News | After bye week, Football plays at Indiana State on Saturday

CARBONDALE, Ill. — Coming off a bye week, Southern Illinois returns to action on Saturday to play at Indiana State at 12 p.m. CT in a game televised on ESPN+.

The Salukis (2-5, 0-3) have played the toughest FCS schedule in the nation, according to both the Massey power ratings and WarrenNolan.com.

SIU just completed a stretch of five-straight games against ranked, FCS opponents, finishing 1-4 with a win versus No. 12 Incarnate Word. Only twice in school history (1999 and 2005) has SIU played five-straight ranked teams. In addition, SIU's FBS opponent this season, BYU, is currently 7-0 and ranked No. 11.

The last time the Sycamores (2-5, 1-2) played at home, they beat Murray State, 31-27, on Oct. 12. They are 2-1 at home this season, out-scoring opponents, 79-67.

Series versus Indiana State
The Salukis have won the last three meetings with Indiana State overall and have won the last three times the teams have played at Memorial Stadium in Terre Haute. SIU beat the Sycamores in the regular-season finale last season, 38-9, solidifying the program's case for an at-large bid to the FCS Playoffs. In that win, the No. 16 Salukis jumped out to a 31-3 halftime lead, scoring 31 unanswered points after trailing, 3-0.

True freshman Jake Curry makes first-career start at quarterback
On Oct. 12, true freshman quarterback Jake Curry made his first-career start versus No. 2 North Dakota State. The Edwardsville, Ill. native, who replaced injured starter Hunter Simmons, completed 15-of-27 passes for 152 yards and one interception. At Edwardsville High School, he was a Class 8A First-Team All-State pick in 2023, and passed for 5,042 career yards and 62 TDs, plus 25 rushing TDs.

It has been 35 years since the Salukis started a true freshman at quarterback. The last player to do it was Brendon Prenger, a true freshman walk-on QB, who started at Northern Iowa on Nov. 11, 1989. He passed for 159 yards in a 38-14 loss.

Salukis activate QB Michael Lindauer
With three of the team's four quarterbacks out with injuries, the Salukis received an NCAA waiver to activate quarterback Michael Lindauer. The Evansville, Ind. native retired from football after the 2024 spring ball season to become a graduate assistant coach for Southern. In three seasons at SIU (2021-23), Lindauer played in one game and did not attempt a pass in the game at Western Illinois in 2023.

North Dakota State recap

The Salukis held NDSU to its fewest yards of the season (363) and lowest point total in its last 13 games.
SIU's defense allowed only 3.9 yards per carry
SIU lost its first fumble of the season when Allen Middleton had the ball knocked loose at the NDSU 26 on the team's opening drive.
Paul Geelen made a 50-yard field goal — the longest field goal by a Saluki kicker since Nico Gualdoni hit a 55 yarder versus Missouri State in 2021.

Salukis host Youngstown State on Military Appreciation Day
SIU's annual Military Appreciate Day game will be on Nov. 9 versus Youngstown State with a noon kickoff. Saluki Athletics is offering a special $10 ticket that includes a red, white & blue car decal with each ticket purchased. Fan can take advantage of the offer by using the promo code "FLAG".

WR Keontez Lewis leads MVFC
WR Keontez Lewis leads the MVFC and ranks 10th in the nation in receiving yards per game (87.3). Through seven games, he has 33 catches for 611 yards and two touchdowns. He also has seven carries for 102 yards and a TD. The Wisconsin transfer recorded a career-high 153 receiving yards versus Illinois State.

LB Ben Bogle is 2nd in nation in TFL
Sophomore LB Ben Bogle ranks second in the the nation with 13.5 tackles for loss. He also ranks 19th in the nation in sacks with 5.5. Bogle had a school-record 3.5 sacks at Austin Peay in Week 2, in which he earned FCS national player-of-the-week honors. SIU's single-game season record for TFL is 18.0 (Bart Scott, 2001) and for sacks is 12.0 (James Phillips, 1978).

Salukis in the national rankings
Following a Week 6 loss to Illinois State, the Salukis dropped from the national rankings, breaking a streak of 19-consecutive weeks in the Top 25. They were ranked in all 13 polls released in 2023 (as high as #5), and were ranked in the first six polls released in 2024 (as high as #7).

Dawg bytes

Paul Geelen handles both the kicking and punting duties for SIU and is ranked 18th in the nation in punting (43.8). On kickoffs, 17 of his 28 kicks have gone for touchbacks.
The Salukis rank 22nd in the nation in passing offense (244.0), 105th in scoring offense (18.0) and 122nd in red zone scoring (0.560).
Three of SIU's four captains have missed the last five games due to injuries — TE Aidan Quinn, DE Dewey Greene and LB Colin Bohanek. The only captain to play was C Chase Evans.

Safeties Ubayd Steed and Iverson Brown headline secondary
S Iverson Brown (55 tackles) and S Ubayd Steed (46 tackles), rank first and third on the team in tackles this season. Brown has one interception and four pass breakups, while Steed has two forced fumbles.

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