When the SIUC football team beat Southeast Missouri State 30-27 last Thursday, the Salukis used a powerful offensive line and quick running backs to punish SEMO and leads the Dawgs to victory.

Head coach Shawn Watson said he counted on the offensive line to make the running game go.

I wasn’t really surprised, I was glad to see it, he said. We did well across the board, I think we made strides in that area.

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Even though the line weighs an average of 305, Watson said the attention to fundamentals has made the offensive line better.

Our line is basically fundamentally sound and they continue to improve, he said. It’s nice to see our guys moving forward instead of backwards.

Senior captain Larry Mullins received Gateway Conference honors as the offensive line player of the week.

Watson said three lineman really stood out in the game against SEMO.

Larry (Mullins) played well, Steven Jones was unbelievable and Shane Kreke had outstanding game for us, he said. And the rest of the line gave us winning performances.

William Tolen led the Salukis with 106 yards, true freshman Karlton Carpenter gained 77 on nine carries and Coe Bonner chipped in with 48 yards. The 235 total rushing yards was the most by the Salukis since Watson has been the head man.

Watson said because the Salukis have so many talented running backs the ball will have to be distributed among them.

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William Tolen will get the start, he said. He’s a senior, he’s given us a lot of steady play and dedication through the couple years that he has been here.

He will be spelled by Carpenter and Coe Bonner and with the possibility of seeing Kevin Hannah. We didn’t have him all the way back last week, but he could see some return duty and maybe some time at tailback.

Carpenter, out of Dunbar High School in Chicago, also received Gateway accolades being named the special teams player-of-the-week for his 96-yard kickoff return, which gave the Salukis the lead for the final time against SEMO.

Tolen hyperextended his elbow, but Watson said he is healthy enough to play.

THROW THOSE DAWGS A BONE

The SIUC coaching staff gave bones out to the player who had the best game on each unit.

The offensive player was William Tolen and his 106-yard performance. Defensive end Ryan Smith was named on his side of the ball and Carpenter won the special teams award.

Freshman quarterback Reggie Kennedy’s 10 for 25 performance was not the debut Watson had hoped for.

Watson said Kennedy did all right considering it was his first collegiate start and will be at the helm against Murray State on Saturday, but the possibility of sophomore Danny Smith seeing some action is there.

Reggie will start the question now is will Danny Smith see some action and I can’t answer that now, he said.

The Dawgs open their home slate on Saturday at 1:30 against 1-0 Murray State.