, including touchdown strikes to Justin Hall, Nolan Givan and James Gilbert. Hall had seven catches for 82 yards, while Gilbert rushed for 92 yards on 11 carries.
#14 ILLINOIS STATE 44, EASTERN ILLINOIS 13
CHARLESTON, Ill. - Eastern Illinois could never get its offense on track Saturday afternoon as Illinois State offense was clicking giving the No. 14 ranked Redbirds a 44-13 win over EIU in the 106th playing of the Mid-America Classic played at O’Brien Field.
ISU improved to 2-0 on the season as the road team has now won the annual rivalry game for the third straight year. EIU fell to 1-2 on the year.
The Redbirds average starting position for the day was at their own 44 and they capitalized on that good field position. Sean Slattery put ISU up 3-0 on a 35-yard field goal capping a 32-yard drive. James Robinson had back-to-back touchdown runs from 22 yards and 1-yard putting ISU up 17-0 with 11:34 to play in the second quarter. Robinson’s first score capped a 47-yard drive. The second was a seven-yard drive.
EIU’s special teams gave the Panthers a breath of life in the second quarter as Julian Hess blocked a punt that Mack Weaver picked up and returned 15 yards for a touchdown. It was the third blocked kick of the season for EIU after the Panthers blocked a pair of field goals last week at Northern Illinois. EIU missed the extra point and trailed 17-6.
ISU would add two more first half scores to put the lead to 27-6 at the half.
EIU made it a two possession game early in the second half as Scotty Gilkey Jr., capped an 80-yard drive with a 3-yard run. It was the second rushing touchdown of the season for the redshirt freshman. Gilkey played a number of snaps in the second half as he finished as the Panthers leading rusher with 13 yards. As a team EIU was limited to 14 yards rushing and 117 yards of total offense. The rushing totals were hampered by sacks as ISU was able to get to the quarterback six times.
ISU put the game away following the score as Robert Gillum caught an 80-yard touchdown pass from Jake Kolbe with 3:05 to play in the third quarter. ISU would add another field goal and touchdown for its scoring summary. Kolbe passed for 218 yards. ISU finished with 451 yards on offense.
Mark Williams led the Panthers defense with seven tackles. Josh Price had 2.5 tackles for loss and a sack after missing the first half of the game due to a targeting call in the second half at NIU.
Tyree Horton had 11 tackles for ISU with 3.5 tackles for loss, two sacks and a forced fumble.
MISSOURI STATE 28, MURRAY STATE 21
SPRINGFIELD, Mo. - A late touchdown lifted Missouri State past the Murray State football team, 28-21, in a hard-fought game Saturday afternoon at Robert W. Plaster Stadium in Springfield, Missouri.
The Racers jumped out to a 10-0 lead in the game thanks to a field goal from Gabriel Vicente and a three-yard touchdown pass from Corey Newble to Tyre Gray. Newble’s pass was one of MSU more impressive plays on the day, as the freshman threw a jump pass as he was falling out of bounds, finding Gray in the end zone. D’Montre Wade also got the first of his two interceptions in the game in the opening stanza
Early in the second quarter, Missouri State got its first big play of the day, when Peyton Huslig found Malik Earl from 35 yards out to cut the score to 10-7. Neither team would score for the remainder of the half, giving the Racers a three-point lead at the break.
The Bears opened the half by driving 75 yards and scoring on a 10-yard pass from Huslig to Nick Masoner. Later in the quarter, Huslig kept the ball ran 10 yards to push the score to 21-10. However, on the ensuing drive the Racers took the ball 75 yards of their own and scored on a 33-yard pass from Newble to Jordon Gandy. Newble then kept the ball on the two-point attempt and walked it in to cut led to 21-8.
The Racers started the fourth quarter with a second D’Montre Wade interception that led to a second Vicente field goal to tie the game at 21. The score remained deadlocked until just 1:48 remaining in the game when Calen Crowder punched it in from the two-yard line to give the Bears a 28-21 lead. The Racers got the benefit of two big penalties on the ensuing drive, but a late Corey Newble interception sealed the win for Missouri State.
Huslig was 18-for-29 with and two interceptions and two touchdowns, while Earl racked up 80 yards on six catches. Crowder rushed for 104 yards on the ground and McNeese Egbim led the Missouri State defense with a game-high 15 tackles.
Corey Newble completed eight of 16 passes for 56 yards and two touchdown in the game for Murray State, while starter Shuler Bentley was 24-for-36 for 133 yards.
D’Montre Wade’s two interceptions on the night mark the first time in nearly a decade that one Racer has had two picks in the same game. Nathan Brinkley was the last MSU player to accomplish the feat when he did so against UT Martin in 2010. Wade also had a team-high six tackles and 1.0 tackle-for loss.
The Murray State offensive line allowed just one sack in the game, while Lamont Crittendon, Kenney Wooten and Troy-Wayne Quinn each had a solo sack for the Racer defense.
#22 TENNESSEE STATE 24, FLORIDA A&M 13
TAMPA, Fla. - Steady offense and another strong performance by the defense lifted the Tennessee State football team to a 24-13 victory over Florida A&M on Saturday night at Raymond James Stadium in the FAMU Tampa Classic. The win moves TSU to 3-0 to start the season for the second year in a row.
The Tigers held a 10-6 edge over the Rattlers (1-2) at the half before outscoring FAMU by a 14-7 margin the rest of the way.
Quarterback Treon Harris threw touchdown passes to Steven Newbold and Patrick Smith on the night, while sophomore running back Seth Rowland added another touchdown on the ground for the Tigers.
Newbold was named MVP for TSU in the game.
UT MARTIN 21, #15 CHATTANOOGA 7
CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. - While the game wasn’t included in the quest for a fourth straight Sgt. York Trophy, the University of Tennessee at Martin football team showed no hesitation in displaying its in-state dominance a week early with a 21-7 road victory over No. 15 ranked Chattanooga on Saturday night.
The Skyhawks (2-1) controlled the game from start to finish, scoring on the team’s second drive of the game, building a lead as large as 21 points and never looking back down the stretch. Hitting the road for the second time this season, the Skyhawks notched their first win over a ranked opponent of the season, while picking up their first upset over a top-15 program since defeating No. 7 Central Arkansas in 2013.
UT Martin picked up a quality non-conference victory behind a balanced offense which saw several names steal the show while being backed by a stingy defense which held the Mocs without a first down deep into the third quarter before limiting the squad to just six rushing yards – the lowest allowed since holding Eastern Illinois to minus-five yards on Oct. 22, 2011 - and 144 yards of total offense. Winning nearly every statistical category, the Skyhawks tallied 16 first downs while accumulating 293 yards of offense and a pair of forced turnovers.
Offensively, the Skyhawks were led by senior quarterback Troy Cook who managed an efficient pace. Cook completed 16-of-21 passes for 183 yards and three touchdowns, marking the sixth time in his career that he tallied at least three touchdowns in a contest. Highlighting the receiving core was senior Londell Lee who caught four passes for 104 yards while the duo of Brett Thompson and Jaylon Moore each notched touchdown receptions.
On the defensive side of the ball, the Skyhawks’ darkside proved fierce once again. Manhandling the Mocs front five, the Skyhawks tallied five sacks on the evening, the most since tallying eight against Tennessee Tech on Oct. 3, 2015. Junior Anthony Brown who tallied a pair along with a forced fumble led the Skyhawks in the sack category while Kevin Prather, Jr., Jay Murphy and Mike Turner each joined in the action.
Junior linebacker James Gilleylen and cornerback Chris Williams-Hall tied with a game-high seven tackles on the night while Prather (six) and Garrett Wall (five) also posted strong evenings. Pacing a squad which has forced six turnovers on the season was Tae Martin and Mike Turner who notched an interception and fumble recovery,
respectively. With yet another interception, Martin - the country’s interception leader – became the first Skyhawk to tally three consecutive games with an interception since Cam Harris in November of 2013.
SOUTHERN ILLINOIS 35, SOUTHEAST MISSOURI 17
CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo. - Southeast Missouri (0-3) established momentum early, but couldn't overcome 13 penalties in a 35-17 loss to longtime rival Southern Illinois (2-0) Saturday night in front of a crowd of 7,025 at Houck Field.
SEMO lost a total of 143 as a result of its miscues.
On the first play from scrimmage, Daquan Isom fumbled the ball when he was hit by Kendall Donnerson. Rico McWilliams recovered at the SIU 35-yard line.
Nicholas Litang's 30-yard field goal capped a 7-play, 29-yard drive giving SEMO an early 3-0 lead with 12:07 left to play in the first quarter.
SIU answered with three-straight touchdowns, consisting of a 5-yard pass from Sam Straub to Raphael Leonard, a 2-yard run by Jonathan Mixon and a 38-yard pass from Straub to Darrell James, pulling ahead, 21-3.
A roughing the snapper penalty on a fourth-and-9 kept the Salukis drive alive that led to Leonard's TD reception.
Marquis Terry scored on a 3-yard run at the end of a 12-play, 65-yard drive before SIU held a 28-10 advantage at halftime. The Salukis scored 21 second quarter points prior to the intermission.
Each team scored once in the second half with Straub hooking up with Jacob Varble on a 6-yard pass and Jesse Hosket completing a 12-yard pass to Zack Smith. Smith's first career touchdown marked the end of the scoring with 13:19 remaining the in fourth quarter.
Straub completed 13-of-29 for 206 yards and four touchdowns to lead SIU. James followed with a game-high six catches for 119 yards and two TDs.
The Salukis outgained the Redhawks, 305-278.
Hosket threw for 166 yards and a touchdown on 20-of-38 passes. He also threw two interceptions and was sacked three times.
Terry ran for a game-high 90 yards on 21 carries. Trevon Billington added six receptions for 81 yards and Cameron Sanders returned four kickoffs for 133.
Defensively, Omar Pierre-Louis recorded a career-high eight tackles and Bydarrius Knighten followed close behind with seven for the Redhawks.
Cody Crider and Ryan Neal each had eight tackles to pave the way for SIU.
AUSTIN PEAY 69, MOREHEAD STATE 13
CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. - Austin Peay State University's football team routed Morehead State, 69-13, in a Saturday night showdown at Fortera Stadium that featured an Ohio Valley Conference record 10 rushing touchdowns—four from the feet of sophomore quarterback JaVaughn Craig.
In front of a Fortera Stadium-record 8,152 fans, the Governors succeeded in going over, around and through Morehead State's defense, accounting for 668 yards of total offense, including 477 on the ground. Sophomore Kentel Williams needed just eight touches to rush for a career-high 203 yards, becoming the first Governor to go over 200 yards in a game since 2009 (Ryan White; 228 yards vs. Southeast Missouri).
The standouts were too many to count for Austin Peay on this record-shattering Saturday. Without even touching the ball in the second half, Williams broke 200 yards with runs of 61, 51 and 55 yards sprinkled throughout the first half.
Craig scampered nine times but found the end zone on four of them, while adding in a solid 8-for-12 passing night with 118 yards to keep the defense from loading the box. Craig's favored target was Kyran Moore, who hauled in five passes for 96 yards and also added one of the Governors rushing touchdowns—he finished the game with 129 all-purpose yards.
Williams may not have gotten into the end zone, but a host of other Governor ball carriers did. Working in to give Craig a breather under center, freshman Jeremiah Oatsvall scored twice, from 31 and 14 yards out, while Ahmaad Tanner (12 yards), Tre Nation (32) and Prince Momodu (5) also had rushing touchdowns.
And lest all the attention go to the offense, Austin Peay kept up a season-long defensive clamp down, limiting Morehead State to 2.2 yards per carry (77 yards on 35 attempts) and forcing four Morehead State turnovers. Trent Taylor, Malik Boynton and DeKeivis Perry each secured their first career interceptions, while newcomer Nate Howard shined in his APSU debut with eight tackles, 3.5 for loss, and a sack.
As the game went along and it became clear that the Governors were going to secure the first win of the Will Healy era, the fans grew excited.
Midway through the fourth quarter, there were loud "Lets Go Peay!" chants ringing throughout Fortera Stadium.
By the time the fourth quarter clock hit all zeroes, bedlam was brewing on the turf as euphoric fans rushed the field.
You couldn't blame them.
Everyone has waited for this win. Fans, players, coaches, staff—everyone is invested, and that investment paid dividends Saturday night.