Freshman quarterback Taryn Christion accounted for 320 yards of total offense in his collegiate debut leading South Dakota State to a 24-7 victory over Indiana State in a battle of nationally ranked teams Saturday night at Coughlin-Alumni Stadium.
The Jackrabbits, ranked eighth in the STATS media poll and ninth by the Football Championship Subdivision coaches, improved to 4-1 overall and 1-1 in the Missouri Valley Football Conference. Indiana State, ranked 19th and 21st, respectively, fell to 3-2 overall and 1-1 in league play.
Christion, who replaced an injured Zach Lujan in the starting lineup, led the Jackrabbits on two long drives in the opening quarter. The first drive, a 15-play, 74-yard march ended with SDSU turning the ball over on downs at the ISU 1-yard line as the Sycamores stuffed running back Brady Mengarelli just shy of the goal line on fourth-and-goal from the 1.
A Sioux Falls native, Christion put the Jackrabbits on the board on their next drive, finishing off a 14-play, 90-yard drive that overlapped into the second half with a 10-yard touchdown run.
SDSU added to its lead behind the arm of Christion, who connected with All-America wide receiver Jake Wieneke three times on the next drive, the last completion covering 34 yards for a touchdown. Wieneke ended the game with five catches for 90 yards and his seventh receiving touchdown of the season.
The Jackrabbits appeared on the verge of blowing out Indiana State, but came up empty on three opportunities deep in Sycamore territory. SDSU drove to the ISU 6 in the closing seconds of the first half, but could not stop the clock before time ran out. The Jackrabbits also missed two third-quarter field goal attempts.
Indiana State cut the deficit to 14-7 midway through the third quarter as Matt Adam avoided a sack, scrambled across the field and found Gary Owens open in the end zone for a 43-yard touchdown.
SDSU regained the momentum, pushing the lead to 17-7 on a 21-yard field goal by Jay Carlson early in the fourth quarter. On the ensuing kickoff, Dallas Brown recovered the lob kick at the ISU 36, and Kyle Paris capped a six-play drive with his first collegiate touchdown, a 1-yard plunge.
The Jackrabbit defense kept the Sycamores off the board the rest of way, thanks in part to four sacks from its defensive ends. J.R. Plote tallied two sacks, with reserves Jared Blum and Chase Kern each adding one. SDSU notched nine tackles for loss in the game for a loss of 60 yards.
Linebacker T.J. Lally led SDSU with eight total tackles, while Indiana State’s Kendall Walker turned in a game-high 15 stops.
SDSU held a 428-284 advantage in total offense, with the Jackrabbits picking up 30 first downs. Christion completed 15-of-24 passes for 221 yards and carried the ball 16 times for a game-high 99 yards. Paris added a career-high 49 yards on 12 carries.
LeMonte Booker led the Sycamore ground game with 67 yards on 15 carries. Adam completed 17-of-30 passes for 198 yards.
The Jackrabbits resume conference play Oct. 17 at Youngstown State. Kickoff is slated for 4 p.m. Eastern (3 p.m. Central).
