2006 Week 2

For a quarter, Southern Illinois may have dared to hope for the impossible, as they completed the first 7 minutes down only 14-7 to the 10th-ranked Louisville Cardinals.

But 53 seconds into the 2nd quarter, any hopes were dashed. A 6-yard touchdown pass from UL quarterback Alex Hayden to Samual Thomas kicked off a 28-point second quarter that saw the Salukis go into the locker room down 42-7.

Not much improved in the second half for SIU. Promising drives ended in turnovers, including a 102 interception return by UL defensive back Brandon Mann, the first of 2 defensive scores for the Cardinals. SIU never found a rhythm and succombed by a final score of 66-7.

"As crazy as it sounds, I was very proud of the way this team played in the 1st and 3rd quarters," said SIU head coach Turk Battle. "I wish we could have made some kind of effort in the second, and seen how things played out."

Running back Isaiah Mack dramatically improved on his poor performance against Illinois last week, running for 81 yards on 18 attempts.

The Salukis were able to stop the Cardinals on their initial drives in both halves, but turnovers and offensive stagnation prevented any kind of SIU upset bid.

"I think it's evident what we need to do to improve," said Battle. "We have to take care of the ball and find a way to stay on the field on 3rd down on offensive. And we have to get some pressure on the passer on defense."

Hayden, who had to leave the game on two different occassions (including Louisville's first play of the game), came back both times to post a perfect 12-for-12 performance, notching 152 yards and 2 touchdowns. Hayden's backup, Jason Sellers, faired almost as well, going 10-for-15 for 179 yards and a touchdown.

Louisville was big on 3rd down, converting 7 of 10 attempts. Southern, conversely, converted only 2 of their 10 3rd down plays.

SIU will travel to Minneapolis next week to take on the Minnesota Golden Gophers.

Game Notes: Strong safety Ben Bell is out of the season after suffering a broken collarbone.