Jakob Milani
Staff Writer
A 28-0 run in the second half sealed the deal as the Murray State football team defeated the Eastern Illinois Panthers 41-27.
After going down 27-13 in the third quarter, the Racers scored 28 unanswered points to get their fourth comeback win of the season.
The Panthers received the football to start the game and instantly made a statement when freshman quarterback Otto Kuhns completed a 35-yard pass to graduate wide receiver Robbie Lofton, who went down at the Murray State 35-yard line. The Racers’ defense got the stop though, forcing the turnover on downs and taking over from their own 33-yard line. The Panthers made another big play on their next drive, but sophomore linebacker Alec Long got an 11-yard sack on fourth down to force another turnover on downs. The Racers started their next drive on Eastern Illinois’s 45-yard line and started to make their way down the field. After freshman running back Demonta Witherspoon took a run 10 yards to the 18-yard line, he took back-to-back rushes to get in for the touchdown, giving the Racers a 7-0 lead to end the first quarter.
“I got a lot of people behind me,” Witherspoon said. “All the running backs, the tight end group. Everybody’s got each other, we all have each other’s back. We encourage each other to go harder every day. The guys up front, they got my back every game. They got my back and they know I got theirs.”
After a punt by the Racers early in the second quarter, the Panthers were in great field position. Kuhns completed a 13-yard pass to freshman wide receiver Matt Judd to move the Panthers up to the Murray State 26-yard line. Two plays later, Kuhns found Lofton in the endzone for the touchdown bringing the game to a 7-7 tie. The Racers answered on the next drive after long rushes from Witherspoon and junior quarterback Preston Rice set up a 45-yard field goal from graduate kicker Aaron Baum to give the Racers a 10-7 lead. The Panthers weren’t done, as Kuhns rushed for 16 yards on the first play of the next drive. Kuhns ran for another 22 yards a few plays later and set up a 34-yard field goal from freshman kicker William Orth. At halftime, the game was tied at 10-10.
Trouble struck for the Racers early in the third quarter when Rice threw an interception to graduate defensive back Mark Williams, who took it all the way for a touchdown, making the score 17-10 in favor of the Panthers. The Racers answered on the next drive when a 23-yard pass completion to sophomore wide receiver Jacob Bell set up a 58-yard field goal for Baum, tying the second longest field goal in program history. The field goal made the score 17-13, but the Panthers changed that the very next drive. After a false start on the Panthers, freshman running back Jordan Smith ran the ball 80 yards for a touchdown on the first play of the drive, giving the Panthers a 24-13 lead.
Freshman running back Mark Thompson fumbled the reception on the following kickoff, allowing the Panthers to recover and take over at the Racers’ 13-yard line. The Racers’ defense stopped the Panthers from getting a touchdown and instead forced a field goal from Orth to make the score 27-13. The Racers started the comeback on their next drive as Rice hit senior wide receiver Dequan Dallas for a 15-yard touchdown reception to make it 27-20. On their next drive, Rice found graduate wide receiver Malik Honeycutt for a 38-yard gain, placing the Racers at the Panthers’ two-yard line. The next play, Rice took it for the touchdown, making the score 27-27 at the end of the third quarter.
The Racers started the fourth quarter with another field goal from Baum to make the score 30-27, marking Baum’s third field goal of the day.
Baum was a perfect 4-4 on field goals on the day, including the 58-yard field goal in the third quarter. He said coming back to win these types of games is unbelievable.
“It feels like we’re never out of it,” Baum said. “No matter what happens or how we’re behind, we keep coming back and winning games. This team is resilient. It’s gonna pay off a lot moving forward and deeper into the season, playing some good teams. The locker room is great and electric right now.”
The Racers weren’t done as on their next drive, Rice found junior wide receiver LaMartez Brooks down the field for a 22-yard gain, setting up yet another field goal for Baum to make the score 33-27. Sophomore cornerback Marcis Floyd intercepted a deep pass from Kuhns on the Panthers’ next drive. Floyd took the ball back to the Panthers’ 43-yard line. Though the Racers didn’t score on that drive, they were given good field position on their next drive when Honeycutt took a punt return from the Racers’ 46-yard line to the Panthers’ six-yard line. Two plays later, Witherspoon rushed for the touchdown. The Racers then ran a trick play to get the two-point conversion, making the score 41-27. The Panthers had little time left to score, and on their next drive Kuhns threw another interception, this time to junior defensive back Jared McCray. This sealed the deal and the Racers walked away victorious, defeating the Panthers by a score of 41-27.
Kuhns was 10-26 passing in the game for the Panthers with 141 passing yards, one passing touchdown, two interceptions and 64 rushing yards. Lofton had 58 receiving yards and one receiving touchdown. Smith had 142 rushing yards on 13 rushing attempts and one rushing touchdown.
For the Racers, Rice was 10-23 passing with 192 passing yards, one passing touchdown, one interception, 51 rushing yards and one rushing touchdown. Brooks had 88 receiving yards from 11 receptions. Long had a team-high eight tackles with one tackle-for-loss, one sack and a pass breakup.
Floyd finished the game with six tackles, a forced fumble, two pass breakups and an interception. He said after the game that he’s been working hard every week to help the team get to where they are now.
“I’ve just been trusting the process, trusting the coaches, trusting what they’ve been doing knowing that it’s for the greater good of the team,” Floyd said. “I’ve just been doing my job and making plays.”
Head Coach Dean Hood is now 5-0 in his first season as the Racers’ head coach. He said Eastern Illinois was just what they thought they would be coming into the game.
“They are an improving team,” Hood said. “They were what we thought they were: a team on the upswing. We knew we were in for a fight from the get-go.”
When the Racers were down 27-13 in the third quarter, Hood told the team what they’ve been saying all season.
“There’s gonna be a lot of swings in the game and a lot of momentum changes,” Hood said. “You’ve gotta be a great encouragement to your teammates…If the offense does bad, the defensive guys are quick to say ‘Don’t worry, we’re gonna get the ball back for you.’ Those guys are quick to have each other’s back.”
The Racers improve to 5-0 on the season. The win over Eastern Illinois is the Racers fourth comeback win over the season. The Racers play at Austin Peay State University on Saturday, April 3 at 2 p.m.
