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SCOTT NANNEY/Ledger & Times Photo
Murray State tailback Chad Cook (28) rumbles down the field on this first-quarter carry during the Racers' 42-21 loss to Tennessee Tech on Saturday at Cookeville, Tenn. Cook finished the afternoon with 65 yards rushing on 16 carries as MSU rolled up 475 yards in the losing effort. |
Battered Racers limp off with loss at Tech
By SCOTT NANNEY
Sports Editor
COOKEVILLE, Tenn. - Halloween is still almost a full month away. But it appears as if the Murray State football team has already been spooked.
Tucker Stadium - MSU's personal house of horrors the past several seasons - served as the sight for a frightful Saturday for the beaten and battered Racers, who limped to a 42-21 defeat in their Ohio Valley Conference opener at Tennessee Tech.
In what is quickly becoming a scary trend, the Racers (1-3, 0-1 OVC) had little to show on the scoreboard for their offensive efforts. Meanwhile, a young and inexperienced Murray defense continued to struggle in surrendering 35 unanswered points to a Golden Eagle squad that entered the weekend have scored just six points in its last eight quarters.
To add injury to insult, the Racers lost the services of their two top offensive playmakers - quarterback Ken Topps, who left the game in the first half after re-aggravating a shoulder injury, and tailback Nick Turner, who was pulled early on after twisting an ankle - and offensive lineman Jonathan Harper. The status of those three players for this weekend's home contest against two-time defending league champion Jacksonville State was unknown following Saturday's game.
The gory scene on the Tucker Stadium turf was almost too much for MSU head coach Joe Pannunzio to take.
"We're not a very good football team right now," said the sixth-year Racer field boss. "Our backs our against the wall. We've got two choices: We can either lay down and die or get better. I know what myself and my staff and the players are going to do; we're going to keep fighting."
The Racers began the sun-splashed afternoon in relatively good fashion, tying the score at 7-7 when Topps scampered 21 yards for a touchdown with 6:05 remaining in the second quarter, capping a 7-play, 63-yard drive.
More good fortune came on the ensuing kickoff, as Chris Fountain's hit on Tech return man Larry Shipp caused a fumble at the TTU 21. Freshman Dominic Spinks scooped up the loose ball and raced 21 yards into the end zone for a Racer touchdown and a 14-7 lead.
But that's where the Racers' momentum stopped, as the Golden Eagles answered with quarterback Stephen Britton's second of a record-tying five touchdown passes to wide receiver Brent McNeal with 4:08 left in the half, knotting the score at 14-14.
Tech took the lead for good with 1:21 remaining, as Britton connected on a 63-yard bomb to Shipp to make the score 21-14 Golden Eagles at the halftime break.
Britton, who did not have a touchdown pass and had thrown eight interceptions entering Saturday's play, took his frustrations out on a weak Racer secondary, throwing for 211 yards on 14-of-18 attempts. His five scoring tosses in a game tied the school record, set by former Tech signal caller Grant Swallows in 2000.
McNeal also tied a school single-game record with three touchdown receptions. On the day, the Golden Eagle offense racked up 406 total yards - throwing for 227 while rushing for 179. Shipp led all TTU receivers in yardage with five catches for 100 yards.
"Our corner positions are collectively getting beat right now," said Pannunzio, whose struggling secondary is still trying to recover from the offseason losses of Laroni Gallishaw to the NFL and Onsha "Champ" Whitaker to an eligibility dispute with the NCAA. "We have to find some answers back there."
Offensively, the Racers had little trouble moving the ball - actually outgaining Tennessee Tech 475-406 in total yardage - but were unable to translate those yards into more than two scores. Murray attempted to convert on five fourth-down tries, but were successful only twice.
One of those tries came on the opening possession of the second half. Trailing 21-14, the Racers faced a fourth-and-1 at the Tech 15-yard line. Pannunzio contemplated sending place-kicker Gary Crass onto the field for a short field goal try, but elected to go for the first down instead. But tailback Chad Cook was stopped for no gain on the play, turning the ball back over to the Golden Eagles. The decision proved costly as Tech drove 85 yards in 10 plays to effectively put the game away on Britton's 22-yard scoring strike to NcNeal with 6:07 left in the period.
"There were a couple of times that I looked over at Gary and hesitated," Pannunzio admitted. "That's something I've got to work on. I've got to get confidence in Gary and just send him out there."
Murray State managed one more scoring drive in the game, capping a 7-play, 72-yard drive with an 8-yard touchdown pass from backup quarterback Ryne Salyer to wideout Maurice Marchman with 4:31 left in the game. But it was too little too late for the Racers.
Salyer fiinished the day 16-for-31 passing for 218 yards and the one scoring toss. Topps was having a solid day before being forced to leave the game with the shoulder injury, completing 10-of-17 passing attempts for 107 yards while rushing for 40 more on 13 carries. Topps and Salyer combined to give MSU its first 300-yard passing day since Stephen Hatchell threw for 327 yards against Eastern Kentucky on Nov. 1, 2003.
"Ken is an incredible athlete. I just hope we can get him back for next week," Pannunzio said. "But if he's not ready, I have all the confidence in the world in what Ryne can do."
One bright spot for the Racers offensively was the play of junior receiver Jonathan Eiland, who had a breakout performance with 136 yards on 10 catches. Freshman tailback Robbie Wise was also impressed the coaching staff, racing for 46 yards on 11 carries.
"If there's anything positive that came out of this it is Robbie Wise," said Pannunzio. "He gives us another option in the backfield."
The Racers now find themselves in a precarious position, already down one game in the conference standings with the defending champion Gamecocks looming for a 6 p.m. showdown on Saturday at Roy Stewart Stadium. To make matters worse for MSU, Jacksonville State will enter this weekend's play off a 31-14 loss at Eastern Kentucky - just its third loss in league play since joining the OVC in 2003.
"It comes at a bad time," Pannunzio said of the Gamecocks' visit. "But we've got to pick ourselves up and somehow get ready play."
Story created Oct 03, 2005 - 11:39:33 EDT.
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