The Murray State football team will look to bounce back from its first OVC loss of the season Saturday, when it travels to Cookeville to tangle with Tennessee Tech. Kickoff from Tucker Stadium is scheduled for 1:30 p.m.
The high Saturday in Cookeville will be just 58, despite a fairly low chance of rain at eight-percent and low winds at 4-6 mph out of the SSQ.
The Racers put an end to a three-game skid in the season series last season, when they topped the Golden Eagles, 31-21 in Murray, to narrow Tennessee Tech’s lead in the series at 44-38-1. Murray State is 24-15 all-time in trips to Cookeville, where they have lost both of the last two meetings. The last win for the Racers at Tucker Stadium came in 2011, when Chris Hatcher’s quad knocked off the then 15th-ranked Golden Eagles, 38-37.
Tennessee Tech enters Saturday at 0-8 and 0-5 in the OVC, after falling at Austin Peay last week, 41-10. The Golden Eagles currently average 19.0 points per game, while allowing 51.0 points per game. Of their 346.1 yards of total offense per game, 143.8 comes on the ground, while the other 202.4 comes in the air. On the other side of the ball, Tech allows 272.6 rushing yards per game and 290.0 passing yards per game for 562.6 total yards per game. Bailey Fisher is 111-for-220 on the year for 1,385 yards with nine touchdowns and six interceptions while Darrius Stafford leads the Tennessee Tech receivers in yards at 269. On the ground, Andrew Goldsmith has 309 yards and a score, while defensively, Deontay Wilson has a team-high 75 tackles and Andrew Swicegood has a team-high 6.5 tackles for loss. On special teams, Nick Madonia continues to be one of the best kickers in the league as he is 11-for-17 on the season in field goals with a long of 54 and is17-for-17 on PATs.
With his 13 solo tackles against JSU, Quincy Williams now leads the FCS in solo tackles per game at 74. Williams currently leads MSU on the season with 82, including 59 solo.
The Murray State defense is currently 5th in the nation in defensive TDs with three. Jason Johnson recovered a fumble in the end zone against UT Martin, while Quincy Williams and Anthony Koclanakis had interception returns for touchdowns against UTM and Jacksonville State, respectively.
The Racers are currently eighth in the nation in punt return defense at just 2.67 return yards per punt. In addition, thanks to their strong punt return defense and spot-on punting from Steve Dawson, MSU is ninth in net punting at 39.8 yard per punt.
The Racers return home for the final time this season to take on Southeast Missouri State. The game has been selected by the OVC as one of their “wildcard” Game of the Week selections and will be broadcast on ESPN3. Kickoff is scheduled for 1 p.m. with Kevin Ingram and Bob Belvin on the call.
Courtesy of MSU Athletics