Murray State
Illinois State
Racers fall at Illinois State 42-0 in first shutout loss in 159 games
9/24/2005 12:00:00 AM | Football
Murray State's final game before beginning play in the Ohio Valley Conference was a 42-0 defeat to the Illinois State Redbirds tonight in front of 7,233 at Hancock Stadium in Normal, Ill. The Racer offense, controlled by emergency quarterback Ryne Salyer, never got on track and rushed for a mere 63 yards in the game.
The loss marks the first time the Racers (1-2) have been shut out in a span of 159 games. Western Kentucky was the last team to shut the Racers out, a 14-0 loss in Bowling Green in 1991.
Salyer, a sophomore who made one start last season as a freshman, was in the game because Ken Topps was still suffering the effects of two bruised shoulders he received last week against Indiana State. Salyer and the Racers had a good opening drive, moving the ball from their own 20-yard line to the ISU 31 before having to punt. For the game, though, Murray State struggled, and was held to 135 total yards.
Head coach Joe Pannunzio tried to stay positive in the face of a disappointing loss.
"I'm disappointed in how we played," he said. "Ken didn't practice all week, but we just didn't get it done. I never imagined we would come in here and get beat 42-0. It's like a bad dream."
Topps, a junior, did see action in the game, entering after ISU had built a 28-0 lead with 2;26 before the half. Topps ended up as the Racers' leading rusher with 22 yards on nine carries. He completed six of nine passes for 45 yards.
Salyer threw the ball 13 times and completed five for 27 yards.
The Racer defense spent far too much time on the field while the offense struggled. MSU's defense could not stop the Redbirds, giving up 172 yards and three touchdowns in the first quarter-and-a-half.
Illinois State (3-1) started the scoring with 2:05 left in the first quarter with a three-yard touchdown pass from Luke Drone to Kedric Meredith. The drive consumed 99 yards and more than seven minutes on the clock. The Redbirds added two touchdown runs from tailback Pierre Rembert to take a 21-0 lead with 5:27 before the half.
With 2:26 left in the half, Salyer and the Racers were pinned on their 6-yard line when Salyer was hit before he could pass. The ball dropped into the Racers' endzone, where ISU's Niall Campbell recovered for the Redbirds' fourth score of the half and a 28-0 lead.
"You've got to hand it to Illinois State," said Pannunzio. "They looked like a team that was ready, and they outplayed us in every part of the game. Their defensive line totally dominated us."
It was tough for the Racers to run the ball. MSU's tailback tandem of Chad Cook and Nick Turner, who own 26 career touchdowns and eight 100-yard rushing games between them, never had the freedom to run like they're used to. They were held to 22 combined yards on 22 carries, as the Racers only managed 63 yards on the ground.
The loss makes Murray State 2-6 against Gateway Conference teams over the last four seasons, and 1-2 against Illinois State.
The next item on the Racers' agenda is getting ready for their OVC opener at Tennessee Tech. Kickoff in Cookeville is at 1 p.m. Saturday.
"This is the worst loss we've had since I've been here," said MSU senior Bo Baxter. "We've just got to go back to the drawing board and put in some hard work and figure out where we are. We don't even know who we are right now."
