Murray State University Athletics
Murray State
Eastern Illinois
Players Mentioned
Racers Look For Back-To-Back Wins Saturday
10/12/2017 10:28:00 AM | Football
Date (Time): Oct. 14 (3 p.m.)
Opponent: Eastern Illinois
Site (Venue): Martin, Tenn. (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): 2-4, 1-1 OVC (Won 1)
EIU Record (Streak): 4-2, 3-0 OVC (Won 3)
All-Time Series vs. EIU (Streak): Eastern Illinois leads 17-15 (Won 1)
First Meeting: Won 38-13 (Nov. 15, 1946 in Murray, Ky.)
Last Meeting: Won 40-37 (Oct. 22, 2016 in Charleston, Ill.)
MSU Last Game: Won 13-10 at #25 UT Martin
EIU Last Game: Won 24-23 vs. Tennessee Tech
MSU Next Game: Oct. 28 vs. Eastern Kentucky
MSU Next Home Game: Oct. 28 vs. Eastern Kentucky
The Game
After upsetting then 25th-ranked UT Martin on the road, the Murray State football team will look to carry that momentum back home when they host Eastern Illinois Saturday. The game will also be the annual White Out game United Way of Murray Calloway County and Murray State University's Town & Gown program, where the fans will be asked to join the team and where white to the game. Kickoff form Roy Stewart Stadium in Murray is scheduled for 3 p.m., with the game scheduled to be broadcast on OVCDigitalNetwork.com.
Saturday's Weather
The warm weather just refuses to turn loose as the high for game day Saturday will be 83 degrees. Chances for rain will be small, at around 12 percent, while the winds will be pleasant at 6-8 mph out of the S.
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Last Time Out
In a game where neither team garnered over 300 yards of total offense, points were hard to come by in the contest. Despite both teams having chances in the first 30 minutes of the ball game, at halftime the only points on the board were a field goal for each team. In the third quarter, again each offense had its moments, but both defenses stepped up, leading to another scoreless quarter for both teams.
However, the fourth quarter was about as exciting as one could imagine with a wild series of events leading to the Murray State win. After Murray State's first drive of the stanza stalled at the 50, Khalid Hagens returned the Racers' punt 67 yards for touchdown, to put his team on top 10-3 with 11:19 to play. Facing a second-and-long situation with time slipping away, Bentley found Austin Thomas who went 48 yards down the field, only to fumble at the five-yard line. With the game on the line and the ball loose, MSU's DeQuan Dallas fell on the fumble for the touchdown to tie the game at 10, after a Vicente extra point that was made in the driving rain.
After James Sappington kicked the ball into the UT Martin end zone on the ensuing kickoff, the Skyhawks took over on their own 25-yard line with 4:34 to go in regulation. On the very first play of the drive, Lamont Crittendon forced and recovered a fumble by the Skyhawks' Marquez Grayson to give MSU a shot at the win with 4:27 on the clock. With just 31 yards separating MSU from the goal line, the Racers needed positive yardage and solid clock management in order to pick up the victory. After a 17-yard rush by Nolan Nichols put Murray State at the Skyhawk 17-yard line, a fumble by the Racers backed them up to the 24-yard line. Facing a third-and-19 with 2:10 to go, UT Martin was charged with a facemask penalty which gave MSU at first-and-10 at the Skyhawk 12-yard line.
After the next two plays pushed Murray State back to the 17-yard line, head coach Mitch Stewart took a timeout with six seconds left in order to give Vicente a chance at a 32-yarder. On the heels of the first miss of his career in the third quarter, a 41-yarder into the wind, and the rain still coming down, Vicente sent the ball through the uprights as time expired for the 13-10 win.
The Eastern Illinois Series
The Racers inched closer to tying the all-time series with Eastern Illinois last season with a 40-38 upset win over the then 15th-ranked Panthers to give MSU 15 wins to EIU'S 17. The Racers do hold a small advantage in Murray where they lead the series 9-7.
Scouting The Panthers
Eastern Illinois comes into Roy Stewart Stadium at 4-2 overall and leading the OVC at 3-0. The Panthers have found ways to win this season with all four of their victories coming by just a combined nine points including a narrow 24-23 win over Tennessee Tech last week. Despite owning a 4-2 record, EIU is currently being outscored by their opponents on the year, 26.2-17.8, and being out gained, 370.0-260.8. The EIU offense is fairly balanced this season, despite leaning just a skosh towards the pass. The Panthers currently average 147.7 yards per game in the air and 113.2 on the ground. Three different quarterbacks have seen significant minutes for EIU this season with Mitch Kimble, Scotty Gilkey and Bud Martin all taking snaps under center this year. Martin came in off the bench for the Panthers Saturday and was 10-for-14 for 204 yards and three touchdowns. Gilkey currently leads EIU in rushing at 49.4 yards per game, while alexander Hollins has been the leading receiver at 59.7 yards per game. Defensively, Nick Horne leads the way with 41 tackles while Mark WIlliams and David Johnson have team-highs in interceptions and tackles-for-loss, respectively, at 3 and 5.0
To The Victor, The Spoils
For the second time this season, Gabriel Vicente was named as the OVC Specialist of the Week. The junior was 1-for-1 on PATs in the game and 2-for-3 on field goals, including a 32-yard game-winner as time expired. In his first season of football, Vicente has been impressive by going 8-for-9 on field goal attempts with a long of 43 yards. In addition, the junior is still a perfect on PATs this season, converting on all 12 attempts.
On Lock
Saturday ended up being one Murray State's greatest defensive performances in recent memory by limiting the 25th-ranked team in the nation to just three offensive points. The offensive output by the Skyhawks was the lowest since MSU allowed Austin Peay to score three points in 2013.
Defense Rising
The 28.0 points per game currently allowed by the MSU defense through the first six games is the lowest since 2011. The 26.3 points per game in 2011 and the 28.0 ppg this season also mark the only two times in the last decade that a MSU team has allowed under 30 points in the first six games of the season.
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OK, What's Next?
The Racers will now take a week off before returning to action on October 28 for Homecoming 2018. Kickoff at Roy Stewart Stadium between the Racers and rival Eastern Kentucky is set for 3 p.m.
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