Murray State is celebrating Homecoming this Saturday.

The Racers are 1-5.

They’ve lost 27 of their last 30 football games.

They’ve never beaten South Dakota.

And somebody in the Murray State athletic department looked at the schedule, saw the No. 9 Coyotes coming to town, and said:

Yep. That’s the Homecoming game.

Bold strategy.

South Dakota heads to Kentucky riding a two-game winning streak after beating Indiana State 44-14 and No. 25 Southern Illinois 31-10.

Murray State is coming off a bye week.

Which is probably necessary after the Racers somehow turned a 21-0 lead over North Dakota into a 55-28 loss.

But before we get into that masterpiece, let’s talk about the Coyotes.

USD is Starting to Look Like USD Again

Two weeks ago, the Coyotes had some legitimate problems.

Boise State rushed for 325 yards against USD.

Youngstown State followed with 343.

Meanwhile, South Dakota couldn’t consistently establish its own rushing attack.

Then Dakota Days happened.

USD ran for 204 yards against Indiana State and held the Sycamores to 113.

Last Saturday against Southern Illinois?

218 rushing yards for South Dakota.

98 for Southern Illinois.

The Coyotes piled up 486 yards on just 55 plays, averaging an absurd 8.8 yards per play in a 31-10 win over a ranked opponent.

Charles Pierre Jr. ran for 138 yards on 15 carries, giving him 247 yards over the last two weeks.

Lucas Feldkamp earned Missouri Valley Offensive Lineman of the Week honors.

And USD’s defense held Southern to 277 total yards.

Things are starting to come together.

Now comes Murray State.

A team allowing 229 rushing yards per game.

Sometimes the schedule hands you a pretty good opportunity to build momentum.

Sometimes it hands you Murray State.

Murray State Is in Year Three of Something

Head coach Jody Wright took over in 2024.

Since then, Murray State’s records have been:

2024: 1-11.

2025: 1-11.

2026: 1-5.

That’s 3-27.

Three wins.

Thirty games.

At what point does a rebuilding project become a historical preservation effort?

To Wright’s credit, he’s worked with some impressive people.

Nick Saban.

Kirby Smart.

Lane Kiffin.

He’s coached in the NFL.

Unfortunately, none of those people are currently available to play defense for Murray State.

The Racers are allowing 40.7 points and 450.2 yards per game.

They’ve given up 244 points.

They’ve scored 89.

And their only victory came against Valparaiso.

By nine points.

Murray State didn’t exactly announce its arrival with that one.

Congratulations on the 21-0 Lead

Two weeks ago, Murray State traveled to Grand Forks to play No. 5 North Dakota.

And for about 20 minutes, something incredible happened.

Murray State was actually good.

The Racers forced two early turnovers.

Scored twice.

Put together another touchdown drive.

And suddenly led 21-0.

On the road.

Against a top-five team.

An upset was brewing.

The Murray State faithful probably thought they were witnessing the beginning of something special.

They were.

Just not for Murray State.

North Dakota proceeded to score 55 unanswered points.

Fifty-five.

Without a response.

The Fighting Hawks eventually won 55-28.

Murray State led by 21 and lost by 27.

That’s not blowing a lead.

That’s blowing chunks on the Alerus Center turf.

The Racers went from potentially pulling off the upset of the season to watching North Dakota’s backups get valuable experience.

And the best part?

Murray State actually has something it can point to and say, “See, we can compete!”

Sure.

For about a quarter and a half.

The other two and a half appear to be optional.

Who’s Playing Quarterback?

This is where Murray State’s season gets genuinely interesting.

And a little confusing.

The Racers started the year with #2 Collin Shannon.

Shannon threw for 405 yards and two touchdowns before suffering an ankle injury during the Valparaiso game.

So Murray turned to #4 Jim Ogle, who started games last season and has done most of the quarterbacking since Shannon went down.

Ogle has thrown for 412 yards, three touchdowns and four interceptions this year.

Oh, and his father, Jimmy Ogle, is Murray State’s assistant head coach and co-offensive coordinator.

Then there’s #3 Baxter Wright, who was also dealing with an injury earlier this season.

Wright had been in concussion protocol leading up to North Dakota, but returned to start that game.

He threw for 80 yards.

Ogle came off the bench and threw for another 65, including a 51-yard touchdown.

And #15 Blaze Berry has also thrown passes this year.

So that’s four quarterbacks who have seen action.

The combined result?

912 passing yards.

5 passing touchdowns.

7 interceptions.

Through six games.

For comparison, Austyn Modrzewski has thrown 19 touchdowns this season by himself.

Murray State has tried four different guys and is still averaging 152 passing yards per game.

That’s not a quarterback controversy.

That’s an ongoing casting call.

To be fair, injuries have played a significant role in the revolving door.

And Wright’s staff has tried to adjust, even incorporating Wildcat formations to get the ball directly into the hands of its running backs.

Which makes sense.

At some point, when the quarterback position gets that complicated, you might as well hand it to someone who doesn’t need to throw it.

There Are Some Actual Football Players Here

I don’t want to pretend Murray State is completely devoid of talent.

#5 Tyrell Campbell has rushed for 279 yards, averaging 5.4 per carry.

#9 Mykel Allen has added 234 yards and three touchdowns.

Those two have been the most reliable parts of an offense averaging only 269 yards per game.

At receiver, #13 Trey Firestone has been one of the better options in a passing game that hasn’t given him much help.

Defensively, #9 Dylan Rowsey is legitimately good.

The senior safety was an honorable mention All-American last season and led the FCS with 89 solo tackles.

Freshman defensive end #40 James Morrow also has real talent. He came out of IMG Academy with a long list of Division I offers.

So there are players on this roster.

Unfortunately, football requires 11 of them to work together at the same time.

And Murray has struggled mightily with that part.

Murray State’s Defense Is Basically a Loyalty Program

Here are the numbers.

Opponents are averaging:

40.7 points per game.

450.2 total yards.

229 rushing yards.

6.0 yards per carry.

Opposing quarterbacks have completed nearly 71 percent of their passes, throwing 15 touchdowns against one interception.

One.

Murray’s secondary has caught fewer opposing passes in six games than most quarterbacks throw on a single bad drive.

And if you think there’s a particular weakness to attack, the answer is yes.

Run it?

Six yards per carry.

Throw it?

Nearly 71 percent completions.

Apparently Murray State believes in giving opposing offenses options.

It’s nice to see a defense so committed to player development. Even when the players belong to the other team.

This is where Pierre and the USD offensive line should be licking their chops.

Pierre has rushed for 247 yards over the last two weeks.

Tennel Bryant just scored twice against Southern Illinois on four offensive touches.

Brayden White had 84 receiving yards.

Modrzewski completed 16-of-20 passes for 268 yards.

And now that the running game is working again, there are simply too many places for defenses to focus.

Murray has struggled against considerably less explosive offenses.

Saturday could be a very long afternoon.

Special Teams Isn’t Saving Them Either

Normally, when a team struggles offensively, you hope its special teams can steal a few points.

Murray State has apparently decided against that approach.

The Racers are 0-for-3 on field goals this season.

They’ve also missed three extra points, going 9-for-12.

Nine makes in 12 attempts.

On extra points.

Which are kicked from 33 yards.

I realize kicking isn’t easy.

But when you’re averaging fewer than 15 points per game, you would think there’d be a certain urgency about keeping the points you actually manage to score.

And at North Dakota, Murray State also gave up a 57-yard punt return touchdown during the 55-point avalanche.

The offense isn’t scoring.

The defense isn’t stopping anybody.

And special teams occasionally joins in to make sure nobody feels left out.

A real team effort.

The Series Has Been Extremely Competitive

Just kidding.

South Dakota and Murray State have played three times.

2023: South Dakota 38, Murray State 7.

2024: South Dakota 59, Murray State 0.

2025: South Dakota 49, Murray State 24.

Combined score:

South Dakota 146, Murray State 31.

USD has outscored Murray by 115 points in three meetings.

In 2024, the Coyotes went to Murray and ran for 361 yards.

The final was 59-0.

Last year, L.J. Phillips Jr. rushed for 244 yards against the Racers.

USD won 49-24.

At this point, the series history reads less like a rivalry and more like a recurring billing statement.

Murray State keeps showing up.

South Dakota keeps collecting.

And now the Racers have invited the Coyotes back for Homecoming.

I genuinely admire the optimism.

What I’m Watching

1. How Many Yards Does Pierre Get?

Two straight 100-yard games.

A Murray State defense allowing 229 rushing yards per contest.

And a recent history of USD running backs having career afternoons against this program.

This feels like an excellent opportunity for Pierre to continue building momentum.

The biggest question might be how many carries he actually needs.

2. Can USD Keep the Defensive Momentum Going?

After giving up 668 rushing yards against Boise and Youngstown, the Coyotes have allowed just 211 over the last two games combined.

That’s a huge improvement.

Murray State is averaging 117 rushing yards per game.

The defense should have every opportunity to keep the trend going.

And with North Dakota coming to Vermillion next week, there’s no reason to let old problems reappear.

3. Which Quarterback Shows Up?

Shannon has been injured.

Wright returned against UND.

Ogle has handled a significant share of the offense.

Berry has gotten snaps.

There’s also the Wildcat.

So the USD defense needs to be ready for a few different looks.

Not because Murray State is some offensive mastermind.

But because the Racers have had to get creative just to move the football.

4. Don’t Make This Interesting

Murray State led North Dakota 21-0 because UND gave away possessions and created short fields.

That’s the one legitimate warning from that game.

If South Dakota turns the ball over repeatedly, even an overmatched opponent can hang around.

The Coyotes should have learned that at Youngstown.

Don’t give Murray the football inside the 20.

Don’t allow special teams mistakes.

Don’t create unnecessary drama.

5. Can Murray State Survive Its Own Homecoming?

The Racers have had a week off to prepare.

They’re playing at home.

There will be alumni in town.

The band will play.

Someone will be crowned Homecoming royalty.

And then the football team will have to play No. 9 South Dakota.

Murray State has lost its first two conference games by a combined 67 points.

South Dakota has won its last two games by a combined 51 points.

The Coyotes are 3-0 all-time against the Racers.

And after this weekend, USD gets North Dakota and South Dakota State in back-to-back weeks.

This is not the time to get cute.

This is the time to take care of business and make sure that damn horse doesn’t get a lap around the football field.

No. 9 South Dakota at Murray State

Saturday, October 17

4:00 p.m. CT

Roy Stewart Stadium — Murray, Kentucky

ESPN+