2009 GAME RECAPS – GAME 9 –
#3 SOUTHERN ILLINOIS 34, #9 SDSU 15 Nov. 7, 2009 • Coughlin-Alumni Stadium (Att. 10,317)
BROOKINGS, S.D. — Third-ranked Southern Illinois clinched at least a share of the Missouri Valley Football Conference title and the league’s automatic berth in the Division I Football Championship Subdivision with a 34-15 victory over ninth-ranked South Dakota State. The Salukis scored 24 consecutive points between the second and third quarters in improving to 8-1 overall and 7-0 in league play. SDSU, playing before a home crowd of 10,317, dropped to 7-2 overall and 6-1 in the MVFC. After holding the Jackrabbits to three plays and out on their first offensive possession, SIU took an early 3-0 lead on its opening drive. Kyle Dougherty capped a seven-play, 65-yard drive with a 49-yard field goal. The Salukis made it 10-0 midway through the first quarter as Joe Allaria took a screen pass from Paul McIntosh and ran around the right end for a 21-yard touchdown, finishing off an eight-play, 70-yard drive. SDSU bridged its first scoring drive of the afternoon between the first and second quarters. A clipping penalty negated an apparent 37-yard touchdown, and the Jackrabbits later were set up first and goal at the 1yard later in the drive but were stuffed on three consecutive plays before settling for a 22-yard field goal by Peter Reifenrath. Mistakes continued to pile up for the Jackrabbits throughout the second quarter. A bobbled snap on a punt attempt gave SIU the ball at the SDSU 6, and two plays later the Salukis made it a 17-3 game on a 4-yard pass from Paul McIntosh to John Goode. Dougherty added a 22-yard field goal on the next SIU possession and the Salukis turned the game into a rout in the closing minutes of the half as Lance Caldwell intercepted a Ryan Crawford pass and returned it 75 yards for a touchdown to make the score 27-3. Crawford was sacked five times in the first half and six times in the game. SIU continued its onslaught by scoring on its opening drive of the second half, marching 80 yards on eight plays with McIntosh completing a 40-yard bomb to Jeff Evans for the touchdown. Backup quarterback Thomas O’Brien entered the game for SDSU on the team’s second possession of the second half and led the Jackrabbits on two fourth-quarter scoring drives. O’Brien threw a two-yard touchdown pass to Colin Cochart to complete the Jackrabbits’ longest scoring drive of the season, a 96-yard march that took 12 plays. O’Brien also threw a 23-yard touchdown pass to Mike Steffen with 2:26 remaining in the game. SDSU failed on both of its two-point attempts. Southern Illinois held a 388-342 advantage in total offense, gaining 280 yards on the ground. Walter Payton Award candidate Deji Karim became the first player to rush for 100 yards against SDSU this season, gaining 127 yards on 21 carries. McIntosh gained 76 yards on seven carries and complete 11-of-18 passes for 108 yards and two scores. Bryce Morris led the Saluki receivers with three catches for 23 yards. For SDSU, O’Brien finished the game 16-of-25 passing for 181 yards and an interception. Crawford completed 15-of-29 attempts for 147 yards. Glen Fox caught a career-high 12 passes for 101 yards. Saunders Montague added six receptions for 48 yards. Kyle Minett led the Jackrabbit ground game with 61 yards on 11 carries. Defensively, Conrad Kjerstad notched a career-high 15 tackles for SDSU. Danny Batten added 10 stops. Mike McElroy led SIU with eight tackles. Caldwell recorded both of both of the Salukis’ interceptions, the second one coming in the end zone to thwart a potential Jackrabbit scoring drive in the third quarter.
94
SCORE BY QUARTERS 1 Southern Illinois (8-1, 7-0) 10 South Dakota State (7-2, 6-1) 0
2 17 3
3 7 0
4 0 12
FINAL 34 15
SCORING SUMMARY 1st 11:02 SIU - Kyle Dougherty 49 yd field goal 4:13 SIU - Joe Allaria 21 yd pass from Paul McIntosh (Kyle Dougherty kick) 2nd 12:19 SDSU - Peter Reifenrath 22 yd field goal 6:39 SIU - John Goode 4 yd pass from McIntosh (Dougherty kick) 3:47 SIU - Dougherty 22 yd field goal 1:29 SIU - Lance Caldwell 75 yd interception return 3rd 12:07 SIU - Jeff Evans 40 yd pass from McIntosh (Dougherty kick) 4th 5:43 SDSU - Colin Cochart 2 yd pass from Thomas O’Brien (pass failed) 2:26 SDSU - Mike Steffen 23 yd pass from O’Brien (pass failed) TEAM STATISTICS FIRST DOWNS RUSHES-YARDS (NET) PASSING YDS (NET) Passes Att-Comp-Int TOTAL OFFENSE PLAYS-YARDS Fumble Returns-Yards Punt Returns-Yards Kickoff Returns-Yards Interception Returns-Yards Punts (Number-Avg) Fumbles-Lost Penalties-Yards Possession Time Third-Down Conversions Fourth-Down Conversions Red-Zone Scores-Chances Sacks By: Number-Yards
SIU 19 42-259 129 20-12-0 62-388 0-0 3-5 1-4 2-75 4-35.0 0-0 4-35 28:51 7 of 14 0 of 0 2-3 6-25
SDSU 24 29-14 328 54-31-2 83-342 0-0 2-20 5-87 0-0 5-40.4 0-0 3-45 31:09 8 of 18 0 of 2 2-3 0-0
RUSHING LEADERS: SIU - Deji Karim 21-127, Paul McIntosh 8-78, Steve Strother 4-34. SDSU - Kyle Minett 11-61, Tyler Duffy 10-17. PASSING LEADERS: SIU - Paul McIntosh 11-18-0 108, Bobby Brenneisen 0-1-0 0. SDSU - Ryan Crawford 15-29-1, Thomas O’Brien 16-25-1 181. RECEIVING LEADERS: SIU - Bryce Morris 3-23, Joe Allaria 2-30, Marc Cheatham 2-17, Lucien Walker 2-2, Jeff Evans 1-40. SDSU - Glen Fox 12-101, Saunders Montague 6-48, Mike Steffen 4-88, Colin Cochart 2-39. INTERCEPTIONS: SIU - Lance Caldwell 2-75. SDSU - none. SACKS: SIU - Kyle Russo 2-6, Kyle Walker 1.5-6, Brandin Jordan 1-6, Chauncey Mixon 1-5, Jason Seaman 0.5-2. SDSU - none. TACKLE LEADERS (UA-A-TOT): SIU - Mike McElroy 5-3-8, Connor James 4-3-7, Stephen Franklin 2-5-7. SDSU - Conrad Kjerstad 8-7-15, Danny Batten 2-8-10, Jimmy Rogers 6-2-8, Derek Domino 1-7-8.
– GAME 10 –
MINNESOTA 16, #12 SDSU 13 Nov. 14, 2009 • TCF Bank Stadium (Att. 50,805)
MINNEAPOLIS — Eric Ellestad’s third field goal of the game, a 25yarder with 2 minutes and 22 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter, gave Minnesota a 16-13 victory over visiting South Dakota State on Nov. 14 at TCF Bank Stadium. Minnesota improved to 6-5 overall and became bowl-eligible with the victory. SDSU, ranked 12th in the Football Championship Subdivision, dropped to 7-3 overall. South Dakota State turned the ball over a season-high four times, including a botched snap deep in their own territory that set up the Gophers for the winning score. Neither team scored an offensive touchdown in the defensive struggle. The Jackrabbits grabbed a 10-6 lead early in the second quarter as linebacker Derek Domino recorded his team-leading fifth interception of the season and returned the pick 22 yards for a touchdown. Minnesota returned the favor on the Jackrabbits’ next offensive possession. Redshirt quarterback Thomas O’Brien was sacked and stripped of the ball by defensive back Michael Carter and D.L. Wilhite picked the ball out of mid-air for a 3-yard touchdown return. The Golden Gophers took an early 6-0 lead with field goals on consecutive first-quarter possessions. Minnesota’s best drive of the day, a 13-play, 78-yard march ended with a 23-yard field goal by Ellestad.
2010 JACKRABBIT FOOTBALL MEDIA GUIDE