Murray State University Athletics
Murray State
Southeastern Louisiana
Racers Host Lions On MSU Family Weekend
9/4/2025 4:24:00 PM | Football
The Racers take on Southeastern Louisiana Saturday in the 53rd season of football at Roy Stewart Stadium East Tennessee for the first time since 1978
The 53rd season of Murray State Football at Roy Stewart Stadium gets underway Saturday when the Racers host the Southeastern Louisiana Lions in a 6 p.m. kick off in Murray, Kentucky.
The game between the Racers and Lions begins is a big part of Murray State Family Weekend and a special Salute to Service will also take place on game day.
After opening losses, MSU and SELA are each looking for their first wins of the season. Murray State dropped a 45-17 loss at East Tennessee State and Southeastern lost 24-0 at Louisiana Tech.
The all-time series shows the Lions have won the only two meetings with a win in Murray in 1979 and a win in Hammond, La., in 2023.
GAME 1
SOUTHEASTERN LOUISIANA AT MURRAY STATE
Venue: Roy Stewart Stadium (16,800)
Site: Murray, Ky.
Game Time: 6 P.M. CT
Murray State Racers: 0-1
Head Coach: Jody Wright (Alma Mater: Jacksonville State, 2005)
Murray State Record: 1-12 (2nd season) MVFC Record: 0-0
Career Record: Same
Record vs SELA: First Meeting
Southeastern Louisiana Lions 0-1
Head Coach: Frank Scelfo (Alma Mater: ULM, 1981)
SELA Record: 44-37 (8th season) SoConRecord: 0-0
Career Record: Same
Record vs Murray State: 1-0
Series: 0-2 Home: 0-1 Away: 0-1
Last Meeting: 1979, Racers lost at home 19-11
Racer Radio: WFGE Froggy 103.7FM
Online: Froggy103.com, GoRacers.com
Television: ESPN+
Live Stats: StatBroadcast.com, GoRacers.com
MSU Next: at Georgia State, Sept. 13
SELA Next: Home vs Mississippi Valley, Sept. 13
Game Story Lines
- The 2025 season is made up of 12 games in Murray State's 101st season in program history.
- Head Coach Jody Wright has a roster of 109 players which are made up of over 80 newcomers, including 54 freshmen and only two starters from the 2024 season.
- The Racers had four returners on the Missouri Valley Football Conference Watch List.
- The MSU quartet includes, (QB) Jim Ogle, (WR) JK Carter, (RB) Jawaun Northington, (P) Tom O'Hara.
- Northington begins his senior season with the Racers having played in 27 games at running back with 1,195 yards rushing on 272 carries, with a 4.4 yards per carry and he has scored nine touchdowns.
- Northington is MSU's leading returning back with 518 yards rushing in 2024 on 111 carries and an average of 4.7 yards per carry.
- The Racers are looking for their 11th 1000-Yard rusher in 101 seasons and the first since Mike Harris ran for 1,018 yards in the 2011 season.
- Ogle enters the 2025 season as the Racers starter at quarterback.
- In season opener at ETSU Ogle completed 22-of-35 attempts for 226 yards and a touchdown.
- Carter played in 12 games in 2024, with 42 receptions for 560 yards and one TD. He caught two passes for 32 yards in the season opener of 2025
O'Hara was a freshman punter in 2024 and was second in the MVFC with a average of 44.9 yard per punt. - MSU is looking for their first winning season since 2021 when they were 6-5 and MSU seeks its first winning season in conference play since they were 5-2 in 2020 in the Ohio Valley.
- Entering the 2025 season, the Racers want to halt a long winning drought since their last win (Sept. 14, 2024) at home against Mississippi Valley.
- Safety Dylan Rowsey led the defense against ETSU, racking up 18 tackles, the most by a MSU player since 2019
- Darius Cannon led the offense with 11 receptions for 86 yards, his 11 catches are most since the spring 2021 season
- In MVFC play, the Racers' last win was their first league game at home (Sept. 30, 2023) 20-13 over Indiana State.
- The 2025 home season marks the 53rd season for the Racers at Stewart Stadium.
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