Racers Rally Past EKU For Third Straight Win

Saturday, November 5

Richmond, Ky.

12 p.m.

Murray State

4-5 , 4-2

Eastern Kentucky

2-7 , 1-5

1st

2nd

3rd

4th

Murray State

Eastern Kentucky

11/5/2016 7:33:00 PM | Football

Box Score BOX SCORE (PDF)SEASON STATS (PDF)

Just The Facts
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 Turning Point
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.

About The Colonels
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.

Gandy Goes After Harvey
Jordon Gandy put up 218 yards on six catches, two of which went for touchdowns, Saturday. 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.

Doing A Lot With A Little
Mareio McGraw totaled just 28 yards Saturday, but he made those yards count as he scored two touchdowns. Demetric Johnson led the MSU rushing attack on the day with 41 yards.

Closing In On Brockman
KD Humphries completed 21 of 33 passes Saturday for 331 total yards and three touchdowns to help the Racers to their third straight win. 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.

Turnovers Win Games
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. Quinn also had MSU's lone interception, a key play late in the fourth quarter that helped secure the victory for Murray State.

Defensive Season-Highs

Zachary Wade tallied 17 tackles for Murray State Saturday, a season-high for a Racer defensive player. Troy-Wayne Quinn added 3.0 tackles-for-loss, for a total of 18 yards, in the game, which ties the MSU season-high for that category.

A Good Day To Break Up
The MSU defense tallied 14 total pass breakups in the win Saturday, the most since the Racers totaled 16 against Samford in 2004. Ten different players were credited with a breakup in the game, with no player accumulating more than two.

About The Win
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.

Up Next
The Racers will face their toughest test of the season when second-ranked Jacksonville State comes to Roy Stewart Stadium for MSU's home season finale. Kickoff is scheduled for 1 p.m.