Southern Illinoise University Athletics
Football Faces Road Test At SMS
10/21/2004 | 12:00:00 | Football
Oct. 21, 2004
By Scott Mees
www.SIUSalukis.com
CARBONDALE, Ill. - The Southern Illinois University football team remains atop both Division I-AA polls for the fifth consecutive week. The Salukis travel to Southwest Missouri State for a conference showdown with the Bears this weekend.
The game will be televised locally by WSIU-TV8 (Satellite coordinates are SBS6, K05).
SIU (6-1, 3-0) has not won at SMS in 18 years, and the Bears (5-2, 2-1) are undefeated at home this season. Southwest has won 14 of the last 17 games with SIU. SMS took down Western Illinois 36-31 at home on Oct. 2.
"It doesn't matter whether we play under the street lights, or here, or Southwest Missouri," said SIU head coach Jerry Kill. "I think it's more about how our football team prepares.
"I think the biggest thing is I'm concerned about our team continuing to improve like we have over the last two or three weeks."
While the Salukis have demolished most of their schedule, the Bears have won four of their five games by a total of 14 points.
"At this point in time, we keep getting better," Kill said. "That's what we've got to continue to do."
The SIU defense ranks second in the nation in fewest points allowed, and it has only surrendered eight touchdowns in seven games this year. The Gateway Conference honored safety Alexis Moreland with the Defensive Player of the Week for the second straight week. Moreland made 11 tackles against Western Kentucky and picked off his team-leading fourth pass in the game.
Moreland has made 335 tackles in his SIU career, which is eighth-best in school history. The All-American senior has eight career interceptions as well - good enough for seventh in the SIU record books.
A.J. Porter is 99-for-181 with seven interceptions at quarterback for Southwest. Porter (6-4, 225) has thrown for eight TD and 1,185 yards this season.
The Bears' Cody Pratt has rushed for 862 yards and 10 TD this season. The junior tailback (5-10, 215) averages 117 yards per contest in 2004.
Steven Rush and Kaya Farris lead SMS in receiving. Rush has 31 catches for 435 yards and five touchdowns. Farris has 26 receptions for 350 yards and a TD. The duo average 62 and 50 yards per catch respectively.
For SIU, Joel Sambursky's 171.28 passer rating ranks third in the nation. The junior has completed over 63 percent of his passes with 10 TD and only three interceptions. Sambursky needs just 22 rushing yards to eclipse the 1,000-yard mark for his career at SIU.
Tailbacks Brandon Jacobs and Arkee Whitlock have combined to score 17 TD for SIU. The pair has racked up nearly 1,000 yards on the ground combined. Terry Jackson has rushed for 293 yards in a limited role for SIU, and Craig Turner has added 235 yards on only 20 carries.
Saluki wide receiver Brent Little leads the team with 22 receptions and 416 receiving yards. Little has at least one catch in 20 straight games. Quorey Payne has 13 receptions for 380 yards and four TD.
SIU will attempt to remain undefeated in Gateway Conference play, a feat that Kill says would be extremely difficult to maintain for an entire season.
"I don't think, at the beginning of conference, that anybody that you would talk to thinks that anybody is going to go undefeated in conference," Kill said. "It's a great challenge for our football team, and we can't afford to slip up."
Cornerback Yemi Akisanya is questionable for the game on Saturday as well as backup safety Patrick Jordan. James Smith, a special teams standout, should be back in action after missing a couple of games.
Kill said that this game's outcome - like a lot of contests -- could come down to turnovers.
"Whether it's the World Series or basketball, the team that makes the least mistakes usually wins," Kill said.
Kill also indicated that his team's offensive line will likely be a major factor in the outcome at SMS.
"You win games up front," Kill said. "That's one of my pregame talks all the time."
On the other side, Randy Ball is in his sixth campaign as head coach of the Bears. Ball is the only man to be a coach at a Gateway Conference school for all 18 years of its existence. Ball was the head coach at Western Illinois University prior to joining Southwest Missouri State.
Even after a surprising domination of Western Kentucky a week ago, Kill knew this road game would be a difficult one.
"We won the game, but we couldn't celebrate long because we've got to go to Southwest Missouri," Kill said. "They will be ready to play."
The Salukis and Bears will meet at 1:30 p.m. Saturday at Plaster Field in Springfield, Mo. SMS usually draws around 10,000 fans per game.
