McIntosh master of the mac

Paul McIntosh made the most of what could possibly be a preview of the SIU offense for the rest of the season.
The redshirt freshman transfer from Army orchestrated five scoring drives in place of the injured Chris Dieker, as the No. 3 Salukis defeated the Youngstown State Penguins 27-8 Saturday at McAndrew Stadium.
McIntosh finished the game 10-of-14 passing for 133 yards and led the team with 81 yards on 12 carries.
He said his coaches and teammates put him in the best position to succeed Saturday.
“Coaches do a great job preparing us each week, everybody is always ready to get into the game,” McIntosh said. “And everybody on this team helped out with their efforts. The offensive and defensive lines, the running backs and receivers — everybody did their part.”
McIntosh’s first offensive drive could not have been easier for him. SIU (6-1, 5-0 Missouri Valley Football Conference) started the drive on the YSU two-yard line. Several handoffs later, McIntosh had engineered his first touchdown drive.
“Being able to start so close to the end zone on that drive, it definitely took a lot of the pressure off of me,” McIntosh said.
Wide receiver Joe Allaria gave McIntosh plenty of breathing room on the next possession, as he turned a five-yard catch into an 86-yard touchdown play to give the Salukis a 14-0 lead.
SIU remains tied atop the MVFC with No. 11 South Dakota State University, as the Jackrabbits defeated the Northern Iowa Panthers 24-14 on Saturday. SIU and SDSU face off in two weeks.
But do not expect Dieker to be back in action in Brookings, S.D.
The junior apparently was injured after he was sacked by safety Andre Elliott late in the first quarter. Dieker remained in the game and completed a screen pass to running back Deji Karim, but left after the play.
Dieker returned to the SIU sideline in the second quarter with his left arm in a sling. Linebacker Brandin Jordan said he heard some teammates talking about Dieker’s collarbone, and the prognosis on the sideline was not optimistic.
“I heard them say ‘collarbone,’ and that’s five, six weeks,” Jordan said. “He said he should be able to come back if we make it deep into the playoffs. I just told him to do what he could to make sure he could come back and play for us.”
Head coach Dale Lennon declined to comment on the Dieker’s injury, saying he would not speculate on it.
“I’m not going to make any comments on that until I know for sure. I’m not the guy that can make that call,” Lennon said.
Lennon said Dieker may require X-rays, and those would not be done until Monday. He said that would give the team a better idea of the extent of Dieker’s injury.
For the near future, it looks like McIntosh will be the new face under center. He said he would not change anything in his approach as he prepares to become the leader of the offense.
“I’ll just keep going week by week and preparing like I always do,” McIntosh said. “Everybody always prepares like they’re going to go in any time. That’s what we’re just going to have to do the rest of the season.”

Ryan Voyles can be reached at 536-3311 ext. 256.