News | Football hosts Murray State on Senior Day, Brown Dawg's Kids Club Day

CARBONDALE, Ill. — Southern Illinois hosts regional rival Murray State on Senior Day this Saturday at Saluki Stadium at noon. Twenty seniors will be recognized on-field before the game at 11:35 a.m.

It's also the annual Brown Dawg's Kids Club game, in which all kids club members can receive a free ticket and are invited onto the field to form the pregame tunnel. To participate, kids should report to the south end zone tunnel no later than 11:45 a.m. Parents can claim the free kids club ticket by providing the membership name at the ticket window. Additional tickets are available for $10.

SIU has won the last four meetings with Murray State, dating back to 2003. The only game between the schools at Saluki Stadium took place on Sept. 17, 2016. SIU won, 50-17, and Saluki wide receiver D.J. Davis took the opening kickoff 98 yards for a touchdown. In 2023, the teams met in Murray, where SIU prevailed, 27-6. In that game, Justin Strong scored a TD on the first play from scrimmage, an 80-yard run. The game marked the first time SIU held a conference opponent without a touchdown in 11 years.

Jake Curry takes over as starting QB
True freshman quarterback Jake Curry has started five-straight games since taking over for an injured Hunter Simmons in Game 7 versus North Dakota State. Curry is 82-of-147 passing for 931 yards, 7 INTs and 3 TDs. All three of his touchdowns came versus Youngstown State, when he rallied SIU from a 28-0 deficit to win, 37-33, for the largest comeback in school history and tied for the largest in conference history. He was the named the Stats Perform National Player of the Week. Curry entered the season third on the depth chart. Murray State transfer DJ Williams (3 starts, broken hand) and backup Hunter Simmons (3 starts, broken tibia) were both sidelined with major injuries. 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.

South Dakota State recap

Curry entered the game questionable with a hamstring injury and left the contest in the second quarter.
After falling behind, 41-0, the Salukis scored the game's final 10 points on a 48-yard Michael Lindauer touchdown pass to Allen Middleton and a 36-yard Paul Geelen field goal.
LBs Chris Presto and Shug Walker did not play, due to injury. They were replaced in the starting lineup by Shane Roth and Andrew Behm.
An Akron transfer, Behm recorded four tackles in his first appearance for SIU.
Safety Ubayd Steed led the team with 12 tackles.

Dawg bytes

S Ubayd Steed has 55 tackles in the last five games. He ranks third in the MVFC in tackles with 89 for the season.
C Chase Evans leads the team with 49 career starts.
G Jake Green has the longest active streak of games started (35).
Despite playing four different QBs this season, the Salukis still rank fourth in the league and 32nd in the nation in passing yards per game (230.2).
Georgia State transfer RT Cameron Dye, is the brother of Ernest Dye Jr., who played for SIU (2016-19). His father, Ernest Dye, played five seasons in the NFL.
Paul Geelen handles both the kicking and punting duties for SIU and is ranked 25th in the nation in punting (42.8). On kickoffs, 21 of his 43 kicks have gone for touchbacks. He also has 1 rushing TD.
The last time SIU had a 100-yard rusher was Shaun Lester Jr. with 111 yards at Austin Peay in Week 2.

Salukis have played toughest schedule in the FCS
The Salukis have played the toughest schedule in the nation, according to WarrenNolan.com and the second-toughest according to the Massey power ratings. SIU has played seven ranked FCS teams, including five-straight during one stretch. Its FBS opponent this season, BYU, is currently 9-1 and ranked No. 14.

Salukis activate QB Michael Lindauer
With three of the team's four quarterbacks out with injuries (freshman ET Harris suffered a season-ending injury during training camp), the Salukis received an NCAA waiver to activate QB Michael Lindauer for the Oct. 26 game at Indiana State. The Evansville, Ind. native retired from football after the 2024 spring ball season to become a graduate assistant coach for Southern. Lindauer has come off the bench to complete 17-of-27 passes for 178 yards and 2 TDs. He has also rushed nine times for 75 yards.

LB Ben Bogle leads league in TFL
Sophomore LB Ben Bogle leads the MVFC and ranks 9th in the the nation with 16.0 tackles for loss. He also has two interceptions in the last four games. 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).

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