Photo courtesy of ISU Athletics

Courtesy of ISU Media Relations

MURRAY, Ky. – Murray State held off Indiana State’s two-minute drill late in the fourth quarter as the Sycamores fell in the Missouri Valley Football opener on Saturday night at Roy Stewart Stadium, 30-28.

The Sycamores (0-4, 0-1 MVFC) pulled the game back to within two points at the 3:15 mark in the fourth quarter as Cade Chambers connected on a three-yard fade route to Harry Van Dyne to bring the Indiana State sidelines back to life in the contest. The Chambers-Van Dyne connection was aided by a 21-yard completion by the duo on the previous play to set up the first-and-goal situation and highlighted a nine-play, 77-yard drive.

Following the scramble for the onside kick at midfield, Murray State (2-2, 1-0 MVFC) took possession attempting to run out the clock. The Racers ran the ball up the middle twice picking up two yards before an incompletion set up a punt and Indiana State’s final two-minute drill to attempt to win the contest.

The Sycamores final drive started at the ISU 10 with 1:33 remaining and the Sycamores moved the ball up to the 37 following a 15-yard completion from Chambers to Van Dyne. That’s where the drive stalled as the Murray State defense forced four consecutive incompletions to force the turnover on downs and close out the contest in the Missouri Valley Football opener for both squads.

Plez Lawrence made the most of his first collegiate start on Saturday afternoon as the redshirt freshman recorded 203 rushing yards on 29 carries and scored three touchdowns. The Kokomo, Ind. native took the ball between the tackles for a majority of the contest with a 31-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter his longest carry of the night.

Van Dyne posted a career-high 10 catches for 122 yards and a touchdown in a dominant receiving performance. The 6-5 wideout was Chambers’ favorite target through the air as the redshirt sophomore quarterback went 15-of-27 for 159 yards with a touchdown and an interception in his 2023 debut.

Garret Ollendieck recorded his first double-digit tackling effort of the season with 10 stops (nine solo). The junior linebacker posted 2.5 tackles-for-loss and 1.0 sacks on the night to pace the Sycamore defense. Geoffrey Brown added two tackles-for-loss among his seven stops in the game.

DJ Williams led Murray State with an 11-of-17 effort through the air for 157 yards and touchdown passes to both Cole Rusk and Q’Darryius Jennings. Cortezz Jones added 15 carries for 70 yards and a score on the ground.

Chris Hill, Jr. had a defensive touchdown for Murray State with a 32-yard pick-six, while Caldra Williford posted an early sack for a safety to highlight the Racer defense.

Sullivan grad Dakota Caton had two receptions for 19 yards. The ISU senior also ran in a 2-point conversion in the third quarter. 

How They Scored

• Murray State took the early 2-0 lead on a safety as Caldra Williford sacked Cade Chambers inside the end zone at the 12:03 mark in the first quarter to put the Racers ahead early.
• Following the safety, the Racers moved down the field on eight plays with DJ Williams finding Q’Darryius Jennings from two yards out for a touchdown pass in the right flat to give Murray State the 9-0 lead at the 8:17 mark in the first quarter.
• Plez Lawrence scored his first collegiate touchdown with 5:48 left in the second quarter as the redshirt freshman powered his way through the middle for a two-yard touchdown run capping a 14-play, 93-yard scoring drive to cut the lead down to 9-7.
• Murray State scored a late first half touchdown with 0:11 remaining in the second quarter on Cortezz Jones’ two-yard touchdown plunge to make it a 16-7 game at the break.
• The Racers recorded a pick-six on Indiana State’s opening possession of the second half as Chris Hill Jr. collected the tipped ball and returned it 32 yards to give Murray State the 23-7 lead.
• Lawrence answered for the Sycamores with a 29-yard touchdown run down the right sideline with 10:26 remaining in the third quarter. Dakota Caton converted the two-point conversion to make it a 23-15 game.
• Lawrence scored his third touchdown of the game with 13:48 remaining in the fourth quarter as the redshirt freshman broke a tackle on the way to a 31-yard score to cap an 11-play, 88-yard drive and make it a 23-21 game after the ISU two-point conversion failed.
• Murray State made it 30-21 as DJ Williams found Cole Rusk down the left sideline for a 37-yard touchdown pass at the 8:07 mark in the fourth quarter.
• Cade Chambers connected with Harry Van Dyne for a three-yard touchdown pass on the fade route on the left pilon with 3:28 remaining to provide the final scoring margin at 30-28.

Inside the Numbers

• Indiana State posted a season-high 30 first downs among a 394-yard effort on Saturday night at Roy Stewart Stadium.
• The Sycamores cracked 200 rushing yards for the first time in 2023 with 235 yards on 45 carries (5.2 ypc).
• Indiana State held onto the ball for a season-high 34:37 in the contest courtesy of three double-digit offensive drives in the game, including a 14-play, 93-yard drive that took 8:31 off the clock in the second quarter.
• Plez Lawrence (203) became the first Sycamore running back to crack 100 rushing yards on the season, while Harry Van Dyne (122) became the first Sycamore receiver to break 100 receiving yards in 2023.

News & Notes

• Plez Lawrence became the first ISU freshman running back to break 100 rushing yards since Shakir Bell in 2010 (146 vs. Illinois State).
• Lawrence became the first freshman in the MVFC to break 200 rushing yards in a single game since South Dakota State’s Pierre Strong Jr. went for 253 rushing yards and three touchdowns against South Dakota on November 17, 2018.
• Lawrence became the first ISU running back to crack 200 rushing yards since Dominique Dafney went for 244 yards and four touchdowns on November 23, 2019, against Missouri State.
• Harry Van Dyne became the first ISU receiver to post double-digit catches and 100-plus receiving yards since Dante Hendrix went for 10 catches, 121 yards, and a touchdown on October 16, 2021, against Missouri State.
• Garret Ollendieck posted the second double-digit tackling effort of his ISU career and first since he recorded 14 stops in the 2022 season finale against Missouri State.
• Cade Chambers became the third ISU quarterback to start a game in the 2023 season joining both Evan Olaes(twice) and Elijah Owens in the category on the season.
• The Sycamores dropped their MVFC opener for the sixth consecutive season dating back to 2016.

Up Next

Indiana State returns home to Memorial Stadium as the Sycamores welcome Northern Iowa to Terre Haute on Saturday, October 7. Kickoff between the Sycamores and the Panthers is set for 7 p.m. ET and will be carried live on ESPN+.