| It was a record-breaking day in Murfreesboro for the Blue Raiders on Senior Day Saturday.
Against the Florida Atlantic Owls (3-9, 2-6), Middle Tennessee (8-4, 5-3) set numerous records en route to a 77-56 win.
“It was a good win, I’m really proud of our team,” head coach Rick Stockstill said. “To me, the difference in the game was the offensive line. When you line up and the other team knows you’re not going to throw the ball and you rush for almost 500 yards, those offensive linemen deserve a lot of credit.”
Redshirt sophomore wide receiver Richie James broke his single-season receiving yards record set in 2015 (1,346) with 120 yards on four receptions. He now has 1,463 receiving yards on the season and is second on the all-time single-season all-purpose yards list. He also became the sixth player in NCAA Division I history to record 100 yards receiving and 200 yards rushing in the same game.
Redshirt senior running back I’Tavius Mathers, who owns the single-season all-purpose yards record, broke Vince Hall’s record of 1,439 rushing yards on an 8-yard run in the third quarter. The Murfreesboro native now has 1,504 yards on the ground this year.
The Blue Raiders also set a few team records in the win. They established new single-season highs with 6,188 total offensive yards, 481 points scored and 61 offensive touchdowns, and broke single-game records with 77 points, 757 total offensive yards and nine rushing touchdowns.
“I’m just glad we got a win,” James said. “You have two receivers at quarterback and we play like that – that was the first thing I thought about.”
It wasn’t exactly how they drew it up, but Middle got the job done behind an extremely potent rushing attack that ended with two players over 200 yards rushing. It was just the sixth time that feat has been accomplished in NCAA Division I history.
After losing redshirt freshman quarterback John Urzua in the first quarter to a concussion, Middle Tennessee switched to a wildcat offense and dominated.
“Coach just said play your game, be smart and don’t do any harm to the team, just make plays,” James said. “We practiced that like the last two periods of practice – we haven’t done it much.”
Once Urzua went down, James and fellow wide receiver Dennis Andrews took a spot in the backfield with Mathers on a majority of the plays. The three controlled the offense, leading the Blue Raiders to 495 yards rushing as a team.
James ran for 207 yards on 22 carries and added four total touchdowns (three rushing, one receiving). Mathers had 213 rushing yards and three scores on 18 attempts, and Andrews compiled 50 yards on the ground with three TDs and completed 2-of-3 passes for 73 yards.
The switch to a heavy running attack may have come at the right time against a Florida Atlantic defense that went into the contest ranked last in Conference USA giving up 222.7 yards per game on the ground.
“Honestly, I didn’t even know John was hurt; I just thought [offensive coordinator] Tony Franklin wanted to run the wildcat,” Mathers said. “I think we did a pretty good job of running [the wildcat] for most of the game.”
While the offense was rolling, Middle Tennessee’s defense did just enough to secure the win. They gave up 589 total yards (299 rushing, 290 passing) to the Owls, but came up with four interceptions of quarterback Jason Driskell.
Redshirt senior Jeremy Cutrer had two picks, and redshirt junior Mike Minter and junior DJ Sanders both had one. Sanders returned his 20 yards for his second pick-six of the season.
The victory gives Middle Tennessee its first eight-win season since 2013, the first year the Blue Raiders were in Conference USA. They also clinched their fifth season in a row with at least five league victories.
“I’m really proud of this football team and proud of this senior class and what they’ve accomplished, and I’m looking forward to playing for a bowl game,” Stockstill said. “I’m just really, really appreciative and proud of this football team and how they’ve sacrificed so much. They’ve overcome a lot.”
The Raiders will find out which bowl they will participate in during Selection Day on Dec. 4. |
