Saturday, November 27
Vermillion, SD
5:00 PM
Southern Illinois University
8-4
22
at
10
South Dakota
7-5
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
F
Southern Illinois
3
10
3
6
22
South Dakota
0
0
3
7
10
Football advances to Sweet 16 of FCS Playoffs with win over South Dakota
11/27/2021 | 8:50:00 | Football
VERMILLION, S.D. — Southern Illinois forced four turnovers and played turnover-free football itself to beat South Dakota, 22-10, on Saturday in the opening round of the FCS Playoffs.
SIU's safeties led the defense, as Qua Brown had two interceptions, Clayton Bush added another pick, and Dorian Davis forced a late fumble that sealed the win for the Salukis (8-4).
After losing three of its last four games in the regular season, Southern came out energized in the playoffs and determined to reverse the recent downward trend.
"It feels amazing — even better than the feeling I had in the spring when we went up to Weber (State) and beat them in the first playoff game," Brown said. "We were kind of down after the loss last weekend, so we just wanted to stay positive and we put in a ton of work this week to prepare for this game."
The win helped ease the sting of losing last week's Senior Day game, said SIU head coach Nick Hill.
"For those seniors to find the will to come out here and play the way they did is just a testament to the culture and the people in the room," Hill said. "I'm just so proud of this team — that's an understatement."
Nic Baker completed 21-of-30 passes to guide a Southern Illinois offensive attack that out-gained the Coyotes (7-5), 407-347. His favorite target on the evening was Avante Cox, who had a season-high 10 catches for 148 yards and a touchdown.
After struggling to convert on third and fourth downs in recent weeks, the Salukis were 9-of-20 on those critical plays today, including five third-down conversions in the first first half.
"It's kinda like a score in basketball, you want to see a couple go in early," Hill joked.
A balanced Saluki ground game was led by Romeir Elliott, who carried 17 times for 68 yards and a fourth quarter score. Javon Williams Jr. added 47 yards, Donnavan Spencer had 31 and Justin Strong carried the rock for 24 more yards.
Saluki kicker Nico Gualdoni came through again, converting all three of his field goal tries, from 50, 26 and 41 yards.
The Salukis jumped out to a 13-0 lead at the half, behind a pair of Gualdoni field goals and a 4-yard touchdown pass from Baker to Cox.
The play-action pass was designed to go right, but Baker pivoted and found Cox all alone in the left corner of the end zone. The touchdown capped a 15-play drive that spanned 85 yards.
The teams traded third-quarter field goals to make it 16-3, and the Coyotes (7-5) appeared ready to make it a one-score game when Brown picked off a Carson Camp pass near the goal line, leaping high to bring down his second interception of the game.
"We knew #0 [TE Brett Samson] was a top target in the red zone," Brown explained. "That's a play we've seen multiple times on film in the same, exact area. I knew he would roll up, and I just wanted to make sure I was in position to play the ball once the quarterback threw it."
The INT didn't preserve the double-digit lead for long, as USD closed to within six, 16-10, on a Travis Theis two-yard touchdown run midway through the fourth quarter.
Southern answered with a clutch TD drive of its own, marching 75 yards in six plays before Elliott dove across the goal line to put SIU ahead, 22-10, with 6:08 to go.
Bush picked off Camp on South Dakota's next possession, and Davis later made a sensational strip of the ball from Camp at the SIU 37 to remove all doubt about the outcome.
"Man, this is huge," said senior defensive tackle Jordan Berner, who had one of SIU's four sacks. "It's been a tough last month. We faced a lot of adversity, and for us to win on the road first game of the playoffs is big."
Southern advances to the Sweet 16 and will play at North Dakota State next Saturday at 2:30 p.m. in a rematch of a game SIU won during the spring season when the Bison were ranked No. 1.
"Our team plays exciting football when they're flying around, playing with passion," Hill said. "They dug deep and found it within today."
SIU's safeties led the defense, as Qua Brown had two interceptions, Clayton Bush added another pick, and Dorian Davis forced a late fumble that sealed the win for the Salukis (8-4).
After losing three of its last four games in the regular season, Southern came out energized in the playoffs and determined to reverse the recent downward trend.
"It feels amazing — even better than the feeling I had in the spring when we went up to Weber (State) and beat them in the first playoff game," Brown said. "We were kind of down after the loss last weekend, so we just wanted to stay positive and we put in a ton of work this week to prepare for this game."
The win helped ease the sting of losing last week's Senior Day game, said SIU head coach Nick Hill.
"For those seniors to find the will to come out here and play the way they did is just a testament to the culture and the people in the room," Hill said. "I'm just so proud of this team — that's an understatement."
Nic Baker completed 21-of-30 passes to guide a Southern Illinois offensive attack that out-gained the Coyotes (7-5), 407-347. His favorite target on the evening was Avante Cox, who had a season-high 10 catches for 148 yards and a touchdown.
After struggling to convert on third and fourth downs in recent weeks, the Salukis were 9-of-20 on those critical plays today, including five third-down conversions in the first first half.
"It's kinda like a score in basketball, you want to see a couple go in early," Hill joked.
A balanced Saluki ground game was led by Romeir Elliott, who carried 17 times for 68 yards and a fourth quarter score. Javon Williams Jr. added 47 yards, Donnavan Spencer had 31 and Justin Strong carried the rock for 24 more yards.
Saluki kicker Nico Gualdoni came through again, converting all three of his field goal tries, from 50, 26 and 41 yards.
The Salukis jumped out to a 13-0 lead at the half, behind a pair of Gualdoni field goals and a 4-yard touchdown pass from Baker to Cox.
The play-action pass was designed to go right, but Baker pivoted and found Cox all alone in the left corner of the end zone. The touchdown capped a 15-play drive that spanned 85 yards.
The teams traded third-quarter field goals to make it 16-3, and the Coyotes (7-5) appeared ready to make it a one-score game when Brown picked off a Carson Camp pass near the goal line, leaping high to bring down his second interception of the game.
"We knew #0 [TE Brett Samson] was a top target in the red zone," Brown explained. "That's a play we've seen multiple times on film in the same, exact area. I knew he would roll up, and I just wanted to make sure I was in position to play the ball once the quarterback threw it."
The INT didn't preserve the double-digit lead for long, as USD closed to within six, 16-10, on a Travis Theis two-yard touchdown run midway through the fourth quarter.
Southern answered with a clutch TD drive of its own, marching 75 yards in six plays before Elliott dove across the goal line to put SIU ahead, 22-10, with 6:08 to go.
Bush picked off Camp on South Dakota's next possession, and Davis later made a sensational strip of the ball from Camp at the SIU 37 to remove all doubt about the outcome.
"Man, this is huge," said senior defensive tackle Jordan Berner, who had one of SIU's four sacks. "It's been a tough last month. We faced a lot of adversity, and for us to win on the road first game of the playoffs is big."
Southern advances to the Sweet 16 and will play at North Dakota State next Saturday at 2:30 p.m. in a rematch of a game SIU won during the spring season when the Bison were ranked No. 1.
"Our team plays exciting football when they're flying around, playing with passion," Hill said. "They dug deep and found it within today."
Team Stats
SIU
USD
Total Yards
407
347
Pass Yards
233
236
Rushing Yards
174
111
Penalty Yards
62
39
1st Downs
22
20
3rd Downs
7
3
4th Downs
2
0
TOP
35:23
24:37
1st Quarter
SIU 3, USD 0
SIU - Gualdoni, Nico 50 yd field goal 14 plays, 30 yards, TOP 5:47
2nd Quarter
SIU 10, USD 0
SIU - Cox, Avante 4 yd pass from Baker, Nic (Gualdoni, Nico kick) 15 plays, 85 yards, TOP 6:49
SIU 13, USD 0
SIU - Gualdoni, Nico 26 yd field goal 16 plays, 83 yards, TOP 5:46
3rd Quarter
SIU 13, USD 3
USD - Lorber,Mason 21 yd field goal 11 plays, 88 yards, TOP 4:15
SIU 16, USD 3
SIU - Gualdoni, Nico 41 yd field goal 5 plays, 51 yards, TOP 2:28
4th Quarter
SIU 16, USD 10
USD - Theis,Travis 2 yd run (Lorber,Mason kick), 13 plays, 87 yards, TOP 4:57
SIU 22, USD 10
SIU - Elliott, Ro 5 yd run (Baker, Nic rushfailed), 6 plays, 75 yards, TOP 2:34
Game Leaders
Passing Leaders
CMP
1
TD
0
YDS
23
INT
0
Players Mentioned
DE
/ Football
S
/ Football
WR
/ Football
S
/ Football
RB
/ Football
K
/ Football
RB
/ Football
S
/ Football
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