Southern Illinois University
4-3 , 2-0
Northern Iowa
3-3 , 0-2
Football Pummels No.12 Northern Iowa, 42-13
10/12/2002 | 12:00:00 | Football
Oct. 12, 2002
CARBONDALE, Ill. - For the second straight week, Southern Illinois upset a ranked opponent as it dropped #12 Northern Iowa, 43-13, Saturday to take sole possession of first place in the Gateway Conference.
The nation's leading rusher, Muhammad Abdulqaadir, had another huge day for the Salukis. He rushed for 209 yards and four touchdowns. He also added a touchdown pass on a halfback option toss to Courtney Abbott.
The Salukis (4-3, 2-0) raced to a 21-0 lead early in the second quarter. Their first score came on a 67-yard fake punt, in which fullback Brandon Robinson took a direct snap and sprinted up the middle untouched for a score, giving SIU a 7-0 lead.
On its next possession, Abdulqaadir drifted right and threw a 14-yard touchdown pass to a wide open Abbott, putting the Salukis ahead 14-0 with 12:29 to go in the second quarter.
The Salukis extended their lead to 21-0 on a 23-yard run by Abdulqaadir with 9:47 left before halftime.
The Panthers (3-3, 0-2) scored midway through the second quarter on a 7-yard touchdown pass from Tom Petrie to Ben Sanderson to cut the deficit to 21-6 at halftime.
However, SIU scored two quick touchdowns in the third quarter to put the game out of reach. The first TD came on a 57-yard run by Abdulqaadir, in which he broke several tackles before outrunning the rest of the defense. Minutes later, Abdulqaadir scored from two yards out, capping a 76-yard, 5-play drive that featured a 52-yard run by Robinson.
Robinson finished the game with 122 yards on five carries, as SIU held a 373-103 advantage over UNI on the ground.
The Saluki win, coupled with a loss by Illinois State, put the Salukis in sole possession of first place in the conference.
Postgame Quotes
Brandon Walker -We're (the team) talking 9-3. We're a team, no question, defense and offense. We played for four quarters together and won.
Alexis Moreland -We, as a defense, played harder, were more aggressive, and had less mistakes. We did what we had to do to win.
Cortez McBerry -Our defense started out rough this season, but we're battling back now. We're doing our part now.
Mo Abdulqaadir -We just played a great team. They were the most physical this year, but we came out on top.
-The defense was phenomonal, hands down.
Brandon Robinson -We played as a complete team today. We've been missing the defense, but they stepped up and helped us win this game.
Joel Sambursky -I'm so excited about the defense tonight. They were just flying around, creating havoc and making opportunities for the offense.
-We love winning and expect to continue winning. Now the fans will expect us to keep winning.
-Our offense is starting to click. We're just having fun now.
-Mo's trick play pass looked kind of ridiculous in practice, but he made it look good when it mattered.
Coach Jerry Kill -This was a good victory for us. I measure wins by how we improve; the defense improved greatly. The defense kept us in this game. You win games with defense. The defense was the most exciting thing for me tonight.
-I was a little surprised the trick plays worked even though they were on TV news the other night.
-(concerning the fake punt run by Brandon Robinson) Brandon Robinson called that play on the field. He saw the breakdown on their (UNI) side of the ball, so he made something happen.
-They threw the ball around a lot and I was nervous about that, but our defense did well.
-I was disappointed with the penalties tonight, but we'll fix that. We've had a ton of adversity on this team with injuries and other things, but we're winning, that's what matters right now.
Team Stats
UNI 0, SIU 7
SIU - B. Robinson 67 yd run (Scott Everhart kick), 7 plays, 82 yards, TOP 2:28
UNI 0, SIU 14
SIU - Courtney Abbott 14 yd pass from Mo Abdulqaadir (Scott Everhart kick) 11 plays, 76 yards, TOP 3:55
UNI 0, SIU 21
SIU - Mo Abdulqaadir 23 yd run (Scott Everhart kick), 3 plays, 30 yards, TOP 1:31
UNI 6, SIU 21
UNI - Ben Sanderson 7 yd pass from Tom Petrie (M. Hoanbrecker kickfailed) 3 plays, 74 yards, TOP 0:49
UNI 6, SIU 28
SIU - Mo Abdulqaadir 57 yd run (Scott Everhart kick), 2 plays, 80 yards, TOP 0:20
UNI 6, SIU 35
SIU - Mo Abdulqaadir 2 yd run (Scott Everhart kick), 5 plays, 76 yards, TOP 1:55
UNI 6, SIU 42
SIU - Mo Abdulqaadir 1 yd run (Scott Everhart kick), 11 plays, 92 yards, TOP 7:24
UNI 13, SIU 42
UNI - Ben Sanderson 9 yd pass from Tom Petrie (M. Hoanbrecker kick) 13 plays, 80 yards, TOP 4:45