Southern Illinois receiver Allen Middleton (5) celebrates his first quarter touchdown Saturday at Memorial Stadium in Champaign. (Photo by SIUSalukis.com)
By Dan Verdun
If football is a game of momentum, then Southern Illinois experienced little of it Saturday in a 48-10 loss to FBS Illinois at Memorial Stadium in Champaign.
“To be in one of these (games), you’ve got to gain momentum. Those four (Illinois) scoring drives, we were able to answer one. But, we just weren’t able to hit a lot of explosive plays,” SIU head coach Nick Hill said in a postgame radio interview.
SIU’s “one answer” came on an 8-yard touchdown pass from quarterback D.J. Williams to receiver Allen Middleton with 3 minutes, 46 seconds left in the first quarter.
Middleton’s TD tied the game, 7-7.
However, any Saluki thought of momentum was erased less than a minute later when Illinois running back Aidan Loughery broke off a 77-yard touchdown run.
From there, the Illini (2-1) built a 31-10 halftime advantage and cruised past the Salukis (2-2).
“The bottom line is we got beat, 48-10, so it should be a quiet locker room,” Hill said. “(We) had a lot of first downs (18), but not much to show for it.”
Illinois amassed 503 yards of total offense. Illini quarterback Katin Houser completed 23 of 29 passes for 305 yards and two touchdowns. Receiver Collin Dixon had eight catches for 131 yards and two TDs.
Southern Illinois produced 257 yards of offense, but only 29 rushing.
SIU received a $525,000 payout from Illinois.
Game changers
3:46, 1st quarter: Williams capped an 8-play, 65-yard drive with an 8-yard touchdown pass to Middleton, which tied the game, 7-7.
2:57, 1st quarter: On the ensuing Illinois series after SIU had tied the game at 7-7, Illini running back Aidan Loughery ripped off a 77-yard touchdown run.
2:18, 2nd quarter: Houser threw a 27-yard TD pass to Dixon, giving Illinois a 28-7 lead.
Standout Salukis
Prairie State Pigskin chooses the the top three Southern Illinois players in the game:
Thomas, WR: The junior from Marian Catholic had six catches for 77 yards
Williams, QB: The seventh-year player completed 20 of 38 passes for 182 yards with a touchdown. He also threw an interception that was returned 88 yards for a touchdown.
Te’Nerrean Jackson, DB: The transfer from Copiah-Lincoln Community College led SIU with eight tackles, six solo.
What it means
The Salukis’ record against the Illini fell to 0-5.
What’s next
SIU begins its Missouri Valley Football Conference schedule with a 6 p.m. kickoff Sept. 26 at Murray State.
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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