Salukis pound Penguins

Even with injuries and a stagnant offense, SIU found a way to take care of business.

The No. 3 Salukis (6-1, 5-0 Missouri Valley Football Conference) continued their dominance over the conference Saturday at McAndrew Stadium with a 27-8 victory over the Youngstown State Penguins. It was SIU’s 11th straight victory over conference opponents.

The win was bittersweet though, as quarterback Chris Dieker left the game late in the first quarter after getting sacked and reappeared later on the sideline with a sling on his left arm.

There is no timetable for his return.

Head coach Dale Lennon said the team is always prepared for the worst.

 “As a coaching staff, you’re always preparing for worst case scenarios and that’s just the nature of this game,” Lennon said. “It creates opportunities for other players though, and when you have one of your top players go down, it takes the wind out of you. But you can’t really feel sorry for yourself, you have to move on.”

Backup quarterback Paul McIntosh, with a little help from his defense and receivers, made it look easy for SIU.

The Penguins (4-3, 2-2 MVFC) looked as though they were going to take the early lead, as they drove down to the SIU 25-yard line on their first possession. But when the Salukis forced the Penguins into a fourth and one, the Penguins went for it and they ended up inches short of converting.

“It was big for us. When a team tries going for it on fourth and short that early in the game, it either means ‘We desperately need the first down,’ or they basically don’t respect your defense,” linebacker Brandin Jordan said. “So I was just looking at everybody and saying, ‘Nobody is going to go for it in our house and convert it.’”

The defense later set up the Salukis for the first score of the game after Fred Wright blocked Ben Nowicki’s punt deep in Penguin territory. Rashad Graham recovered the ball on the YSU two-yard line.

McIntosh, a redshirt freshman who transferred from Army last October, got the Salukis’ offense started soon after the block, handing the ball off to fullback John Goode for the first touchdown early in the second quarter.

McIntosh, with a little help from wide receiver Joe Allaria, made the most of the next SIU possession.

McIntosh hit Allaria on a five-yard route for his first completion of the game, but the junior blew by his defender and raced down the sideline for an 86-yard touchdown reception. The 86-yards was the longest passing play in SIU history.

McIntosh said the touchdown pass was huge for him.

“That was huge for my first pass. It’s a five yards pass, and Allaria takes it however far to the end zone. It was just great for this team,” McIntosh said. “Everybody on this team just took it up a level once Dieker went down, and that’s what is great about this team.”

McIntosh proved to be most of the Salukis’ offense Saturday, with 133 passing yards and a team-high 81 rushing yards.

Dieker was not the lone injured Saluki to almost give the 10,129 fans in McAndrew a collective heart attack.

Running back Deji Karim, who was held to 67 yards rushing, limped off the field early in the fourth quarter favoring his left ankle. The nation’s leading rusher, who became the third fastest Saluki to rush for 1,000 yards in a season earlier in the game, did not return to the game.

Lennon said Karim’s removal from the game was a precautionary move, and he should be able to play next week at Indiana State.

McIntosh said he knows he will be the quarterback for the time being, and he already has a plan for success.

“Now, I’ve just got to step up and do what (Dieker) would do in these situations,” McIntosh said.

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