Southern Illinoise University Athletics
Football Set To Host Youngstown State Saturday
11/05/2003 | 12:00:00 | Football
Nov. 5, 2003
By Seth Whitehead
www.SIUSalukis.com
CARBONDALE -
Two regular-season games remaining.
Two goals in sight.
The Southern Illinois University football team will be playing for its first-ever Gateway Conference championship Nov. 15 at Northern Iowa no matter what happens this weekend.
But first things first.
A win Saturday at McAndrew Stadium against Youngstown State would move the No. 3 Salukis to 10-0. No team in Gateway Conference history has reached that mark and been denied a trip to the Division I-AA playoffs.
"We haven't even talked about Northern Iowa," SIU head coach Jerry Kill said. "To be honest with you, that game won't mean near as much as this one does. The most important thing is to get in the big dance. We want to secure a spot in those national playoffs and we can do that on Saturday."
But standing in the way of SIU sewing up its first playoff trip since 1983 is a proud team that knows a lot about getting to the playoffs. The Penguins (5-5, 2-3 Gateway) have won four national titles and haven't had a losing season since 1995.
They too will have plenty to play for on Saturday at 6 p.m., as a win would ensure that the latter streak continues.
"I'm expecting the same thing out of Youngstown as I've always talked about," Kill said. "Since the day I walked into this program I said that the model program is Youngstown State. They've won I don't know how many national championships. I don't think they've had a losing season in a million years. And I don't think they're planning on having one this year."
It would be easy for the Salukis to have a letdown after last weekend's miracle win over Western Kentucky. But this team's one-game-at-a-time focus remains intact.
"Our motto all year is that the most important game is always the next one," junior safety Alexis Moreland said. "We won't look past Youngstown State. You can't look past a team like that. They're a team of tradition. They always field a good team. They'll be tough competition, and this late in the season there's always upsets. So we want to be able to practice hard this week and prepare the same way we do every week and come out and perform like we've done."
As well as YSU has played in recent years, there is no denying the Penguins are struggling of late.
Youngstown was picked to finish third in the Gateway preseason poll and was ranked in the top 25 early in the year. But the Penguins have dropped three of their last four, including a 47-9 drubbing to UNI last week.
The Penguins are dead-last in the GFC in total defense (393 ypg) and rushing defense (207 ypg). That's good news for SIU's backfield, which was contained for the first time all year last Saturday at WKU.
The Penguins have also given up more than 600 yards of total offense to their last two opponents, bad news heading into a game against the league leader in both of those categories. Compounding those factors is the fact that injuries have started taking their toll on the Penguins, especially on their defensive line.
Offensively, the Penguins are underwhelming, but efficient. They are in the bottom half of the conference in passing, rushing and scoring, but are leading the league in red zone scoring.
Josh Cayson is the team's top rusher (61.1 ypg), but much like the Salukis, YSU will throw two or three backs at teams. Mike Burns will also get plenty of carries.
Aaron Marshall is YSU's primary play-caller, as he has thrown for 979 yards and 12 touchdowns on 49 percent passing, including just six picks. Backup QB Matt Rycraft is the Penguin's third-leading rusher with 335 yards, including 152 against Western Illinois earlier in the season.
Kyle Smith is YSU's top receiver, averaging 46 yards per game, including 142 last week against UNI.
In addition to playing for another winning season, the Penguins 15 seniors will have another motivating factor.
The Penguins were cruising along to what appeared to be their first Gateway championship in 2000, needing a win over SIU to clinch a share of the Gateway title.
The Penguins jumped out to a 20-0 halftime lead, but completely collapsed in the second half and lost a 21-20 decisions to the Salukis. The Penguins finished 4-2 in second place.
A win over SIU exactly four years later could return the favor to the Salukis.
"The last couple weeks they've really struggled and have had some injuries and things that have hurt them," Kill said. "But I can guarantee you - this is a pivotal game for them and their program. I know they'll come in, just like we got Western Kentucky's best we'll get Youngstown's best on Saturday."
"I think our kids know how important this game is at home. It's certainly a huge game for us. We keep saying every game's a huge one, but this one gets us to 10-0 and really puts us in a great position for a lot of reasons."
The Salukis will be playing without outside safety Jamarquis Jordan, who fractured a fibula last weekend. The good news - he will likely be back for the playoffs and the Salukis have depth and experience at that position.
"Right now he's probably playing as good as any other defensive player we have on our football team," Kill said of Jordan. "It's definitely a loss, but that's part of football and we've got to step up with the next guy. And we've got a couple guys there. And I know they'll play well. They're prepared."
The Salukis have been relatively injury-free all year, as Jordan and offensive lineman Matt Miller have been the only two Salukis to go down with significant long-term injuries. Fortunately, the Dawgs have had players capable of stepping in. Cortez McBerry -- a starting safety who was fifth on the team in tackles last year -- will likely replace Jordan.
"Coach Kill preached that all year," Moreland said. "He said that the way this team will be a championship team and compete at this level is with depth. You have to have somebody ready to step in."
"We've been fortunate," Kill said. "It's probably why we're 9-0, because we haven't had many injuries. I told our players the other day that our No. 2s are probably more important than our No. 1s."
