BROOKINGS South Dakota State took care of business on Saturday afternoon as the Jackrabbits beat Murray State 52-6 at Dana J. Dykhouse Stadium.
The Jackrabbits (7-2) racked up 596 yards on offense and it was a nice sight to see after the offense struggled the past two weeks against North Dakota State and South Dakota. Junior running back Angel Johnson said thats what the offense is supposed to like.
When you put up the yards we did today, something definitely is going right for you. When were firing on all cylinders we definitely have the capability to do this, Angel Johnson said.
The Jacks did a lot of their damage on the ground as they ran for 343 yards and five different players scored touchdowns. They averaged nine yards per rush and the offensive line had a lot to do with that by opening big holes. Senior center Gus Miller said that was an emphasis heading into the game.
[The offensive line] did a good job of getting to the second level and allowing the running backs to read our blocks. That was the main focus this whole week. Creating that push in the front blocking, Miller said.
SDSU marched down the field in eight plays on its opening drive and scored a touchdown. Mark Gronowski faked a hand off to Amar Johnson and then found him wide open out of the back field and he jogged into the end zone from 10 yards out to make it 7-0.
After the two teams traded punts, Murray State (1-8) was able to get on the board with a 55-yard field goal. However, it didnt take long for SDSU to answer as Angel Johnson took a run 67 yards to the house to make it 14-3 with 2:46 left in the first quarter.
Angel Johnson finished the day with a career-high 132 yards on seven carries. Hes had long touchdowns like that in the past but has never gone for over 100 yards in a game. He said it was nice to finally have a game where he had more than just one long run.
Im thankful to have a career-high and thankful to have the guys up front blocking for me. Ive had some long runs [in my career] but it was nice to put it all together. Im thankful, Angel Johnson said.
The defense then made a play as Tucker Large intercepted Jayden Johannsen and SDSU took over at the Murray State 44. Large made his return from injury after missing five games in last weeks overtime victory over USD. He said on Saturday he felt more like himself.
I definitely felt more comfortable being out there. Last week just kind of felt like being thrown into the fire. Today, I felt back on my feet and in the groove again, Large said.
Gronowski then connected with Griffin Wilde for a 41-yard gain on the final play of the first quarter to set up SDSU with a first and goal. Two plays later Kirby Vorhees punched it in from one yard out to push the lead to 21-3.
After Murray State made another field goal, it was then Amar Johnsons turn to score on a run. He went to the right and then cut it all the way back to the left side of the field and Gronowski threw a block on his way to the end zone. That made it 28-3 with nine minutes to play in the first half.
Murray State decided to fake a punt on its next possession and it didnt work as Bryce Johnson broke up Tom OHaras pass. That gave the Jacks another short field and they took advantage of it as junior quarterback Chase Mason ran it in from four yards out to put SDSU up 35-6 with just over two minutes left in the half.
SDSU would get three more points before halftime. The Jacks worked their way into field goal range and Hunter Dustman hit from 29 yards out to make it 38-6 at the half.
That would be the end of the starter’s day. Gronowski finished 9-of-16 for 170 yards. Wilde led the Jackrabbit receiving core with three catches for 78 yards. Redshirt freshman tight end Davin Stoffel had three catches for 60 yards.
SDSU head coach Jimmy Rogers said he wanted to get the tight ends more involved on Saturday and the Jacks did just that as Brody Gormley and David Alpers also had receptions.
That was a challenge this past week, Rogers said. We have to continue to throw them the ball. Theyre really talented and they have great length. I was excited to see [Stoffel] get some early touches and then [Gormley] had a catch down the sideline and Alpers had the screen.
The Jacks kept it rolling in the second half as they put up seven more points on their first drive of the half. Fourth-string running back Maxwell Woods got in on the scoring as he bounced off a tackler and scored from four yards out to make it 45-6 with 9:42 left in the third.
Mason then threw for a touchdown on the next drive as he connected with Lofton OGroske for an 11-yard score and that put SDSU up 52-6 just before the end of the third quarter. OGroske finished with five catches for 50 yards.
Masons day came to an end on the next drive as he hurdled a pair of defenders inside the Murray State five yard line but looked to have hurt his ankle on the play. The medical staff looked at him and took his shoe off before he walked to the bench unassisted. He finished the day 10-of-16 with 82 yards passing and 68 yards rushing.
Rogers said Mason was fine after the game and he noted that Gronowski not playing in the second half was because he wanted to give Mason a full opportunity to run the offense.
It was an opportunity to give Chase, with a lead like that, to operate against a Missouri Valley team and make him feel good. Get him in rhythm and allow him to throw the ball. [Him throwing the ball] something that weve had in [our offense] and we have to get him comfortable throwing the ball. Hes a dynamic talent. He looks like hes jogging when hes running faster than most people sprinting. Its important to keep him healthy, Rogers said.
Mason wasnt the only Jackrabbit to get injured as wide receiver Graham Goering left the game in the second quarter with what looked to be a knee injury. He was walking around the sidelines with a heavy limp. Rogers said hell be fine.
The Jackrabbit defense held Murray State to 236 total yards. The Racers went 4-of-14 on third down.
SDSU has three games left in its season and next week the Jacks will travel to Grand Forks to take on North Dakota, who has lost two-straight games. After that theyll finish the season with Southern Illinois at home and Missouri State on the road.
The Jacks will likely be big favorites again in their next two contests and Large said Saturday is an example of how they should treat games going forward.
Coach Rogers does a great job of making it the Jacks versus the Jacks every game. No matter who the opponent is, we want to be our best selves. We know our standard, and if we execute that, good things will happen. It was a physical couple of weeks and [the past two games] were very close games. [Today] was definitely a confidence booster for our team, Large said.
Leave a Reply