DE Assistant Sports Editor

Last year was totally distasteful. I didn’t like it, and what do I plan to do about it?

Saluki head football coach Shawn Watson said Tuesday about going 0-6 in the Gateway Conference last season. With his squad’s 2-2 start, Watson said things are much different heading into the 1995 league schedule on the road Saturday against Indiana State.

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Our prospects are bright, he said. We’re light years ahead of where we were last year. It’s not even close.

Some of the stars that make up the future of the team include freshman running back Karlton Carpenter, who led Division I-AA in kickoff returns for three weeks; sophomore quarterback Danny Smith, who in two and a half games has thrown for 487 yards and a touchdown and sophomore Ryan Smith who leads the squad in tackles for losses with 4 for 36 yards.

Watson, however, said he was most impressed Saturday by a Saluki elder statesman, senior safety Darnell Hendricks in the Dawgs 48-20 rout of Nicolls State.

It was probably one of the best defensive performance I’ve ever witnessed any secondary or safety play, he said. He was a dominator. He had 11 hits, two broken-up passes, and two interceptions.

He graded out at an all-time high of 59 points in our defensive points system.

Watson said the style of football the Salukis play will serve them well through the conference season.

Basically, what we like to do wins in the Gateway. It’s Midwest football,’ he said. You’ve got to factor in the weather into account later in your season, which means you have to have a good rushing game.

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You’ve got to be able to rush the football before you can pass it.

And rush it the Dawgs have.

After 4 games, the Salukis have taken the low road, rushing 157 times for 494 while attempting only 103 passes.

Entering his second Gateway season, Shawn Watson thinks he has a pretty good grasp of what it will take to contend for the league title.

Whoever wins at home and doesn’t get on taken away from them and whoever stays healthy … is going to have a chance to win it all, he said.

SIUC seems to have the home-win scenario brewing as the Dawgs finally broke their 10-game home losing streak Saturday, defeating Nicholls State.

The Salukis have also been relatively injury-free this season. According to Watson, only defensive end Cortes Washington (week-to-week, recovering from knee surgery) and wide receiver Aaron Baker (out at least 2-3 more weeks, recovering form a fractured bone in his foot) are the Salukis’ most serious injuries.

Running back William Tolen, who separated his shoulder against Murray State, Sept. 9, was back to practice Sunday, but faced no contact. Watson said Tolen is still probably a week away from full-contact in practice, and is not quite sure when he will return to the lineup.

In addition to health and winning at home, Watson said the conference title will hinge upon the play of new faces around the league.

None of the coaches knew on press day that I had Johnny Thomas here and I had Danny Smith here. And I’m sure there’s people on their (Gateway coaches) rosters, I’m finding out, I didn’t know they had either, he said.

The I-AA preseason polls throw them out the window, because it can change dramatically in a heartbeat.