Southern Illinois begins Missouri Valley Football Conference play by hosting Missouri State at 4 p.m. Saturday. (Photo by SIUSalukis.com)
By Dan Verdun
It’s back home and back to business for head coach Nick Hill’s Southern Illinois Salukis Saturday in Carbondale.
Coming off its bye week, SIU (3-0) begins its Missouri Valley Football Conference schedule hosting Missouri State (1-2) at Saluki Stadium. Kickoff is 4 p.m.
“I felt like we had a good bye week. You don’t get to pick when your bye weeks are,” Hill said earlier this week.
It’s been a month since the Salukis played in front of their home fans.
“We opened at home, but it’s been four weeks,” Hill said of SIU’s 49-23 thrashing of Austin Peay Sept. 2.
After wins at FBS Northern Illinois (14-11) and regional rival Southeast Missouri (26-25), Southern has risen to No. 10 in both major FCS national polls.
This week’s opponent
Missouri State, like SIU a charter member of the MVFC, is fresh off a 59-14 romp over Utah Tech.
The Bears, led by first-year head coach Ryan Beard, opened the year with consecutive losses at FBS Kansas (48-17) and FCS playoff contender UT Martin (38-31).
“It’s going to be a good team (we’re playing),” Hill said. “You can’t look at records. They lost to a Power 5 team and had a close one with a very good UT Martin team.”
Missouri State quarterback Jacob Clark is fresh off a 414-yard, 5-touchdown game against Utah Tech.
“He’s a good player, really good player. (He’s) big and strong, fairly athletic and can move around. He will stand in there and make some throws,” Hill said of Clark, who transferred to Missouri State from FBS Minnesota.
(Kickoff: 4 p.m.; TV: ESPN-Plus; Radio: CILFM.com)
Key matchup to watch
SIU running game vs. Missouri State front seven
To date, the Salukis have not run the ball as effectively as Hill would like.
Missouri State offers a chance to improve that. The Bears have given up 7.5 yards per carry in three games.
A consistent running game would allow the Salukis to make quarterback Nic Baker’s passing even more dangerous.
What’s at stake?
A win not only keeps momentum rolling for SIU but also would give the Salukis a 1-0 start in the MVFC standings.
“We understand what it takes to win in this league and the respect that we have for every team,” Hill said.
Baker, a sixth-year senior, has 7,488 career passing yards and needs 407 yards to pass Joel Sambursky to become the all-time SIU passing leader.
With 7,894 yards, Sambursky ranks 14th all-time in conference history. Baker is currently 18th all-time in MVFC history.
Quick hits
The Salukis are 3-0 for the first time since 2014. A win versus Missouri State would give Southern its first 4-0 start since 2007 when the Salukis opened the season with six straight victories. That squad was coached by Jerry Kill and quarterbacked by current head coach Nick Hill. … In a nearly evenly divided series, SIU leads the all-time series with Missouri State, 23-22. The two teams have split the last 10 meetings. Last year, SIU won at Missouri State, 38-21, as the Salukis reeled off 38-straight points after falling behind, 14-0. … Saluki safety P.J. Jules ranks second in the nation in pass breakups with six (2.0 per game). He is also ranked 13th in the nation in tackles per game (10.7). Both marks lead the MVFC. … SIU ranks No. 4 in the FCS in rushing defense, allowing 62.7 yards per game on the ground. … The Salukis are eighth in sacks per game (3.67).
Dan Verdun is a co-founder of Prairie State Pigskin. He has written four books: NIU Huskies Football, EIU Panthers Football, ISU Redbirds Football and SIU Salukis Football.
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