BROOKINGS – Mark Gronowski had a big game in his first start inside Dana J. Dykhouse Stadium as eighth-ranked South Dakota State hammered Western Illinois 45-10 in a Missouri Valley Football Conference game Saturday afternoon.
The true freshman from Naperville, Illinois, went 13-of-20 for 197 yards with a pair of touchdowns through the air and also picked up 120 yards on just four carries, scoring twice.
SDSU racked up 383 yards of offense in the first half while building a 42-10 advantage.
“I’m excited about the victory; really excited to play at home – I’m just excited to play football,” said SDSU coach John Stiegelmeier. “It’s been a long time and I know this is our third game, but it’s still a treat to be a part of this game and a part of this football family.
“A lot of guys stepped up today. I thought (WIU) played their tails off and we had some big plays and probably discouraged them. But, again, credit to our guys and I’m excited about the victory.”
The Jackrabbits kicked off to open the game and quickly forced a punt. They moved 81 yards on nine plays with Gronowski running through a defensive back on a 22-yard scamper to paydirt to open the scoring 4:20 into the contest.
Defensive lineman Cade Terveer picked off a pass soon thereafter, returning it 9 yards to the Leathernecks’ 32-yard-line.
Five plays later, Pierre Strong Jr. pushed the margin to 14-0 with a 1-yard TD run.
WIU got on the board via Mason Laramie’s 26-yard field goal at the 2:13 mark of the first. The visitors executed a fake punt near midfield earlier in the drive.
Gronowski hit Jadon Janke with a deep ball early in the second. The 44-yard connection put SDSU on top 21-3.
Isaiah Davis – who ran nine times for 118 yards – broke off a 40-yard TD rush midway through the second.
Gronowski essentially put the game out of reach with an 80-yard gallop to the end zone 4:55 before the half as the Jackrabbits opened up a 35-3 advantage. That came after DyShawn Gales intercepted a pass in the end zone on third-and-2 from the 3-yard-line.
After the Leathernecks scored their lone touchdown, Gronowski capped the big half with a 12-yard TD toss to Mason Leighton with 41 seconds showing on the clock.
Adam Bock paced a balanced SDSU defense with eight tackles and Michael Griffin added seven. Logan Backhaus and Chase Norblade added six stops apiece. Josh Manchigiah picked off a pass in the second half.
Cole Frahm went 6-for-6 on PAT kicks. He added a 39-yard field goal for the only second-half score – 10:35 left in the third.
Western Illinois quarterback Connor Sampson was 29-of-48 for 278 yards with a TD and three INTs. Dallas Daniels had six receptions covering 111 yards with a 3-yard scoring grab in the second.
The Leathernecks dropped to 0-2 on the season.
South Dakota State (2-1) is host to Youngstown State on Saturday at 2 p.m.
Notes (from SDSU Sports Information): The Jackrabbits improved to 7-0 in Dairy Drive games. … The victory marked SDSU’s 100th since joining the MVFC in 2008.
No. 8 SOUTH DAKOTA STATE 45,
WESTERN ILLINOIS 10
WIU (0-2) 3 7 0 0 – 10
SDSU (2-1) 14 28 3 0 – 45
First Quarter
SDSU – Mark Gronowski 22 run (Cole Frahm kick), 10:40
SDSU – Pierre Strong Jr. 1 run (Frahm kick), 6:51
WIU – Mason Laramie 26 FG, 2:13
Second Quarter
SDSU – Jadon Janke 44 pass from Gronowski (Frahm kick), 13:20
SDSU – Isaiah Davis 40 run (Frahm kick), 8:06
SDSU – Gronowski 80 run (Frahm kick), 4:55
WIU – Dallas Daniels 3 pass from Connor Sampson (Laramie kick), 2:58
SDSU – Mason Leighton 12 pass from Gronowski (Frahm kick), :41
Third Quarter
SDSU – Frahm 39 FG, 10:35
WIU SDSU
First Downs 19 24
Plays-Yards 77-382 66-531
Rushes-Yards 24-87 43-328
C-A-Int.-Yards 31-53-3-295 14-23-0-203
Fumbles-Lost 0-0 1-1
Penalties-Yards 5-15 6-57
Punts-Avg.-I20-TB 5-33.8-1-0 4-38.2-3-0
Kickoffs-Avg.-TB 3-56.3-1 8-52.8-3
Punt Returns-Yards-TD 1-0-0 1-5-0
Kickoff Returns-Yards-TD 3-15-0 1-28-0
Interception Returns-Yards-TD 0-0-0 3-9-0
Fumble Returns-Yards-TD 0-0-0 0-0-0
Miscellaneous Yards 0 0
Possession Time 24:34 35:26
Third-down Conversions 2-of-15 7-of-13
Fourth-down Conversions 3-of-5 0-of-0
Red Zone Chances-TD-FG 5-1-1 2-2-0
Sacks By-Yards 0-0 1-6
Field Goals 1-for-1 1-for-1
RUSHING: WIU – Iosefa Pua’auli 14-44, Tony Tate 5-36, Connor Sampson 3-4, Hunter Mason 1-4, Daniel Bender 1-(-1). SDSU – Mark Gronowski 4-120, Isaiah Davis 9-118, Jefferson Lee V 11-48, Pierre Strong Jr. 8-29, Jordan Meachum 6-12, J’Bore Gibbs 2-8, TEAM 2-(-2), Keaton Heide 1-(-5).
PASSING: WIU – Connor Sampson 29-48-278-3, Henry Ogala 2-5-17-0. SDSU – Mark Gronowski 13-20-197-0, J’Bore Gibbs 1-3-6-0.
RECEIVING: WIU – Dallas Daniels 6-111, Dennis Houston 9-74, Tony Tate 7-54, Nathan Karsjens 4-24, John Brunner 2-23, Mason Sikes 2-10, Iosefa Pua’auli 1-(-1). SDSU – Jadon Janke 3-70, Jaxon Janke 4-68, Mason Leighton 2-26, Pierre Strong Jr. 1-19, Jordan Meachum 3-14, Canyon Bauer 1-6.
DEFENSE: WIU – Greg Benton Jr. 9 tackles; Justin Nutof 9 tackles, FF; Herschel Blankenship 9 tackles; Ziare Williams FR. SDSU – Adam Bock 8 tackles; Michael Griffin 7 tackles; Logan Backhaus 6 tackles; Chase Norblade 6 tackles; Saiveon Williamson 5 tackles; Josh Manchigiah INT; Cade Terveer INT; DyShawn Gales INT; Caden Johnson sack.
A – 2,347.
