SIU at SEMO: Game Notes & Links

Sept. 8, 2015

RV/RV Southern Illinois (0-1, 0-0 MVFC) at Southeast Missouri (0-1, 0-0 OVC)
Date & Time	Sept. 12, 2015 \| 6 p.m. CT
Location	Cape Girardeau, Mo. \| Houck Stadium (10,000, FieldTurf) \| Weather
Tickets	GoSoutheast.com \| 877-SALUKIS (Through Noon on Friday, Sept. 11)
Video Stream	OVC Digital Network
Radio	Saluki Sports Network with Mike Reis (play-by-play), Gene Green (analysis) and Connor James (analysis)
Audio Stream	Saluki All-Access
Live Stats	StatBroadcast
Southern Illinois	Game Notes \| Stats \| Media Guide (PDF) \| Fall Camp Central
SEMO	Game Notes \| Stats \| Media Guide (PDF)
MVFC	Weekly Notes \| Stats
All-Time Series	SEMO leads 37-35-8 \| In Cape Girardeau: SEMO leads 18-17-4 \| Streak: SIU W4
Social Media	@SIU_Football \| @SIUSalukis \| Saluki Football

SALUKIS / REDHAWKS RIVALRY

The Salukis head to Southeast Missouri for a 6 p.m. CT kickoff. The rivalry game will be video streamed for free by the OVC Digital Network.
SIU trails the all-time series 37-35-8 and trails 18-17-4 in games played at SEMO.
SIU has won four-straight road games in the series, but the teams have not met in Cape since 2011. During SEMO's year for a home game in 2013, the teams played the first-ever Division I football game in Busch Stadium in St. Louis.
Overall, Southern Illinois has won eight of the last nine games in the series. SEMO's lone win in that stretch came in Saluki Stadium in 2010.
In the last nine games between the schools, SIU has outscored the RedHawks 350-147. That's an average score of 39-16 in SIU's favor.
All eight of SIU's wins in the last nine meetings have been by at least 17 points.
Since SIU became an FCS school prior to the 1982 season, the Salukis lead the series against SEMO, 17-6, including an 8-2 mark in Cape Girardeau.

RECORD-SETTING DAY AT INDIANA

Southern Illinois narrowly missed going 2-0 in the all-time series against Big Ten foe Indiana in the season opener. After the 2006 Salukis won in Bloomington, Ind., the 2015 squad dropped a 48-47 heartbreaker in Week 1.
SIU had 659 yards of total offense and 47 points at Indiana, both school records vs. an FBS opponent.
The 659 total yards were SIU's third-most against any opponent in school history and most against a Division I opponent since 1970.
SIU and IU combined for 95 points in the wild opener, the eighth-most combined points in school history and most since 2005.
Mark Iannotti set an SIU record with 517 yards of total offense in Week 1, the most yards by any player in any division of NCAA Football in the season's opening week.
Iannotti broke the previous school record of 443 set by co-offensive coordinator Nick Hill in 2007.
Iannotti earned MVFC and National Offensive Player of the Week honors for his record-breaking performance.
Iannotti's 411 yards passing marks just the second time in school history a Saluki quarterback has surpassed the 400-yard mark passing. Nick Hill holds the school record with 436 in 2007.
Iannotti was the first player in SIU history to surpass 300 yards passing and 100 yards rushing in a single game. In addition to his 411 yards passing, Iannotti led SIU with 106 rushing yards.
Iannotti's 80-yard screen pass that true freshman Daquan Isom took for a touchdown was the seventh-longest pass completion in school history.

YOUNG GUNS

Eighteen true freshmen, redshirt freshmen or new transfers played in the season opener at Indiana last weekend: RB Aaron Stanton, CB Jefferson Vea, RB Daquan Isom, WR Matt DeSomer, QB Matt McIntosh, CB Torian Lewis, S Chris Adkins, CBAndrew McCrea, WR Jimmy Jones, CB Tareq Abulebbeh, RB Chris Perkins, LB Cody Crider, RB Jonathan Mixon, LB Deondre Barnett, LB Tori Millender, LB Withney Simon, OL Reid Sealby, and WR Darrell James.
Five true freshmen have played already: RB Daquan Isom, RB Chris Perkins, LB Cody Crider, LB Withney Simon and CB Torian Lewis.
SIU returned just 26 percent of its rushing yards from 2014 (454 yards 1,717) and five of 17 rushing touchdowns. SIU's top returning rusher by yards is Cameron Walter (323 yards last year).
Nine different Salukis got at least one rush and 10 recorded at least one reception.
Six Salukis had at least 10 yards rushing, with four of those six being first-year SIU players: WR Matt DeSomer, QB Matt McIntosh, RB Jonathan Mixon and RB Aaron Stanton.
Four of the 10 players to record a reption were true freshmen, redshirt freshman or new transfers: RB Daquan Isom, WR Jimmy Jones, WR Darrell James and RB Aaron Stanton.
Isom, a true freshman, had a team-high 148 all-purpose yards in his first career game.
Five of SIU's top seven tacklers in the season opener will be back in 2016, including sophomores Kenny James, Markese Jackson and Ryan Neal.

TEAM NOTES

The Salukis did not have any players named to the preseason first-team All-MVFC list.
Linebacker Chase Allen and offensive lineman Ethan Wirth were named to the preseason honorable mention All-MVFC team.
Head coach Dale Lennon earned his 150th win as a head coach when SIU won at Missouri State last season. Lennon has 48 wins in his seven seasons as head coach of the Salukis.
Six of the 10 FCS opponents on Southern's 2015 schedule were ranked in the preseason top-25, four of whom SIU will play at home in Saluki Stadium.
SIU has won at least one game against a ranked team in all seven of head coach Dale Lennon's seasons in Carbondale.
SIU has 14 wins over top-25 teams under Lennon.

TEAM OFFENSIVE NOTES

SIU had 659 total yards and 47 points at Indiana in Week 1, both school records vs. an FBS opponent.
SIU's 649 total yards are the third-most in program history and most against a Divsion I opponent since 1970.
Southern's 411 yards passing were the fourth-most in school history and most since 2007.
SIU's 248 yards rushing at Indiana are the most for SIU since last year's season opener, vs. Taylor. It's Southern's most against a Division I opponent since putting 255 on Eastern Illinois in 2011.
SIU allowed just two tackles for loss and one sack at Indiana. Both marks lead the MVFC.
Southern Illinois' offensive line has allowed five fewer sacks since the start of the 2013 season than anyone else in the conference.
SIU set a school record for touchdown passes in a season last year with 29.
Southern converted 47.7 percent of its third downs last year, which ranked 11th in the FCS.
SIU converted 11-of-17 third downs (65 percent) in the 2015 season opener at Indiana. That mark leads the MVFC and ranks fifth nationally.

TEAM DEFENSIVE NOTES

SIU returns five starters on defense (NT Raysean Golden, DE Adam Brandt, ILB Chase Allen, S DJ Cameron, and S Kenny James).
Three other returners have starting experience (NT TJ Beelen, S Anthony Thompson and CB Ryan Neal).
While only five of SIU's last 51 opponents have rushed for more than 200 yards, the Saluki offense has eclipsed 200 yards rushing 19 times in that span, including 248 yards rushing against Indiana on the season's opening weekend.

INDIVIDUAL DEFENSIVE NOTES

Chase Allen returns for his junior season after leading SIU in tackles last year with 95.
DJ Cameron has started 35 consecutive games at SIU, 22 more than anyone else on the team.
Cameron earned a starting nod in the third game of his redshirt freshman season and has started every game since.
Cameron has piled up 196 career tackles and five interceptions in his career. With four more tackles, Cameron will become the 40th player in program history with 200 career tackles.
Kenny James has started six-straight games for SIU, dating back to the final five games of his redshirt freshman season in 2014. Forty-five of his 53 career tackles have come in those six starts (7.5 per game) and he has led the team in tackles three times in those six starts. He led the team with nine tackles at Indiana.
Khari Waithe-Alexander, Blake Mattson, Jefferson Vea and Markese Jackson all made the first starts of their Saluki career in the season opener.
Anthony Thompson is sixth in SIU history with 133 career interception return yards. Thompson had a 100-yard interception return for a touchdown in 2012 at Youngstown State.
Adam Brandt caught a tipped pass for an interception at EIU in 2014. Brandt is the first SIU defensive lineman with an interception since Kendrick Young against New Hampshire in 2008.

INDIVIDUAL OFFENSIVE NOTES

QB Mark Iannotti set an SIU record with 517 yards of total offense in Week 1, the most yards by any player in any division of NCAA Football in the season's opening week.
Iannotti broke the previous school record of 443 set by co-offensive coordinator Nick Hill in 2007.
Iannotti earned MVFC and National Offensive Player of the Week honors for his record-breaking performance.
Right tackle Ethan Wirth earned MVFC Offensive Lineman of the Week honors after the Indiana game. Wirth is now a two-time MVFC Offensive Lineman of the Week.
Iannotti's 411 yards passing marks just the second time in school history a Saluki quarterback has surpassed the 400-yard mark passing. Nick Hill holds the school record with 436 in 2007.
Iannotti was the first player in SIU history to surpass 300 yards passing and 100 yards rushing in a single game. In addition to his 411 yards passing, Iannotti led SIU with 106 rushing yards.
Iannotti's 80-yard screen pass that true freshman Daquan Isom took for a touchdown was the seventh-longest pass completion in school history.
Tight end Adam Fuehne entered the 2015 season with 192 yards receiving in his three-year career, with a long of 21. He had 130 yards--including 57- and 68-yard receptions--in Week 1 alone in 2015.
Iannotti threw 22 touchdown passes in his first season as SIU's starter. That tied for third-best in SIU single-season history.
Iannotti is also in the single-season record books for passing yards (2,241, 5th), completion percentage (63.0%, 4th), 250-yard+ passing games (4, 2nd), lowest interception percentage (2.51%, 6th) and passing efficiency (139.8, 10th).
Iannotti was named to the MVFC All-Newcomer team in 2014.
Iannotti tied SIU's single-game touchdown passes record with six against Southeast Missouri last year and was named MVFC Newcomer of the Week.
SIU sophomore running back Cameron Walter is the only running back on the roster who had played in a game for SIU entering the season. Walter originally came to SIU has a priority walk-on.
Walter's first career start came last year at Missouri State, and he rushed for 210 yards on 37 carries, earning National Freshman of the Week honors.
Walter became the first SIU back with more than 200 yards rushing since Deji Karim in 2009. Karim was a sixth-round NFL draft pick in 2010 and played four seasons in the NFL.
Walter was the first SIU freshman with more than 200 yards rushing since Tom Koutsos in 1999.
The Greenville, Ill., native came into the game against Missouri State with just 26 carries and 66 yards rushing in the first nine games of the season combined. He rushed 37 times for 210 yards against the Bears.
In his second career start, Walter tied a school record for receptions in a game with 13 against Northern Iowa. He led the team with 13 catches and 90 receiving yards.
True freshman Daquan Isom had a team-high 148 all-purpose yards in his SIU debut at Indiana. He took a screen pass 80 yards for a touchdown, the eighth-longest pass play in SIU history.
Aaron Stanton transfered from Ventura College and was in Carbondale for spring ball in 2015. He averaged more than nine yards per carry in three spring scrimmages.
Stanton also returned kicks at Ventura and averaged better than 29 yards per return.
Two running backs, Daquan Isom and Chris Perkins, had their redshirts pulled and will play as true freshmen for SIU.
Right tackle Ethan Wirth (29 career starts) and right guard Jake Notario (18 career starts) bolster the right side of the line.
Center Garrett Clark was named to the College Sporting News preseason Fabulous 50 All-America team.
Both of SIU's projected starters on the left side of the line (LT Austin Olsen and LG David Meyerhoff) made their first career starts on Saturday.

INDIVIDUAL SPECIAL TEAMS NOTES

SIU lost last year's starting kicker, Thomas Kinney, and long snapper, Thor Hadfield. Kicker Austin Johnson and snapper Josh Jahnke are slated to fill those roles.
Johnson kicked for SIU as a true freshman in 2012. Thomas Kinney won the job in 2013 and 14, and Johnson used a redshirt year in 2013.
Johnson went 7-12 with a long of 42 as a true freshman in 2012. He hit 49- and 50-yard field goals in the first scrimmage of the 2015 fall camp.
Johnson hit a game-tying, career-long 46-yard field goal with less than three minutes remaining at Indiana in the opening game of 2015.
Chris Adams is resuming his role as the kickoff specialist. Adams piled up 143 kickoffs from 2011-13 before redshirting last year while Kinney handled the duty.
Adams averaged 60.1 yards per kickoff and had 27 touchbacks in 2011-13.
Derek Mathewson will start at punter in 2014. Mathewson backed up Nicholas Neidig last season, totaling six punts for 200 yards (33.3 average).
Mathewson boomed a career-long 57-yard punt in the season opener at Indiana, which also pinned Indina at their own 10-yard line.
Nicholas Neidig was SIU's primary punter in 2014, averaging 39.4 yards on 43 punts. He had six punts of 50+ yards and pinned 13 inside the 20.
Neidig earned National Punter of the Week honors from the CFPA after averaging 51.8 yards on four punts vs. WIU, including a 75-yarder and three that were downed inside the 20.
Linebacker Chase Allen blocked a punt at Indiana and safety Kenny James recovered it for a touchdown. It was SIU's first blocked punt for a touchdown since Youngstown State in 2012.

TEAM ROAD SUCCESS

Since 2005, SIU has won 12 road games against ranked teams, which is two more than any other MVFC team.
Southern Illinois has excelled in road games under head coach Dale Lennon. SIU is 20-20 overall on the road in Lennon's seven-plus seasons. If you take out SIU's eight FBS opponents in that time--all of which were road losses--Lennon's squads have gone 20-12 in road games.
SIU is 9-7 on the road against ranked teams in head coach Dale Lennon's tenure at SIU.
SIU went 4-0 in road games against FCS opponents in 2013, including back-to-back road wins over top-10 opponents with a 27-24 win over No. 7 South Dakota State and a 24-17 overtime win over No. 4 Northern Iowa.
The Salukis shut out No. 9 Illinois State in Normal, Ill., 17-0 in 2012 and beat No. 15 Youngstown State by 17 on the road in 2012.
Under Lennon, SIU is 17-11 in MVFC road games, and six of his 11 road losses were in the 2010 and 2011 seasons. In his other five seasons (2008, 09, 12, 13, 14), SIU is 15-5 in MVFC road games, with three of those five losses coming at the Fargodome against North Dakota State.
SIU has won six games against top-10 teams on the road under Lennon and nine games against ranked opponents away from Carbondale.

COACHING STAFF INTACT

Southern Illinois had six new coaches on staff for the 2014 season, the most coach turnover for SIU since head coach Dale Lennon was hired before the 2008 season.
The entire staff returns intact for the 2015 season.
David Elson, who coached the secondary in 2014, was promoted to defensive coordinator for the 2015 season. Head coach Dale Lennon served as the defensive coordinator in 2014 before promoting Elson to DC and returning to traditional head coaching duties in 2015.
Offensive coordinator Bill O'Boyle was promotoed to assistant head coach, and quarterbacks coach Nick Hill was promoted to co-offensive coordinator, along with O'Boyle.
Hill is the passing game coordinator, and O'Boyle, who also coaches the offensive line, is the run-game coordinator.
O'Boyle was the offensive coordinator at Division II Chadron State from 1999-04 before becoming Chadron State's head coach from 2005-11. O'Boyle was the Division II National Coach of the Year in 2007.
Hill and running back coach Larry Warner were both players at SIU. Hill remains SIU's single-season passing leader with 3,175 yards in 2007, and Warner was an All-American running back in 2008.
Hill and Warner coached together at Carbondale High School before becoming assistants at SIU.

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SIU at SEMO: Game Notes & Links