Southern Illinoise University Athletics
Football To Play I-A Eastern Michigan
09/23/2002 | 12:00:00 | Football
Sept. 23, 2002
Southern Illinois (2-2) will play at Eastern Michigan (1-3) Saturday at 6 p.m. ET. The Eagles are a I-A team whose losses this season have come to Michigan, Toledo and Maryland.
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Abdulqaadir Named Gateway Player-of-Week
Muhammad Abdulqaadir was named the Gateway Conference co-offensive player-of-the-week on Sunday. He shared the honor with Southwest Missouri State's Zach Dechant. Abdulqaadir, in his first career start, had 331 yards combined rushing and receiving in SIU's 76-21 victory against West Virginia Tech. His 264 yards rushing were the second-most in school history and the second-most all-time in Gateway history. He scored SIU's first five TDs and six total, while averaging 10.2 yards per carry. Abdulqaadir became the first Saluki offensive player in more than two years to win the player-of-the-week honor. The last SIU player to do it was Tom Koutsos, who won the award for his 168-yard rushing performance against Northern Iowa on Sept. 16, 2000.
Abdulqaadir Leads Nation
Abdulqaadir is the Division I-AA rushing leader, averaging 146.3 yards per game. He is also fourth in scoring with 16.67 points per game and 10th in all-purpose yardage with 168.67 yards per contest.
SIU Versus Division I-A
Southern Illinois will step out of conference and up in class when it travels to Ypsilanti, Mich. to play Mid-American Conference opponent Eastern Michigan, a Division I-A school. The last time Southern Illinois beat a Division I-A team was in 1983 when it defeated New Mexico State, 41-3. It was SIU's first year in I-AA football, and the team won the Division I-AA National Championship. Here is SIUs' history against I-A teams.
1983 N. Mex. St. W, 41-3
1984 Tulsa L, 23-10
1985 Illinois L, 28-25
1986 Kansas L, 35-23
1987 Kansas L, 16-15
1987 Fresno St. L, 35-0
1988 Kentucky L, 24-10
1989 N. Illinois L, 29-24
1990 Illinois L, 56-21
1993 N. Illinois L, 45-15
1993 Toledo L, 49-28
1994 Mississippi L, 59-3
2000 Kansas L, 42-0
2001 Baylor L, 56-12
Sambursky Yet to Throw Interception
Redshirt freshman Joel Sambursky (6-0, 185, Fr.) has yet to throw an interception in 2002. In four games, he has completed 22-of-40 passes for 468 yards and five touchdowns. His pass efficiency rating is 194.53. Sambursky's 256 passing yards against West Virginia Tech were the most by a Saluki since Sherard Poteete threw for 265 against Western Kentucky on Nov. 20, 1999.
Return Game Earns National Rankings
The Salukis have two players ranked nationally for their special teams performance. Justin George is sixth (20.20) and Quorey Payne is 10th (17.43) in punt returns. Payne is also seventh in kickoff returns (32.20). Southern Illinois is also fifth in the nation in net punting (41.3) although P Scott Everhart does not have enough attempts to rank individually.
Series Versus EMU
The two schools played annually from 1950-61 when SIU was a member of the Interstate Intercollegiate Athletic Conference. The series is split evenly at 6-6, with the Salukis owning a four-game winning streak. Year Score
1950* W 44-13
1951 L 7-47
1952* L 6-30
1953 L 0-39
1954* L 0-20
1955* L 2-7
1956* W 14-7
1957 L 7-21
1958* W 13-9
1959 W 41-14
1960* W 66-8
1961 W 20-14
Koutsos Breaks Wrist, Likely Out For Season
Payton Award finalist Tom Koutsos (5-11, 220, Sr.) broke his wrist on the second play of the game against Murray State on Sept. 14. He had surgery to insert a metal plate in his wrist and is likely out for the season. He is the school's career rushing leader with 3,747 yards and is third all-time in Gateway rushing, just 485 yards shy of the conference record. In addition to holding every major rushing record at Southern, his six touchdowns in SIU's first two games made him the school's career touchdowns leader.
Moreland Takes Charge of Secondary
S Alexis Moreland (6-1, 200, So.), a preseason All-Gateway pick, has lived up to his billing with a team-high 31 tackles in the first four games. He also leads the squad with four pass break-ups. His 13-tackle performance against Murray State was a career-high.
Everhart Nears Career FG Record
K Scott Everhart, who hit a career-long 47 yarder against Murray State, needs just two field goals to become the school's career record holder. SIU Field Goals in a Career 1. Ron Miller, 1983-86 32 1. Paul Molla, 1978-81 32 3. Scott Everhart, 1999-Present 31
Most Rushing Yards in Three Years
The team's 350 rushing yards against West Virginia Tech Saturday were the most by an SIU offense since Nov. 20, 1999, when the Saluki offense piled up 369 rushing yards against Western Kentucky. Southern Illinois has been extremely productive in the running game this season, averaging 286.8 yards per game and 6.3 yards per carry.
Dawg Bites
Matt Miller (6-4, 280, So.) and walk-on Zach Schumacher (6-2, 260, Fr.) started at the offensive guard positions for the second week in a row...With two starters injured in the secondary, S Paul Wright and CB Antoine Jackson made their first career start...RB Brad Brachear played some safety Saturday due to injuries... OT Matt Anderson filled in for the injured Brice Schafer at right tackle...Of the 69 players who have played for the Salukis this year, 38 did not play for SIU last year.
Biggest Margins of Victory in Modern History
The Salukis opened the season with a 78-0 win over Division II foe Kentucky Wesleyan. It was the biggest margin of victory since SIU Normal beat Shurtleff, 80-0, on Nov. 12, 1915. The win was also SIU's first shutout since blanking Murray State, 31-0, on Sept. 13, 1986. The second-biggest margin in modern history came last Saturday when SIU drubbed West Virginia Tech, 76-21.
Former Saluki in the NFL
A former Saluki from last year's team has earned a roster spot in the NFL after signing a free agent contract. LB Bart Scott, a First Team All-Gateway Conference pick last year, is a starter on every special teams unit for the Baltimore Ravens this season.
Salukis Cash in on Returns
SIU has five returns for touchdowns this season. The team has one kickoff, one punt, one interception and two fumble returns for TDs. SIU has five returns for touchdowns this season. The team has one kickoff, one punt, one interception and two fumble returns for TDs.
