CARBONDALE, Ill. – Missouri State responded to a big second-half rally by Southern Illinois to score the final nine points of a back-and-forth battle to claim its first road win of the season with a 36-28 decision over SIU Saturday afternoon at Saluki Stadium.
Peyton Huslig‘s 26-yard scoring pass to Erik Furmanek—the senior tight end’s second touchdown of the game—proved to be the decisive blow with just over eight minutes to play, as the Missouri State defense held the SIU (4-5, 2-4 MVFC) offense in check for the remainder of the game to lock up the Bears’ (3-6, 2-4 MVFC) second-straight conference win.
MSU’s third victory of the season was made possible by a first-quarter scoring bonanza that included 24 unanswered points, 17 of which were produced by drives of 43 yards or less. The Bears’ 24-7 lead evaporated behind a Saluki offense that recovered to rack up 496 yards of offense on the day, thanks in large part to a balanced rushing attack that featured four different players totaling 40 or more yards on the ground. Trailing by 13 points late in the third period, SIU scored on back-to-back possessions to take a 28-27 lead on Tanner Hearn’s third TD pass of the game.
But the Bears responded with a nine-play, 73-yard scoring drive to reclaim the upper hand. After a pair of key completions to Lorenzo Thomas, as well as a 15-yard targeting penalty on the Saluki defense, Huslig tossed his second TD pass of the game after Furmanek found a seam in the SIU defense and sprinted untouched to paydirt.
It would be the Missouri State defense’s time to shine on the ensuing drive, getting some help from another costly SIU penalty to regain possession. After Hearn hit D.J. Davis for a four-yard completion on first down to move the ball to midfield, Connor Iwema was flagged for a facemask, turning what would have been a second and six into a first-and-25 situation. MSU stopped Hearn on a third-down rush, and SIU elected to punt rather than entertain a fourth-and-11 attempt.
Jason Randall converted a third-and-short with a 62-yard scamper to the SIU 13, and Zach Drake booted his third successful field goal try of the day to push the lead to eight points.
The Bears extinguished the Salukis’ last-ditch effort to even the score with help from yet another SIU penalty—this one a hold on second down from the SIU 39. Hearn’s fourth-down pass with 22 seconds left on the clock came up short of his intended receiver, sealing the victory for the Maroon and White.
Randall led the Bears with 139 yards on 16 rushing attempts, while Huslig completed 15-of-29 passes for 265 yards and two touchdowns to help MSU top the 400-yard mark for total offense for the fourth game in a row. The Bears defense forced a pair of turnovers and flustered the Salukis on third down throughout the game, limiting SIU’s offense to just 6-of-15 conversions.
Despite the favorable outcome, the afternoon started ominously under gray skies, as the Salukis took advantage of a short field on their initial possession to grab a 7-0 lead behind a Cameron Walter six-yard run.
The Bears would respond in just 32 seconds to set the tone for the opening period, however. Matt Rush brought the kickoff back 72 yards, and a Saluki facemask penalty gave MSU the ball at the SIU 14. Two plays later, Randall carried it in from 10 yards out to even the score.
Next, the Bears defense rose to the occasion to help extend the lead, forcing a pair of three-and-out possessions and a Saluki fumble to spur the early onslaught. Following a short SIU punt, Huslig connected with Thomas, who wrestled the ball away from a Saluki defender at the SIU 7 to set up the first of two Drake field goals in the opening half.
Colby Isbell registered a big play of his own on a third-and-11 attempt by the Salukis, sacking and stripping Hearn, then falling on the loose ball at the SIU 16. From there, Randall would carry for eight yards, before Furmanek converted a third-and-two try, barreling into the end zone for his first career rushing touchdown to make it a 17-7 game with 7:51 to play in the quarter.
After converting three short scoring opportunities to open the game, the Bears engineered a 72-yard march to extend their lead to 17 points. Huslig capped the drive with a 57-yard scoring toss to Malik Earl, who got behind the SIU secondary for his third touchdown reception of the season.
The Salukis stopped MSU’s scoring run with a nine-play, 83-yard scoring drive, pulling to within 10 points on Hearn’s six-yard pass to Iwema with 6:57 to play in the half. SIU appeared to be poised to cut further into the Bears’ cushion late in the half, moving the ball to the MSU 14 with just under a minute to play. But Darius Joseph, who shared game-high tackle honors with a career-best 12 stops, stepped in front of a Hearn pass in the end zone for the momentum-swinging interception.
Huslig found a rhythm in the closing seconds, connecting with four different receivers to move the Bears within field goal range. His 44-yard pass to Earl moved MSU into the red zone, before Drake drilled a 35-yard try to stretch the margin to 27-14.
SIU drew first blood in the second half, despite another key stop by the MSU defense deep in its own territory to start the third quarter. After an offsides penalty on the Bears gave SIU new life following an interception, Hearn found Iwema for a 13-yard gain to the MSU 30, then connected with Darrell James on a 29-yard scoring strike that trimmed the margin to six points with just under three minutes to play in the period.
MSU responded with a lengthy drive that was highlighted by a leaping 24-yard catch by Thomas, moving the ball deep into SIU territory once again. On a third-and-eight at the Saluki 25, Deion Holliman reeled in a one-handed grab in the flat and appeared to pick up first-down yardage near the 15. But SIU cornerback Craig James stripped the ball, which rolled out of bounds at the 18, just short of the marker. SIU then snuffed out Furmanek’s fourth-down rush to thwart the drive and regain possession.
The Salukis would need just three plays to cash in, as Daquan Isom broke free for a 26-yard run, before D.J. Davis hauled in a Hearn pass and streaked past the MSU defense for a 47-yard, go-ahead touchdown with 12:08 to play.
Once again, the Bears found an answer with a nine-play, 73-yard scoring drive to reclaim the upper hand. After a pair of key completions to Thomas, as well as a 15-yard targeting penalty on the Saluki defense, Huslig tossed his second TD pass of the game with a 26-yard strike to Furmanek with 8:16 left on the clock.
Hearn completed 13-of-22 passes for 180 yards and three touchdowns for SIU, while Davis gouged the Bears for 225 all-purpose yards, including a game-high 130 receiving yards on nine catches.
Missouri State returns to Robert W. Plaster Stadium for its final home game of the season next Saturday, with a 2 p.m. contest against UNI.
