Story by Nick Kendall
Staff Writer
nkendall1@murraystate.edu
Murray State football drops under .500 after another last-play loss to the No. 21 Jacksonville State University Gamecocks 14-12.
The Racers started their first play of the game with a first-down pass from redshirt sophomore quarterback Preston Rice to sophomore receiver Armani Hayes.
Jacksonville State’s first drive ended with an interception from Murray State’s redshirt senior linebacker Kendrick Catis, who then gained 11 yards.
The Gamecocks put themselves on the board first with a 45-yard pass from redshirt sophomore quarterback Zion Webb to redshirt senior wide receiver Jamari Hester with 15 seconds remaining in the first quarter.
Jacksonville State scored again in the second half from a 10-yard rushing touchdown from Webb.
With six minutes left in the second quarter, redshirt junior defensive lineman Tay Carothers forced a fumble which was recovered by redshirt junior linebacker Anthony Kocklanakis for a 34-yard carry.
The Racers flirted with a touchdown but Rice threw an interception on the goal line to redshirt sophomore safety Jeremiah Harris.
The third quarter, for the most part, was quiet for both teams until Rice powered himself two yards into the endzone for the Racers’ first touchdown.
With eight and a half minutes remaining in the fourth, redshirt senior defensive back T.J. Warren forced a safety, bringing the Racers’ deficit down to five.
Murray State got close enough for freshman kicker Zaden Webber to make his longest field goal attempt at 53 yards.
Rice picked up a first down on a fourth and long rush, which lead to Rice completing a pass to senior wide receiver James Sappington.
The pass set Webber up for a field goal around the same spot he made his previous one, but his kick missed a bit to the right, sealing Jacksonville State’s victory.
Head Coach Mitch Stewart let the freshman kicker know that while every kick may not go his way, he still trusts him.
“[Webber] showed a lot of guts in that moment right there with the type of kick that he made,” Stewart said. “If given the chance, I’d put it in his hands again.”
Stewart is also proud of the effort his team put up against their ranked opponent.
“I’m really excited about the way we played this football game,” Stewart said. “We only hurt ourselves that much against a top 25 team and then still had a chance to win it at the end; it says a lot about the football team.”
Catis lead the team in tackles with eight and finished with an interception. He and the rest of the team will do what they always do after every game regardless of the outcome.
“We’re going to feed off this game from this loss,” Catis said. “We just got to take it day by day.”
Rice completed 24 passes on 46 attempts, gaining 231 yards. He didn’t have any passing touchdowns but he did throw one interception.
Rice knows that this loss puts them at 4-5, but he isn’t too concerned with that.
“It’s just one game at a time,” Rice said. “We’re not worried about a record or anything like that. We’re worried about Tennessee Tech now and that’s what we’re going to go out there and prepare for on Monday.”
The Racers’ next game against Tennessee Tech University will be at 1 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 2, at Roy Stewart Stadium.