Defense Propels Jacks to Season-Opening Win

The South Dakota State defense was dominant from start to finish and the Jackrabbit offense scored a pair of touchdowns in the second quarter to open the Dan Jackson era with a 20-3 victory over 14^th-ranked Sacramento State Saturday night at Dana J. Dykhouse Stadium.

With the victory, the third-ranked Jackrabbits ran their home winning streak to 30 games dating back to the 2021 season.

SDSU moved the ball almost at will in the first half, but some stumbles in the red zone prevented the Jackrabbits from building a bigger advantage early in the game. After losing a fumble inside the 5-yard line on the opening drive of the game, SDSU had to settle for a 22-yard field goal by newcomer Eli Stader after being set up first and goal from the Sac State 3 after a 44-yard pass play from Chase Mason to Lofton O'Groske on the first play of the ensuing possession.

Another Jackrabbit miscue later in the first quarter, this time on a muffed punt that was recovered by Sac State at the SDSU 23, resulted in what would be the visitors' lone points of the night. The SDSU defense rose to the occasion on a short field, holding the Hornets to a game-tying 36-yard field goal by Grant Meadors.

The Jackrabbits took the lead for good with a methodical 15-play, 75-drive that chewed up more than seven and a half minutes between the end of the first quarter and start of the second period. Twice SDSU converted on fourth-and-short to keep the drive alive before Mason found fullback/tight end Andrew Gustad open in the right front corner of the end zone for a 4-yard touchdown.

After turning over the Hornets on downs, running back Julius Loughridge gained 58 yards on four carries to kick-start the next SDSU drive and O'Groske finished the eight-play, 69-yard march by taking a handoff from Mason around right end for a 3-yard touchdown run.

Meanwhile, a Jackrabbit defense that returned only one starter from last year's squad, limited Sac State to only three first downs in the first half. The Hornets did not complete a pass in the opening quarter and managed only 24 net yards rushing on 24 attempts for the entire game. Sac State's longest run of the night was 5 yards.

The two squads combined for five punts in the third quarter before the Jackrabbits tallied the lone points of the second half by way of a 28-yard field goal by Stader late in the final stanza.

SDSU finished the night with a 430-131 advantage in total offensive yards and a 28-7 disparity in first downs. The Jackrabbits held the ball for more than 41 minutes and limited their opponents to 2-of-13 on third-down attempts and 0-for-4 on fourth-down conversions.

A transfer from Fordham, Loughridge paced the Jackrabbit offense with 159 yards on 22 carries while Mason ended his first career start by completing 17-of-23 passes for 190 yards. Alex Bullock was the top pass catcher with six receptions for 49 yards, with O'Groske adding five catches for 76 yards and rushing three times for another 31 yards.

Cullen McShane registered a career-best seven tackles to lead the Jackrabbits and fellow linebacker Chase Van Tol was credited for four stops.

Sac State quarterback Jaden Rashada was limited to 11-of-27 passing for 107 yards and was picked off by Jayden Oliver late in the first half. Jordan Anderson was the top receiving target for four catches for 49 yards.

Derek Houston recorded a game-high 14 tackles and notched one of the Hornets' seven sacks on the night.

UP NEXT
South Dakota State travels to Montana State next Saturday (Sept. 6) for a matchup between perennial Football Championship Subdivision powers. Kickoff is slated for 6 p.m. Mountain Time (7 p.m. Central) at Bobcat Stadium in Bozeman, Montana.

NOTES

SDSU has won both meetings in the all-time series against Sacramento State
The Jackrabbits improved to 11-11 in season openers since moving to the FCS ranks in 2004
SDSU upped its record in the decade of the 2020s to 61-10 (.859 winning percentage)
Loughridge became the second running back in the Division I era to rush for 100 yards in his Jackrabbit debut, joining Isaac Wallace, who ran for 118 yards and a touchdown in SDSU's win at Kansas in 2015
O'Groske's five receptions tied a career high first set Nov. 2, 2024, against Murray State
Mason's completions, attempts and passing yards were all single-game career highs
The Jackrabbits' all-time record at Dana J. Dykhouse Stadium is 62-7 over 10 seasons
SDSU now is 73-54 against ranked FCS opponents in the D-I era
Each of the last seven Jackrabbit head coaches have won their debut at SDSU
Attendance was 19,163

-GoJacks.com-

Conference Members