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South Dakota State University Athletics
Opponent Insight: Southern Illinois
10/2/2019 9:19:00 AM | Football
Southern Illinois has endured an up-and-down start to the 2019 season. The Salukis are 2-2 and coming off a bye week heading into their Missouri Valley Football Conference opener Saturday at South Dakota State.
In their last outing, Sept. 21 at Arkansas State, the Salukis failed to score on four red-zone possessions in falling 41-28.
Last season, head coach Nick Hill's squad finished with a record of 2-9 (1-7 in the Missouri Valley) with high-scoring wins over Murray State and Missouri State. In both wins, the Salukis accumulated 49 points against the opposition.
Although they already have tied their win total of last year, the Salukis were picked to finish ninth in the 10-team MVFC.
OFFENSE
Junior Kare Lyles and sophomore Stone Labonowitz — both transfers — have each started two games at quarterback or the Salukis, with the former starting the first two games and the latter starting the last two games. Both have proven to be dangerous, as Labonowitz threw four touchdowns in a Sept. 7 win at Football Bowl Subdivision opponent Massachusets, while Lyles passed for 288 yards and a pair of touchdowns at Arkansas State. Both quarterbacks are completing better than 60 percent of their pass attempts.
Senior running back D.J. Davis can also be a lot to handle. The Florida native rushed for over 100 yards in the season opener against Southeast Missouri State, all while scoring two touchdowns. Two games later, the senior back surpassed the 100-yard rushing mark, once again, against UT Martin. Davis is currently on the mend, as he suffered a dislocated elbow in the previous game.
Davis, who has gained 362 yards on the ground through four games, is complemented in the rushing attack by Javon Williams Jr. A redshirt freshman, Williams has gained 316 yards while averaging 6.7 yards per carry.
The Salukis spread the ball around to a variety of receivers, including Landon Lenoir, who leads the squad with 13 receptions for 146 yards. Sophomore wide receiver Avante Cox has had the best receiving game so far when he caught seven passes for 142 yards against Arkansas State to earn Missouri Valley Football Conference Newcomer of the Week honors. Cox is the team leader with 210 receiving yards on 12 catches, while Davis has added 12 catches for 108 yards and a touchdown out of the backfield.
Senior left tackle Ernest Dye Jr. was named Missouri Valley Football Conference Offensive Lineman of the Week on Sept. 23. Though the Salukis lost their last game to FBS school Arkansas State, Dye Jr. was instrumental in helping his team generate 526 yards of total offense.
DEFENSE
Though the Salukis have given up over 40 points in two of their four games this season, the Salukis feature some of the MVFC's top returning defensive players. They are led by senior safety Jeremy Chinn, who was a member of the 2018 All-MVFC First Team. Chinn leads the team this season with two interceptions and ranks third with 19 tackles.
Junior safety Qua Brown and sophomore linebacker Makel Calhoun are two forces that the Jacks know all too well. In last season's matchup, Calhoun racked up a season-best seven stops against the Jackrabbits, while Brown accumulated 11 tackles in the same game. Brown boasts a team-high 43 tackles this season.
Senior linebacker Cody Crider is second on the team with 29 tackles, with defensive end Anthony Knighton and outside linebacker Luke Giegling sharing the team lead with three sacks.
In both of the Salukis wins this season, the defense kept their opponents under 20 points.
THE SERIES
Southern Illinois team has not beaten the Jackrabbits during Hill's tenure, with the closest opportunity coming back in 2016, when the Salukis rallied back from a 17-point deficit to pull to within three on two occasions. Ultimately, the Jackrabbits, prevailed with the score line 45-39.
In the only other matchup at Dana J. Dykhouse Stadium, the Jackrabbits recorded a 49-14 victory in 2017, then won last year's game in Carbondale, Illinois, 57-38.
SDSU leads the all-time series, 6-3.
-GoJacks.com-
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