Topic: Eastern Kentucky University Foot
Murray State vs. Eastern Kentucky University
Roy Kidd Stadium
Eastern Kentucky University
Richmond, KY
November 5, 2016
© 2016 by Ron Harrison
Eastern Kentucky University led 20-7 early in the third quarter but Murray State rallied behind three second half touchdown passes by KD Humphries to earn a 41-28 victory. Murray State recorded 17 first downs and 404 yards of total offense. The Racers were penalized seven times for 72 yards and had a pass intercepted. Eastern Kentucky University recorded 29 first downs and 474 yards of total offense. The Colonels were penalized six times for 54 yards, lost three fumbles, and had a pass intercepted. Eastern Kentucky ran more plays (91-70), recorded more first downs (29-17), and recorded more total yardage (474-404) than Murray State but turnovers and the inability to defend Murray State’s top receivers in the second half proved to be to much to overcome. The Racers were six of seven in red zone opportunities including four touchdowns while Eastern Kentucky was three of six including two touchdowns. Eastern Kentucky only connected on one of four field goal attempts as Lucas Williams missed from 48 and 32 yards, connected from 21 yards, and had a kick blocked from 28 yards. Z. Burgy-VanHoose missed an attempt from 19 yards.
Demetric Johnson led Murray State’s ground game with 41 yards on 11 carries. Mareio McGraw carried the ball 14 times for 28 yards and two touchdowns. KD Humphries completed 21 of 33 passes for 338 yards and three touchdowns with one interception. Jordon Gandy caught six passes for 218 yards and two touchdowns. Jonathan Moss added four receptions for 55 yards and a touchdown. Jensen Feggins also caught four passes for 34 yards. D’Montre Wade returned one kickoff for 37 yards. Landon Stratton punted five times for an average of 44.4 with a long punt of 50 yards with one punt inside the 20 yard line. Zachary Wade led the defense with eight solo and nine assisted tackles with one fumble recovery. Lamon Crittendon added three solo and seven assisted tackles. Troy-Wayne Quinn recorded three solo and two assisted tackles with three of his tackles resulting in losses totaling 18 yards and intercepted a pass. Jordon Gandy and Chris Stahl each recovered a fumble.
Ethan Thomas led Eastern Kentucky’s ground game with 55 yards and a touchdown on 12 carries. James Smith carried the ball six times for 46 yards and a touchdown. Henry Enyenihi recorded 35 yards on 10 carries. Tyler Swafford completed 22 of 46 passes for 289 yards with one interception. James Smith completed three of three passes for 39 yards. Ryan Markush caught nine passes for 82 yards. Dan Crimmins added six receptions for 124 yards. Devin Borders added five receptions for 82 yards. Jared Sanders returned four kickoffs for 122 yards with a long return of 38 yards. Keith Wrzuszczak punted four times for a 42.0 average with a long punt of 48 yards with two punts inside the 20 yard line. Jeffrey Canady led the defense with 12 solo and five assisted tackles with two of his tackles resulting in losses totaling nine yards. Ben Bascom added four solo and one assisted tackles with three of his tackles resulting in losses totaling 19 yards. Tre’ Moore intercepted a pass.
Scoring Summary
| School | Q1 | Q2 | Q3 | Q4 | Final |
| Murray State | 0 | 7 | 21 | 13 | 41 |
| Eastern Kentucky University | 8 | 10 | 2 | 8 | 28 |
| EKU | - | James Smith 33 yard run (Nigel Bethel run) |
| EKU | - | Ethan Thomas 6 yard run (Lucas Williams kick) |
| MUR | - | Mareio McGraw 1 yard run (Connor Mitchell kick) |
| EKU | - | Lucas Williams kicks a 21 yard field goal |
| EKU | - | Team safety |
| MUR | - | Jordon Gandy 9 yard pass from KD Humphries (Connor Mitchell kick) |
| MUR | - | Jordon Gandy 74 yard pass from KD Humphries (Connor Mitchell kick) |
| MUR | - | Jonathan Moss 10 yard pass from KD Humphries (Connor Mitchell kick) |
| MUR | - | Connor Mitchell kicks a 38 yard field goal |
| MUR | - | Mareio McGraw 8 yard run (Connor Mitchell kick) |
| EKU | - | Tyler Swafford 1 yard run (Devin Borders pass from Tyler Swafford) |
| MUR | - | Connor Mitchell kicks a 30 yard field goal) |
Selected Statistics
| Murray State | ||||
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| Rushing | No. | Yds. | Avg. | Long |
| Demetric Johnson | 11 | 41 | 3.7 | 10 |
| Mareio McGraw | 14 | 28 | 2.0 | 8 |
| Jordon Gandy | 1 | 5 | 5.0 | 5 |
| KD Humphries | 8 | 5 | 0.6 | 9 |
| Team | 2 | -2 | -1.0 | 0 |
| Mitch Stults | 1 | -11 | -11.0 | 0 |
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| Passing | A-C-I | Yds. | TD | Long |
| KD Humphries | 33-21-1 | 338 | 3 | 74 |
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| Receiving | No. | Yds. | TD | Long |
| Jordon Gandy | 6 | 218 | 2 | 74 |
| Jonathan Moss | 4 | 55 | 1 | 20 |
| Jensen Feggins | 4 | 34 | 0 | 11 |
| Mareio McGraw | 2 | 3 | 0 | 8 |
| Demetric Johnson | 1 | 4 | 0 | 4 |
| Rajai Perkins | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Tyre Gray | 1 | -2 | 0 | 0 |
| Jesse Blackburn | 2 | 25 | 0 | 15 |
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| Eastern Kentucky University | ||||
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| Rushing | No. | Yds. | Avg. | Long |
| Ethan Thomas | 12 | 55 | 4.6 | 23 |
| James Smith | 6 | 46 | 7.7 | 33 |
| Henry Enyenihi | 10 | 35 | 3.5 | 19 |
| Daryl McCleskey | 4 | 22 | 5.5 | 10 |
| Jared Sanders | 4 | 11 | 2.8 | 6 |
| Tyler Swafford | 6 | -23 | -3.8 | 2 |
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| Passing | A-C-I | Yds. | TD | Long |
| Tyler Swafford | 46-22-1 | 289 | 0 | 48 |
| James Smith | 3-3-0 | 39 | 0 | 25 |
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| Receiving | No. | Yds. | TD | Long |
| Ryan Markush | 9 | 82 | 0 | 16 |
| Dan Crimmins | 6 | 124 | 0 | 28 |
| Devin Borders | 5 | 82 | 0 | 48 |
| Cameron Fogle | 3 | 24 | 0 | 11 |
| Ethan Thomas | 2 | 16 | 0 | 14 |
Acknowledgements
A special thanks to EKU Stats for the comprehensive stats provided for tonight's games.
Please feel free to send your comments and questions concerning the event, teams, or players to me at prepgridiron@yahoo.com.
Ron Harrison’s reports on this and other football events appear on https://www.angelfire.com/ky2/prepgridiron.