BROOKINGS, S.D. (KELO.com) — South Dakota State followed its worst offensive quarter of the season with a 35-point outburst in the second quarter to steamroll past Dixie State, 55-7, in the 54th Beef Bowl game Saturday night at Dana J. Dykhouse Stadium.
The Jackrabbits ranked second in the Football Championship Subdivision media poll conducted by Stats Perform and third by the FCS coaches, remained undefeated for their first 4-0 start to a season since 2000. Dixie State dropped to 0-4 on the year.
The Jackrabbit offense sputtered in the early going, picking up only one first down and being forced to punt on each of its first four possession as it netted only two yards in 15 offensive plays.
As the game flipped to the second quarter, the floodgates opened. The Jackrabbits’ next 16 offensive plays yielded 106 yards and three touchdowns.
Pierre Strong, Jr., opened the scoring with a 21-yard touchdown run two plays into the second quarter and added a 30-yard run to open the next drive, kick-starting a six-play, 72-yard march that ended with an 11-yard touchdown pass from Chris Oladokun to tight end Mike Morgan with 7 minutes and 6 seconds remaining in the stanza.
A tick under a minute later, the Jackrabbit lead grew to 21-0 as backup cornerback Dalys Beanum picked off a Kenyon Oblad pass and returned the interception 36 yards for a touchdown.
After Dixie State fumbled the ensuing kickoff at its own 38, SDSU cashed in on the short field with Strong scoring his second touchdown of the night, this one from 3 yards out one play after Jaxon Janke’s catch and run on an Oladokun screen pass on third-and-14 went for 39 yards.
The final SDSU touchdown of the quarter was a 4-yard pass from Oladokun to another tight end, Zach Heins, from 4 yards out to cap a nine-play, 81-yard drive that was aided by a pair of Thunderbird penalties. The Jackrabbits’ 35 points in the second quarter were the most in any quarter in program history in the Division I era, which dates back to the start of the 2004 season.
Jackrabbit reserves played the entire second half on offense, but the Jackrabbits extended their lead to 42-0 in the third quarter as backup quarterback Keaton Heide hooked up with Morgan for a 55 yard-touchdown down the left sideline.
SDSU turned interceptions from Steven Arrell and Daeton Mcgaughy into points on fourth-quarter field goals of 26 and 37 yards from Cole Frahm before third-string quarterback Rudy Voss led the Jackrabbits on their final touchdown drive of the night in the closing minutes. After taking over on downs, Josh Buri closed out the Jackrabbit scoring with a 6-yard touchdown run.
SDSU’s bid for back-to-back shutouts for the first time since 1962 was ended with six seconds remaining in the game as Dixie State put together its longest drive of the night. The Trailblazers’ 13-play, 75-yard drive ended with a 16-yard touchdown pass from Kobe Tracy to Cade Veach.
The Jackrabbits finished with a 404-253 advantage in total offense in which the SDSU defense held Dixie State to six net rushing yards after recording four sacks, nine tackles for loss and four interceptions. Arrell paced the Jackrabbits with seven tackles, including one for loss, and DyShawn Gales added six more from his cornerback position.
Strong led SDSU’s offensive effort with 88 rushing yards on 15 carries, while Morgan’s two touchdowns went for 66 receiving yards. Janke also caught a pair of passes for 48 yards and Tucker Kraft added two receptions for 20 yards.
Oladokun started the night 1-for-9 in the passing department, but completed seven of his final nine attempts for an 8-for-18 effort for 110 yards. Heide was 4-for-5 passing for 94 yards.
For Dixie State, Oblad was 14-of-25 passing for 126 yards, with Tracy ending the night 14-for-23 with 121 yards. Jalen Powell tallied seven receptions for 32 yards.
The Trailblazers’ Malaki Malaki was credited with a game-high nine tackles.
UP NEXT
The Jackrabbits open the home portion of the Missouri Valley Football Conference season with an Oct. 9 matchup against Southern Illinois. Kickoff is set for 2 p.m. at Dana J. Dykhouse Stadium.
NOTES
- Saturday’s game marked the first meeting between SDSU and Dixie State
- The Jackrabbits improved to 33-21 in Beef Bowl games
- The previous mark for most points in a quarter in the D-I era was 31 in the second quarter against Valparaiso in 2005
- Strong moved into fifth place on the SDSU career rushing charts with 3,321 yards, passing Dan Sonnek (3,304 yards from 1984-87)
- The Jackrabbits have yet to turn the ball over this season and have forced nine turnovers (seven interceptions, two fumbles) this season
- SDSU last intercepted four passes Nov. 3, 2018, against Missouri State
- The last time an SDSU player returned an interception for a touchdown was Oct. 12, 2019, when Don Gardner returned a Youngstown State interception 42 yards
- The Jackrabbits are 20-for-20 on red-zone scoring opportunities this season with 16 touchdowns
- SDSU set season highs with 10 penalties for 110 yards
- Jackrabbit tight ends Heins (3), Tucker Kraft (3) and Morgan (2) have combined for eight touchdown receptions so far this season
- Attendance was 14,473
