Sixth-year senior Nic Baker (8) became SIU’s all-time leading passer in Saturday’s convincing win at Murray State. (Photo by SIUSalukis.com)
By Dan Verdun
Nic Baker moved to the top of another Southern Illinois leader board and the Salukis moved back into the win column Saturday in Murray, Ken.
Baker threw for 137 yards to eclipse the mark of 7,867 career passing yards set by Joel Sambursky in 2005.
“What makes Nic special in my eyes is he’s a complete team player, and these records are a by-product of him being a really good player,” SIU head coach Nick Hill said. “He’s a sixth-year senior, he’s not concerned about things like the NFL. It’s about winning a championship.”
Baker, who holds nearly every passing mark listed in the SIU record book, downplayed things following the Salukis’ 27-6 Missouri Valley Football Conference win over Murray State.
Baker, who quarterbacked downstate Rochester High School to two state championships, turned the focus to SIU’s upcoming game with top-ranked South Dakota State in Carbondale.
“It doesn’t get any better: No. 1 at home, Homecoming. Do something special. We’re excited,” Baker said.
Earlier in the week, Hill stated that the Salukis needed to get back to running the ball effectively.
SIU (5-1, 2-1) certainly accomplished that against the Racers (2-4, 1-2). The Salukis racked up 270 yards on the ground. Senior Justin Strong ran for 128 yards and sophomore Leshaun Lester chipped in 85.
“On Monday, I told them our goal was to rush for 250 yards as a unit,” Hill said. “We stayed committed to it, rushed the ball 50 times. It’s something to build off of for our guys.”
The Saluki defense held Murray State to 190 total yards of offense. The Racers were a paltry 3-for-13 on third down.
“Just complete heart and hustle,” SIU cornerback D.J. Johnson said. “We just kept fighting and scratching no matter where we were on the field. It’s just what we do every single day.”
Game changers
14:47, 1st quarter: Strong opened the scoring with an 80-yard touchdown run just 13 seconds into the game.
8:36, 1st quarter: Johnson intercepted Murray State quarterback D.J. Williams’ pass in the right corner of the end zone, ending a Racer red zone threat.
2:52, 2nd quarter: Murray State had the ball first-and-goal at the SIU 2-yard line, with a chance to tie the game. Southern’s defense turned the Racers away when cornerback Mark Davis Jr. forced and recovered a fumble on fourth down.
What it means
SIU, ranked No. 13 in both major national FCS polls, rebounded from last weekend’s 31-3 conference loss at Youngstown State.
Top Dawgs
Prairie State Pigskin chooses the top three Southern Illinois players in the game:
Strong, RB: The downstate Althoff Catholic graduate’s early TD sprint spotted SIU an early lead it would not relinguish. Strong’s 128 rushing yards marks his season high.
Johnson, CB: The Indianapolis native not only had the key end zone interception, he also recorded three pass breakups and registered four tackles.
Davis, CB: The redshirt junior had three tackles but none bigger than his fourth-down stop that resulted in a forced fumble and recovery.
What’s next?
The Salukis host No. 1 and undefeated South Dakota State for an Oct. 21 conference game. Kickoff is at 2 p.m. for the homecoming matchup.
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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