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MURRAY, Ky. – The #17 Eastern Kentucky University football team piled up 533 total yards of offense and forced four turnovers to hold on for a 46-35 conference victory over host Murray State Saturday afternoon. With the win, the Colonels improve to 7-2 overall and 6-0 in the OVC while the Racers fall to 2-6 and 1-4.
Senior running back Bobby Washington finished with a personal-high 190 yards rushing, including a 99-yard touchdown scamper on Eastern’s second offensive play of the game. That run was the longest in conference history, besting the previous record of 97 yards held by three people including EKU’s Don Daly (1951). Fellow senior Mark Dunn added a 57-yard rushing score in the third quarter on his way to 112 total yards on the ground.
Not to be outdone, senior defensive back Derrick Huff tallied three interceptions to raise his season total to eight, which is a conference high. The Colonel defense almost doubled its sack output for the year by notching nine against the Racers. Senior Cardius Dowell finished with three sacks while junior Chris Coy added two.
Eastern Kentucky held a slim 24-21 at the break, but scored on its first possession of the second half to extend its lead to 31-21. Senior wide out Quinton Williams capped the six-play drive with his second touchdown catch of the day, a seven-yard reception from junior quarterback Allan Holland.
Freshman Logan O’Connor’s personal-long 48-yard field goal later in the quarter then pushed the Colonel advantage to 34-21. On Murray State’s ensuing possession, a Dowell sack led to a Racer fumble and safety to make the score, 36-21.
It looked like Eastern had built a comfortable cushion after Dunn recorded his 57-yard touchdown run right before the end of the third quarter to push the Colonel lead to 22 points, 43-21. However, Murray State rallied with two touchdowns in the fourth quarter to cut the deficit to eight points, 43-35.
The Colonels were finally able to put the game away by recovering an on-side kick and converting a 34-yard field goal with 2:37 remaining.
The two teams combined for 1,052 yards of total offense on the afternoon. Murray State quarterback Jeff Ehrhardt threw for 344 yards and five scores. Meanwhile, Holland compiled 183 passing yards and two touchdown passes, including a season-best 72-yard second quarter strike to Williams.
Eastern Kentucky has the next week off before hitting the road to face Austin Peay on Nov. 10. A win over the Governors would clinch the OVC title for the Colonels.
NOTES
--Quarterback Allan Holland went 201 passes without throwing an interception. Murray State’s Marvin Robinson picked off a Holland pass attempt in the middle of the third quarter. It was Holland’s first interception in eight starts this year.
--Defensive back Derrick Huff now has 13 career interceptions.
--Murray State went 4-for-6 on fourth down conversions against Eastern. The Racers scored on a 4th-and-6 play in the second quarter when Jeff Ehrhardt hit Marcus Harris for a 36-yard touchdown completion.
--This was the third consecutive week Eastern Kentucky registered at least 500 yards of total offense.
--Eastern was +3 in turnover margin Saturday and improved to +20 for the season.
