What to know about South Dakota at Southern Illinois
Nov. 1—SOUTH DAKOTA (6-2) AT SOUTHERN ILLINOIS (6-2)
WHEN/WHERE: 1 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 4 at Saluki Stadium in Carbondale, Illinois
RADIO: KQSF-FM 95.7 (Sioux Falls), Coyote Sports Network
STREAMING: ESPN+
RECORD LAST YEAR: USD 3-8; SIU 5-6
SERIES: Tied 4-4
LAST TIME: USD beat SIU 27-24 in Vermillion in 2022
LAST WEEK: USD lost to South Dakota State 37-3 in Vermillion, while SIU defeated Western Illinois 63-0 in Macomb, Illinois.
RANKINGS: USD is No. 9; SIU is No. 10
COACHES: USD — Bob Nielson (eighth year, 38-44); SIU — Nick Hill (seventh year, 42-45)
South Dakota has no time to wallow over last week's loss to South Dakota State, as the Coyotes go on the road for another MVFC top-ten matchup aginst Southern Illinois.
A win Saturday against the Salukis could do wonders for the Coyotes — placing them in position for a top-eight seed in the FCS playoffs — while a loss puts them further down the MVFC pecking order entering another stiff test against North Dakota.
However, to pull out a win will require USD to put forth a complete effort on both sides of the ball, something it failed to do last week against the Jackrabbits.
Southern Illinois appears to be finding its grove at this point in the season. Since getting stomped by Youngstown State on Oct. 7, Southern Illinois has responded by beating Murray State 27-6, handing SDSU its closest game in conference play in a 17-10 defeat, and shutting out Western Illinois 63-0 last week.
The Salukis, which also boast an FBS win over Northern Illinois, have relied on its defense for much of its success.
SIU is third in FCS in rushing defense, allowing just 2.54 carries per play, and second in tackles for loss, forcing 7.9 TFL per game. Linebacker's Branson Combs, Colin Bohanek and Zach Burrola have combined for 120 tackles and 6.5 sacks this season, while defensive end Tim Varga has 3.5 sacks.
"They have a very active front," USD coach Bob Nielson said. "They're very athletic, you have to block them. And you have to be consistent with your execution. I think they're a team that if you try to do too much against, with all the complicated looks that they give you, it's difficult. So you have to keep your package pretty tight and be able to execute that against multiple funds."
SIU is a balanced offense, having rushed the football 52 percent of its total plays, but has relied on its passing for much of its total production.
Senior quarterback Nic Baker, who won FCS offensive national player of the week after SIU's win over Southeast Missouri State in September, has completed 68 percent of his passes for 1,752 yards and 11 touchdowns through eight games.
Baker's primary targets are receivers Izaiah Hurtrup and Vinson Davis III, who have caught 33 and 34 passes for 448 and 435 yards respectively.
"That quarterback is a really good player," Nielson said. "He's very creative, he makes a lot of plays and extends a lot of plays."
