The Salukis are headed to familiar territory — the playoffs.
In a game that secured the Salukis a share of the conference title, No. 3 SIU dominated No. 9 South Dakota State en route to a 34-15 victory Saturday at Coughlin-Alumni Stadium.
With their eighth straight victory, the Salukis (8-1, 7-0 Missouri Valley Football Conference) guaranteed themselves a spot in the Football Championship Subdivision playoffs, their seventh straight appearance. The win also clinched at least a share of the MVFC title. It was also their 13th straight conference win, tying the MVFC record.
A win next Saturday against Missouri State —the last regular-season game at McAndrew Stadium — would make SIU the first team to go a perfect 8-0 in conference.
Head coach Dale Lennon said he was slightly surprised about Saturday’s results.
“It really wasn’t what we expected,” Lennon said. “We were prepared for one of those down-to-the-wire-type games, and I’ve really got to give credit to our coaching staff. They did a great job of keeping the players focused during the course of this week, and installing the game plan offensively, defensively.”
South Dakota State (7-2, 6-1 MVFC) entered Saturday’s game as one of the most consistent teams in the entire FCS. The Jackrabbits’ defense allowed a FCS-best 11.3 points per game, while running back Kyle Minnett was sixth in the FCS with 110 rushing yards per game.
But the Saluki defense rattled the Jackrabbits early and often.
SIU recorded six sacks, five in the first half, against a South Dakota State offense that had only given up nine sacks on the season entering the game. The Jackrabbits could only score one field goal on their first 10 possessions. And the offense had negative yardage on the ground until the fourth quarter — long after the Salukis’ first-string defense was resting on the sidelines.
The Jackrabbits also got off to an uncharacteristic start.
South Dakota State safety Anthony Wise dropped an interception from quarterback Paul McIntosh on SIU’s first possession, leading to an eventual SIU field goal.
On the Salukis’ next possession, receiver Joe Allaria took a lateral around the right side for a 21-yard touchdown to cap off a 70-yard drive, giving the Salukis a 10-0 lead within the first 10 minutes of the game.
McIntosh and running back Deji Karim used their feet to make sure the early lead held.
The duo combined for 203 of the Salukis’ 280 total rushing yards on the day — the most the Jackrabbits had allowed the entire season. Karim’s 127 yards on 21 carries was the first time South Dakota State had allowed a 100-yard rusher the entire season.
With the loss, Jackrabbit receiver Glen Fox, who had a career-high 12 catches for 101 yards, said he knows his team has no guarantee for a playoff berth anymore.
“We know we’ve got to win to make the playoffs,” Fox said. “There’s no guarantee for us anymore. We’ve got to fight to get in.”
SIU linebacker Brandin Jordan said a guaranteed playoff berth and a share of the conference title is not enough for the team.
“Last year, we had to share the title with Northern Iowa, and I didn’t like that at all,” Jordan said. “I’ve been telling the players for the last two weeks, that it’s my senior year, and I don’t want to share anything with anybody. We want to be a greedy team and try to win it all.”
