By Robert Crow, the southern
Salukis eye 4-0 start
CARBONDALE - The numbers seem to say it all.
A 3-0 record for No. 6 Southern Illinois, compared to 1-2 for Arkansas-Pine Bluff. SIU has scored 137 points, the Golden Lions 40. Last year, the Salukis pulled away in the second half and cruised to a 48-16 win at Pine Bluff.
And then, there's two - as in, the number of games until the Salukis host Youngstown State. And with today's game against UAPB and next week's contest at Indiana State as those two games, it seems like the Salukis may not receive a serious challenge before that key matchup with YSU.
But SIU is trying not to think that way. Otherwise, today's game may become more of a challenge than the Salukis hope for.
"It's kind of tough, but you can't let that happen," SIU quarterback Nick Hill said. "That's when people sneak up on you. Pine Bluff is a team that can do that to you."
The Golden Lions nearly did that last year, putting a brief scare into the Salukis. UAPB took a 10-7 lead early in the second quarter, and were within five points early in the third quarter, before the Salukis scored the game's final 27 points.
Whether the Golden Lions will be able to put another scare into the Salukis, however, remains to be seen.
UAPB's defense has been superb for much of this season, allowing just 10.3 points per game. But no offense the Golden Lions have faced has been as explosive as the Salukis'.
Hill is playing better than at any point during his two-year career as a starter. He should also get a boost from the probable return of tailback John Randle, who missed last week's game with a high ankle sprain. Randle is the anchor in a deep, explosive backfield, one that has seen six different running backs score touchdowns this year.
"All of our backs that we've got right now, we can all do damage," said running back Lucien Walker, who caught a touchdown last week. "We've got a lot of utility and versatility in our backs."
But much like in the Salukis' 44-10 win over Southern Utah last weekend, today could give SIU's defense another chance to shine.
The Salukis have forced turnovers at an incredible rate this season, averaging four takeaways a game. If the Salukis can force one turnover today, they'll match the number of turnovers they had all of last season.
"If we can continue on that pace, we're going to win a lot of football games," SIU coach Jerry Kill said. "?I've got to give credit to our coaches and players. They've been talking about it, they've been preaching it, they've been teaching it, and it seems like the players listen to what you emphasize."
Kill said he believes the Salukis are significantly better in certain phases than at the same point last year. But there's still plenty of work to do, and the Salukis expect to see even more improvement this week.
With Gateway Football Conference play starting next week, and a potentially huge game against Youngstown looming the week after that, that improvement could be necessary.
"It's a big week, because we've got to get better," Kill said. "We've got to get better every week, and we feel like we have so far. We played better at Southern Utah, but we still have a long, long way to go to be the kind of team we want to be."
Salukis eye 4-0 start
CARBONDALE - The numbers seem to say it all.
A 3-0 record for No. 6 Southern Illinois, compared to 1-2 for Arkansas-Pine Bluff. SIU has scored 137 points, the Golden Lions 40. Last year, the Salukis pulled away in the second half and cruised to a 48-16 win at Pine Bluff.
And then, there's two - as in, the number of games until the Salukis host Youngstown State. And with today's game against UAPB and next week's contest at Indiana State as those two games, it seems like the Salukis may not receive a serious challenge before that key matchup with YSU.
But SIU is trying not to think that way. Otherwise, today's game may become more of a challenge than the Salukis hope for.
"It's kind of tough, but you can't let that happen," SIU quarterback Nick Hill said. "That's when people sneak up on you. Pine Bluff is a team that can do that to you."
The Golden Lions nearly did that last year, putting a brief scare into the Salukis. UAPB took a 10-7 lead early in the second quarter, and were within five points early in the third quarter, before the Salukis scored the game's final 27 points.
Whether the Golden Lions will be able to put another scare into the Salukis, however, remains to be seen.
UAPB's defense has been superb for much of this season, allowing just 10.3 points per game. But no offense the Golden Lions have faced has been as explosive as the Salukis'.
Hill is playing better than at any point during his two-year career as a starter. He should also get a boost from the probable return of tailback John Randle, who missed last week's game with a high ankle sprain. Randle is the anchor in a deep, explosive backfield, one that has seen six different running backs score touchdowns this year.
"All of our backs that we've got right now, we can all do damage," said running back Lucien Walker, who caught a touchdown last week. "We've got a lot of utility and versatility in our backs."
But much like in the Salukis' 44-10 win over Southern Utah last weekend, today could give SIU's defense another chance to shine.
The Salukis have forced turnovers at an incredible rate this season, averaging four takeaways a game. If the Salukis can force one turnover today, they'll match the number of turnovers they had all of last season.
"If we can continue on that pace, we're going to win a lot of football games," SIU coach Jerry Kill said. "?I've got to give credit to our coaches and players. They've been talking about it, they've been preaching it, they've been teaching it, and it seems like the players listen to what you emphasize."
Kill said he believes the Salukis are significantly better in certain phases than at the same point last year. But there's still plenty of work to do, and the Salukis expect to see even more improvement this week.
With Gateway Football Conference play starting next week, and a potentially huge game against Youngstown looming the week after that, that improvement could be necessary.
"It's a big week, because we've got to get better," Kill said. "We've got to get better every week, and we feel like we have so far. We played better at Southern Utah, but we still have a long, long way to go to be the kind of team we want to be."
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