Murray State University Athletics
Murray State
Missouri State (Senior Night)
Players Mentioned
Racers Welcome Bears For Home Opener
9/5/2016 2:53:00 PM | Football
Date (Time): Sept. 10 (6 p.m.)
Opponent: Missouri State
Site (Venue): Murray, Ky. (Roy Stewart Stadium)
Audio: Froggy 103.7 FM (PxP: Neal Bradley; Color: Josh McKeel)
Web Stream: OVCDigitalNetwork.com
Live Stats: GoRacers.com
Twitter In Game: @RacersFootball, @PGriffithMSU
MSU Record (Streak): 0-1 (Lost 1)
MOST Record (Streak): 1-0 (Won 1)
All-Time Series vs. MOST (Streak): Murray State leads 8-1 (Won 3)
Last Meeting: Won 41-38 (September 14, 2013 in Murray, Ky.)
MSU Last Game: Lost 3-52 at Illinois
MOST Last Game: Won 57-0 vs. Southwestern (KS)
MSU Next Game: Sept. 17 at Southern Illinois
MSU Next Home Game: Sept. 24 vs. Southeast Missouri (Family Weekend)
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The Game
After a two-year absence, Missouri State returns to the Murray State football schedule and will serve as the opponent for this year's home opener. Kickoff at Roy Stewart Stadium in Murray is scheduled for 6 p.m.
Saturday's Weather
The high on Saturday in Murray will get up to 84° F, with the low dropping to 60° F at night. Evening precipitation chances will be at about 19-precent, while the winds will come out of the ENE at 5 m.p.h.
Last Time Out
The Murray State football team began its 2016 season with a 52-3 loss to Illinois Saturday afternoon at Memorial Stadium in Champaign. Senior quarterback KD Humphries threw two interceptions in the first two MSU possessions, both of which Illinois converted into touchdowns, to put the Racers in an early 14-0 hole. The Illini then added three more touchdowns, to go up 35-0, before Murray State finally got on the board late in the second half. Connor Mitchell cut the lead to 35-3 with a 34-yard field goal, but that would be as close as MSU would get in the game.
The Racers were held to just 165 yards of total offense in the game. It was the first time MSU has been held under 200 yards since the 2010 season opener at Kent State when it amassed just 193. It was also the lowest overall offensive output for Murray State since NC State held the Racers to only 36 yards in 2009.
Mitchell's other attempt in the game, a 50-yarder, had the distance, but went just right of the goal posts. Punting wise, Landon Stratton averaged 42.4 yards on seven punts with two of 50-yards or more, one touchback and one that landed inside the 20-yard line.
Jonathan Jackson had Murray State's only two sacks of the game for a total loss of 11 yards. He finished the game with five total tackles. Lamont Crittendon led Murray State with a career-high eight tackles, while Quincy Williams followed with seven and two quarterback hurries. Dylan Boone also had seven tackles in the game, including a game-high five solo tackles.
The Missouri State Series
Saturday will be the 10th meeting all-time between Murray State and Missouri State with the Racers leading the all-time series, 8-1. The only loss in series for Murray State came in 2009, when the Bears won, 35-10, in Springfield. This will be the sixth meeting between the two teams in Murray, where the Racers lead, 5-0. The most memorable meeting between the two teams came in 2010, when MSU walked away a 72-59 winner. The Racer ended the game with 816 yards of total offense including 570 yards passing by Casey Brockman, 213 yards receiving by Marcus Harris and 212 yards rushing by Mike Harris.
Scouting The Bears
The Bears are off to 1-0 start after a 57-0 win over NAIA-member Southwestern (KS) Thursday night in Springfield. The shutout was the first for head coach Dave Steckel, who is in his second season at the helm of the Bears. Missouri State has now matched its win total from last season, in which it went 1-10.
After appearing in just seven games last season, Breck Ruddick got the start in the season opener and made it count, going 13-for-15 for 129 yards and one touchdown. Despite Ruddick's success in the air, the Bears, as they did last season, seemed to concentrate more on their ground game. Nick Masoner led seven different rushers for Missouri State that accounted for 321 total combined yards with 132 yards of his own. Jason Randall followed for Missouri State with 67 yards and a game-high two touchdowns.
Colby Isbell was a one-man defensive band for Missouri State on Thursday leading the team with seven tackles, 5.5 of which were for a loss of 27 yards and 2.5 sacks for a total loss of 19 yards. The nation's leading combined kick returner a year ago, Deion Holliman, picked up where he left off last season by returning the opening kickoff 91-yards for a touchdown. He finished the night with a 173 all-purpose yards including another touchdown as a receiver.
Welcome Home
Saturday will be the 92nd home opener for Murray State and they are currently 62-25-4 all-time in those game. After defeating Kentucky Wesleyan, 52-12, in last year's debut at Stewart Stadium, the Racers have now won three consecutive home openers.
Seniors Honored
Prior to Saturday's game nine seniors will be honored with their loved ones as part of the annual senior night. This year's seniors are Jesse Blackburn, Zuri Elrington, Malik Golson, KD Humphries, Jonathan Jackson, Tony Mays, Connor Mitchell, Toby Omli and Mitch Stults.
Chasing History
Senior QB KD Humphries has a chance to take over as all-time leader in all four major passing categories (attempts, completions, yards and touchdowns) this season, all four of which are currently owned by current MSU WR coach, Casey Brockman. Below is a chart showing where Humphries currently is and what he needs for the record.
            Career Cur.                   Needed
Cat.      #       Rank.  Record   Per Gm.
Yds    7,505       4       9,990       248.5
Att.    1,047       4       1,405        35.8        Â
Comp. 675         2         938         26.3
TDÂ Â Â Â Â Â Â Â 50Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â T-3Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â 71Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â 2.1
Stewart vs. Steckel
While the two have never met as head coaches, they did meet as coordinators in 2013 when Murray State traveled to Missouri. Stewart's offense got the best of Steckel's defense for one quarter, when the Racers led 14-3 after the first. However, the Tigers would then shutout the Racers for the rest of the game on the way to a 58-14 win.
Clear The Track
One of the greatest traditions in college football returns this season, as Racer 1 will once again make its way around the track after every Murray State touchdown. This year the horse, whose real name is Lobo, will be mounted by Kelsey Hathaway, a senior equine science major from Bowling Green, Kentucky.
There's Gold In That There End Zone
Back for its third season, is the annual Gold Rush. The Gold Rush is a new tradition in which all freshman are invited to run from one end of the field to the other prior to the game, decked in exclusive gold t-shirts and led by the university president, Dr. Bob Davies. The freshman are then invited to stay in the end zone and enjoy the game from field level.
Up Next
Murray State will make the short trip to Carbondale next week for the first meeting with SIU in 13 seasons. The game is a renewal of one of MSU's oldest non-conference series, with the first game between the two teams taking place in 1927. Kickoff from Saluki Stadium is scheduled for 6 p.m.
