Todd Golden
The Tribune-Star
INDIANAPOLIS —
It’s easy to forget that in Indiana State’s season-opener against Quincy last year, the Sycamores led by 17 in the first half before it all came crashing down in a soul-crushing defeat.
Indiana State running back Darrius Gates remembered. So he had some words for his teammates on the eve of Saturday’s game against St. Joseph’s.
“We were concerned about keeping the killer instinct and not getting satisfied. We were up on Quincy and we didn’t have that killer instinct. I talked to the team and told them in a meeting last night and told them we’d have the lead, but will we have the killer instinct?” Gates said.
ISU took a 23-point lead on the Pumas and then answered Gates’ question in the most emphatic fashion seen at Memorial Stadium in a long time.
The Sycamores never let their foot off the accelerator, amassing 517 total yards of offense. Combined with a stout defensive effort, the newly-productive Sycamores man-handled Division II St. Joseph’s for a 57-7 victory in front of 5,158.
ISU has a win to start its season for the first time since 1996. It was the largest margin of victory for the Sycamores since a 66-10 victory over Murray State in 1998.
“It’s good to get a win. We told the team this was a step we needed for the program. We needed to take a step. We haven’t been able to do this in the past. I think we’ve raised the talent level enough that we can do these types of things,” ISU coach Trent Miles said.
Gates played one of the biggest roles. He rushed for 160 yards and had three touchdowns — the first Sycamore back to rush for three scores since Sidney Montfort in 2004.
Gates led the way, but he wasn’t the only Sycamore to run wild. Freshman Shakir Bell piled up 133 yards on just 11 carries. Fellow freshman George Cheeseborough had 52 yards on six carries.
When all was said and done, ISU had 371 yards on the ground and a school-record seven rushing touchdowns.
“The offensive line is about attitude. Offensive line coaches [Mike] Simmonds and [Harold] Etheridge have changed this line’s mentality. We haven’t been strong up front in the last years, but now we’re upper classmen and we’re stronger up front. Those guys all have a winning attitude,” Gates said.
ISU was also stout on the defensive side. St. Joseph’s quarterbacks were sacked six times and Pumas quarterback Mike Hladik never got into a rhythm, completing just 5 of 13 pass attempts.
The sound play on both sides of the ball belied the fact that ISU was playing its first game. ISU had five penalties for 45 yards, but had few mental mistakes.
“We had first game jitters in our game and I was hoping Indiana State would have some in theirs. Not getting lined up, stuff we could exploit” St. Joseph’s coach A.J. Ricker said. “But they did a great job. They’ve got some players.”
On ISU’s first drive, the threat of a passing game, something ISU has not had for the last two years, paid dividends. ISU quarterback Ronnie Fouch faced a 3rd-and-1 from the ISU 29. ISU had Fouch roll right, and though he had Gates open for a short first down pass, Fouch patiently waited for tight end Alex Jones to get behind his defender. Fouch delivered a perfect pass to Jones, whose 43-yard catch put ISU in St. Joe’s territory.
Fouch would complete 10 of 21 passes for 143 yards.
Two plays later, Gates right around right tackle and beat St. Joseph’s cornerback Kevin Isom around the edge for a 22-yard touchdown run.
ISU rode Gates on its next drive as the senior gained 43 yards on seven carries to put the Sycamores into scoring range. On 2nd-and-11 from the St. Joe’s 22, wide receiver Bryant Kent took an end around over the right side and scored to put the Sycamores up 13-0.
A field goal at the end of the first quarter helped ISU go three-for-three on its first three drives as it took a commanding 16-0 lead.
ISU and St. Joe’s traded touchdowns in the second quarter. ISU went up 23-0 on a 3-yard touchdown by the 6-foot-2, 295-pound Hardy, the second touchdown of the big defensive tackle’s career. Hardy also had three sacks doing his usual job.
“It feels a lot better than last year. That was kind of a scrape-up touchdown,” said Hardy on his score. “We practice it. I appreciate the confidence [Miles] has in me to put in the game. He just tells me to be ready.”
St. Joe’s got on the board on its next play from scrimmage. The Pumas pulled off a perfect wide receiver option pass as Mack Ogletree found wide-open Scott Chapman for a 61-yard touchdown to make it 23-7.
It appeared that the Sycamores would settle for that halftime lead, but on a St. Joe’s punt, Justin Hilton found himself with an unimpeded path to Pumas’ punter Kevin Quackenbush inside the St. Joe’s 10-yard line. Hilton smothered the punt and calmly picked up the ball at the goal line for another ISU touchdown. The Sycamores led 30-7 at halftime.
“We had momentum and then we lost it. The worst thing you can do is have a blocked kick right before halftime,” Ricker said.
ISU didn’t let up in the second half. On the Sycamores’ first drive, ISU advanced to the St. Joe’s 36 when Gates ran a sweep around the right side. Released on a pancake block by Brock Lough, Gates went untouched for a 36-yard touchdown. Gates scored again on ISU’s next drive — a 3-yard touchdown.
The most impressive touchdown of the second half came on the first play of the fourth quarter. ISU had the ball at the St. Joe’s 25. Bell, playing his first collegiate game after being a Parade All-American at Warren Central last season, got an open lane on the right side. Bell put on the afterburners and jetted through St. Joe’s linebackers before they had a chance to get a hand on the freshman. Bell cut left and scored an impressive touchdown, a score which gave ISU a 50-7 lead, the first time ISU had reached the 50-mark since a 1999 game against Southern Illinois.
On ISU’s next drive, Bell’s one-time Warren Central teammate — George Cheeseborough — gave Sycamores fans a repeat performance as he broke away from St. Joe’s defenders for a 26-yard touchdown run to make it 57-7.
ISU returns to action next week at it travels to Big East Conference foe Cincinnati. The Bearcats were participants in the Orange Bowl last season. Cincinnati played Fresno State on Saturday and lost 28-14 on the road.
INDIANA ST. 57,
ST. JOSEPH’S, IND. 7
St. Joseph’s, Ind. 0 7 0 0 — 7
Indiana St. 16 14 13 14 — 57
First Quarter
InSt—Gates 22 run (Little kick), 13:12.
InSt—Kent 22 run (kick failed), 6:21.
InSt—FG Little 24, :41.
Second Quarter
InSt—Hardy 3 run (Little kick), 7:48.
SJIn—Chapman 61 pass from Ogletree (Quackenbush kick), 7:30.
InSt—Hilton 0 blocked punt return (Little kick), :34.
Third Quarter
InSt—Gates 36 run (Little kick), 10:35.
InSt—Gates 3 run (kick failed), 6:16.
Fourth Quarter
InSt—Bell 25 run (Little kick), 14:23.
InSt—Cheeseborough 26 run (Little kick), 11:13.
A—5,158.
SJIn InSt
First downs 11 23
Rushes-yards 34-104 44-371
Passing 138 143
Comp-Att-Int 8-22-0 10-21-0
Return Yards 26 63
Punts-Avg. 9-22.9 3-48.0
Fumbles-Lost 2-0 1-0
Penalties-Yards 11-105 5-45
Time of Possession 30:01 29:59
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
RUSHING—St. Joseph’s, Ind., Hall 16-75, J.Banks 8-19, Walker 1-15, VandeMerkt 4-9, McFadden 1-4, Ogletree 1-(minus 1), Hladik 3-(minus 17). Indiana St., Gates 19-160, Bell 11-133, Cheeseborough 6-52, Kent 2-31, Lough 2-6, Hardy 1-3, Team 1-(minus 1), Fouch 2-(minus 13).
PASSING—St. Joseph’s, Ind., Hladik 5-13-0-57, VandeMerkt 2-8-0-20, Ogletree 1-1-0-61. Indiana St., Fouch 10-21-0-143.
RECEIVING—St. Joseph’s, Ind., Walker 3-46, Chapman 2-72, Stephens 1-9, Ogletree 1-6, McFadden 1-5. Indiana St., Kent 3-33, Hilton 3-17, Jones 2-79, Gates 1-13, Bell 1-1.
