Updated 4:40 p.m. CARBONDALE – If it was a dog and cat fight, the dog definitely came out on top.

Southern Illinois-Carbondale forced six Eastern turnovers, building an early lead it never relinquished in a 48-7 victory over the Panthers Saturday at McAndrew Stadium.

The loss ended the Panthers’ season in the first round of the NCAA Football Championship Subdivision Playoffs. It was the ninth consecutive first round playoff loss for Eastern, a streak that dates back to 1989.

“They smoked us good,” Eastern head coach Bob Spoo said following the loss. “We didn’t play well, obviously. You can’t give them opportunities, as good as they are, and that’s what we did.”

The Panthers gained early momentum in the game, forcing a fumble by Salukis’ senior running back Deji Karim on the third play of the game. The Panthers capitalized off the turnover, scoring on an 11-yard end-around by sophomore wide receiver Lorence Ricks on fourth and 1.

But after that, it was all Salukis.

Southern scored 48 unanswered points, including 24 straight to end the first half up by 17.

The Salukis answered Ricks’ score with a 10-yard touchdown run by Karim on the team’s next drive.

Red-shirt freshman quarterback Paul McIntosh, who burned the Panthers for 115 yards on the ground, put in another score at the beginning of the second quarter with a 16-yard run on a quarterback keeper.

“The quarterback was a guy we were fearful of all week long,” Spoo said. “When you’ve got a quarterback like that who can do things like that, that puts a big stress on your defense.”

After a Southern field goal, Eastern senior quarterback Jake Christensen was sacked on the team’s next possession. The ball fell into the arms of Salukis’ sophomore defensive end Kyle Russo who returned it 28 yards to make the score 24-7.

Christensen finished the game 1-of-8 for 13 yards and one interception. He was sacked three times and had the one fumble. Christensen was relieved by senior quarterback Bodie Reeder early in the third quarter.

Christensen was seen icing his left arm on the sideline, but Spoo said he was taken out not for injury but because he was not performing well.

“We just needed a change,” Spoo said.

The pressure from the Salukis was present all game long as they finished with four sacks and seven quarterback hurries.

“We knew (getting pressure) was their plan all along,” senior center Chaz Millard said. “In the beginning we were kind of grasping them a little bit. We made some turnovers and we couldn’t recover from it. It was unfortunate.”

Reeder guided the team on its one positive drive of the game, getting the Panthers inside the Salukis’ one-yard line before junior running back Mon Williams was stuffed on fourth and goal. Reeder finished 6-of-10 for 67 yards.

Karim, who entered the game second in the nation by averaging 137.5 rushing yards per game, was thought to be the biggest threat to the Panthers, but it turned out to be McIntosh.

The freshman who was thrown into the fray Oct. 24, when the Salukis’ starting quarterback was injured, burned the Panthers on quarterback draws time and time again. He had 103 yards rushing by halftime, breaking a streak of 12 consecutive games the Panthers had gone without allowing a 100-yard rusher.

While McIntosh finished the first half with more than 100 yards, Karim also easily eclipsed the century mark and sealed the deal for the Salukis down the stretch. The Walter Payton Award candidate finished with 155 yards on 23 carries and two touchdowns, including a 58-yarder in the fourth quarter.

Williams was one of the lone bright spots for the Panthers, finishing with 107 yards on 20 carries. Junior linebacker Nick Nasti was Eastern’s leading tackler with 14 and junior strong safety Bobson Mercier had an interception, McIntosh’s lone blemish on the day.

The loss ended the Eastern careers of 14 seniors. Among that class who will need to be replaced are both starting safeties, both starting defensive tackles, the top two quarterbacks on the team’s depth chart, and three starting offensive linemen.

Southern advances to the second round of the FCS Playoffs and will host William & Mary next week in Carbondale.

Collin Whitchurch can be reached at 581-7944 or cfwhitchurch@eiu.edu.

Eastern senior quarterback Jake Christensen fumbles the ball as he is sacked by Southern Illinois senior linebacker Kyle Walker in the Panthers’ 48-7 loss to the Salukis Saturday in Carbondale. Christensen finished the game 1-of-8 for 13 yards, one interc

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