SIU runs away from Racers, 50-17

Saturday, September 17

Carbondale, Ill.

6:00 PM

Southern Illinois University

2-1

Murray St.

0-3

Team	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	Final F
Murray State	10	0	0	7	17
Southern Illinois	24	14	6	6	50

09/17/2016 | 10:20:00 | Football

Box Score Photo Gallery

By: By John Lock, SIUSalukis.com

PHOTO GALLERY

CARBONDALE, Ill. – Southern Illinois true freshman D.J. Davis took Murray State's opening kickoff 98 yards for a touchdown, and the Salukis (2-1) kept rolling en route to a 50-17 win over the Racers (0-3).

"We've been practicing that all week," Davis said of his kickoff return. "I just said to myself, 'If they kick it to us, we need to take it to the house.'"

Three plays later, Khari Waithe-Alexander intercepted a dump-off pass in the red zone and set up a Saluki field goal. The defense went right back on the field and forced a three-and-out. Quarterback Josh Straughan led an 11-play, 94-yard touchdown drive, capped by a touchdown pass to Davis. The Salukis led 17-0 before the first quarter was half over, and 11,150 fans at Saluki Stadium created a raucous atmosphere.

"We want to give our fans something to cheer for and be excited about," head coach Nick Hill said. "The first two games have been awesome environments, just to come into Saluki Stadium and see the whole thing filled up. Our guys feed off it, and I think our coaches do, too. I just want to say thank you to Southern Illinois, all the students and everyone involved."

Both sides of the ball dominated for SIU throughout the game. At halftime, Southern's defense had allowed zero rushing yards. Meanwhile, the Salukis piled up 356 yards of offense on their way to a 38-10 lead at the break.

Straughan threw a 29-yard touchdown to Billy Reed in the third quarter to make SIU's lead 44-10, and both teams spent the rest of the game running out the clock. Daquan Isom ran for over 100 yards, and Cameron Walter capped it off with a 51-yard touchdown run late in the game. Defensively, Waithe-Alexander had two sacks and the first-quarter interception.

"We have to find a way to lean on each other and know that all of us can make plays at all times," Waithe-Alexander said. "If we are to make a mistake, we can bounce back. If the drive isn't going our way, we can make a play at any second and correct ourselves."

SIU wore custom black UnderArmour jerseys for the sixth annual Black Out Cancer game. Fans donated more than $35,000 for the rights to the game-worn jerseys, and custom names were placed on the backs, often honoring a loved one affected by cancer. All proceeds went to Southern Illinois Healthcare.

D.J. Davis said after the game he was playing for his Aunt Lisa, who was shot and killed last week. After he opened the game with a kickoff return, he thanked his blockers and his coaches, then dedicated the return to his aunt.

"I'm proud of that kid," Hill said. "He's really just everything that you want in a recruit off the field. The kid is an amazing kid that we really just want to establish himself because we know he can do that just to show everybody else."

SIU won its second-straight game to improve to 2-1, while Murray State fell to 0-3. Southern Illinois has a bye week next Saturday before starting conference play at Northern Iowa on October 1.

NOTES: D.J. Davis's opening kickoff return for a touchdown was the first for a Saluki since Tay Willis ran 92 yards for a score against Missouri State on Nov. 9, 2013…Is the 22nd kickoff return touchdown in Saluki history and tied for the second-longest….Josh Straughan's four passing TDs are the most since Mark Iannotti threw four against Indiana on Sept. 5, 2015…Ties Straughan for third-most passing touchdowns in a single-game in SIU history and marks the 18th time a Saluki quarterback has thrown four touchdowns or more in a single contest…Straughan was 27-for-34 through the air, which is the fourth-highest pass completion percentage in school history at 79.4%…Chase Allen's ten tackles ties him with Tom Anderson (1993-96) for 17th on SIU's all-time list with 276 tackles…Billy Reed's three catches moves him past Jim Battle (1959-62) for 16th on SIU's all-time receptions list with 87…Reed also passed Dave Smith (1993-96) for 20th place on SIU's career receiving yards list with 1,128 career yards