The Panthers gained nearly 300 yards in the first half Saturday against Indiana State but couldn’t get the ball in the end zone.

The second half was a different story.

Eastern (1-1) scored 21 points in the third quarter and overcame a 9-3 halftime deficit to beat the Sycamores 31-21 in the Panthers’ home opener.

“I told the offense (at halftime) not to get frustrated and just to go out and finish in the second half,” said Eastern acting head coach Mark Hutson. “They were doing a good job but they just had to stick together as one.”

The Panthers did just that.

Nearly eight minutes into the third quarter, running back Vincent Webb Jr. opened the second-half scoring on a 15-yard run up the middle to give the Panthers the lead for good.

He gained 71 of his game-high 179 rushing yards in the quarter.

Webb and Norris Smith became the first Panther teammates in school history to rush for more than 150 yards. Smith finished the game with 165 yards on 17 carries.

“We were able to hit the holes easy today,” Webb said. “The offensive line did a great job.”

Eastern’s offense finished with 629 total yards.

Wide receiver Micah Rucker, who was named Ohio Valley Conference Newcomer of the Week in the opening week, had another strong performance.

The junior caught six passes for 183 yards including two touchdowns of more than 60 yards.

“He’s a problem for any defensive back in the country,” Webb said.

Rucker’s first touchdown went for 62 yards and extended Eastern’s lead to 15 points.

Indiana State head coach Lou West said that play might have been the one that ended the game.

“You go out and you play hard and one big play and all of a sudden it’s ‘boom’ and you’re behind,” he said.

While the offense was moving the ball against Indiana State (0-2), the defense held the Sycamores down.

They didn’t give up their first touchdown until the first minute of the fourth quarter.

Defensive end Pierre Walters recorded two sacks and recovered a fumble.

“They were really susceptible to speed rush outside, and they left the inside wide open,” Walters said of his sacks. “I tried those moves a lot and it worked out in my favor.”

The Panthers began the scoring late in the first quarter.

After the Sycamores buried Eastern at their own 10-yard line, Webb and Smith combined to run the ball 11 times for 86 yards.

But the drive stalled at the Sycamores’ four-yard line and the Panthers were forced to settle for a 21-yard field goal by Zach Yates.

“We kind of struggled when we got into the red zone,” Webb said. “We kind of faltered. The mistakes that were made were our fault. The defense didn’t do anything that we hadn’t seen before.”

It marked the seventh straight game Yates has made a field goal.

Hutson said he planned on giving backup quarterback Cole Stinson two drives and decide which quarterback, Stinson or starter Mike Donato, would finish the game.

On Stinson’s second drive, he made the decision easy. The Panthers drove inside Indiana State’s 10-yard line and had a first-and-goal at the eight-yard line.

But two plays later, Stinson tried to force a pass into zone coverage at Rucker.

ISU junior safety Bryan Jackson cut in front of the pass and intercepted the ball in the end zone. He then ran 100 yards down the right sideline to put the Sycamores up 9-3.

“All I saw was green,” Jackson said. “When I picked it, I knew I was in the end zone.”

The Panthers were given good field position on the ensuing kickoff when Adam Kesler returned the kick 41 yards to Indiana State’s 47-yard line.

But on Eastern’s third play, William McDonald recovered a botched reverse pitch from Ryan Voss to wide receiver Justin Duhai and the Sycamores took over again at their own 32-yard line.

“We stumbled a little bit in the first half shooting ourselves in the foot,” said Donato, who finished 12-of-18 for 250 yards and two touchdowns.

It was Eastern’s ninth win in the last 11 meetings between the teams.

(Eric Hiltner/The Daily Eastern News) Senior running back Vincent Webb Jr. crosses up Indiana State’s junior defensive back Rafael Price during Saturday’s home opener at O’Brien Stadium.

(more…)