Saluki rewind: Youngstown State throttles SIU, handing Southern its first defeat

Youngstown State knocked Southern Illinois from the ranks of the unbeaten in the FCS Saturday. (Photo by SIUSalukis.com)

By Dan Verdun

Youngstown State built a two-score halftime lead then stifled visiting Southern Illinois in the second half en route to a convincing 31-3 victory Saturday.

SIU suffered its first loss of the season.

Fueled by a fast start and a strong defensive effort, Youngstown State bounced back from last week’s 44-41 loss to Northern Iowa. In doing so, the Penguins toppled SIU in the Salukis’ Missouri Valley Football Conference opener.

YSU (3-2, 1-1) held SIU (4-1, 1-1) to 100 yards in total offense. The Salukis, ranked No.5 in the FCS Coaches Poll, were unable to penetrate Penguin territory in the second half. 

“It’s a humbling game, a humbling sport,” SIU head coach Nick Hill said. “They whupped us in every fashion that you could possibly could do.

“We never really got going except for maybe the one drive that we stalled on right before half.”

YSU head coach Doug Phillips told the Tribune Chronicle, “We let one slip (last week), but I’m proud of our kids because they were able to put that last game behind us and focus on what we needed to do.” 

It was YSU’s first win over a top-five ranked team since 2017, when the Penguins beat No. 5 South Dakota State.

Game changers

11:43, 1st quarter: Youngstown State’s Tyshon King broke away for a 40-yard touchdown run to open the scoring.

1:31, 2nd quarter: SIU quarterback Nic Baker was sacked for a 7-yard loss on a third down-and-9 from the YSU 9-yard line. The Salukis settled for a Thomas Burks’ field goal.

7:42, 3rd quarter: Baker was intercepted by Troy Jakubec, who returned the ball 20 yards to the SIU 2-yard line. Youngstown State wound up kicking a field goal four plays later, upping its lead to 17-3.

What it means

SIU suffered a one-sided loss in its MVFC opener. The Salukis likely fall from the Top 10 in this week’s FCS rankings.

Needing 122 yards to become SIU’s career passing leader, Baker had only 94 on a 12-for-27 performance.

Top Dawgs

Prairie State Pigskin chooses the top three Southern Illinois players in the game:

Ubayd Steed, S: The Towson transfer led SIU with 11 tackles, seven of which were solo.

Dune Smith, LB: The Pittsburgh transfer had 10 tackles, 1.5 for loss and half a sack.

P.J. Jules, S: The senior had eight tackles, a tackle for loss and a quarterback hurry.

What’s next?

The Salukis travel to Murray State for an Oct. 14 conference game. Kickoff is 2 p.m.

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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