Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...
|
Southeastern’s sophomore running back Antonio Martin Jr. rushed for 185 yards and two touchdowns to lead the Lions (2-4, 1-0 SLC) past Texas A&M-Commerce (0-5, 0-1 SLC) 21-9 on Saturday, Oct. 5 at Strawberry Stadium.
Martin Jr. has put SLU on his back all season, rushing for 737 total yards and six scores. The reigning Southland Conference player of the week makes another case for the award following his performance on Saturday.
“He’s a good player, and he’s consistent. It’s just who he is. It’s not just the spectacular plays; the consistency is important,” Head Coach Frank Scelfo said.
The Atlanta native is averaging 122.8 yards per game, leading the SLC in rushing yards. The Green and Gold’s offense runs through his ability to break tackles and find gaps in the defense.
Martin Jr. put the game to bed when he exploded for a 31-yard gain down the left sideline to the TAMC one-yard line. A play later, he found paydirt. After a good PAT from junior kicker Riley Callaghan, the Green and Gold led 21-9 with 2:47 remaining in the fourth quarter.
“I have to give all the credit to my offensive line and receivers. I’m just doing what I’m coached to do. I hit the right holes and get the job done,” Martin Jr. said.
Redshirt sophomore quarterback Eli Sawyer went 17/31 with a touchdown and an interception. His top target was redshirt senior wide receiver Darius Lewis, who hauled in eight receptions for 111 yards. Redshirt junior tight end Cade Collier caught the lone touchdown pass from Sawyer.
“We have to take care of the football, but overall, I thought we did a good job. We knew their defense would create some issues, and we had to grind it out. We felt like it was going to be a game like this, and that’s what it turned out to be,” Scelfo said.
Defensively, SLU held TAMC to nine points, recovered two fumbles and sacked quarterback Ron Peace three times.
Redshirt junior defensive lineman Joshua Randall and junior defensive lineman Kaleb Proctor each had 1.5 sacks.
“I thought they played physical. We cleaned up a lot of mistakes we made from last week, and I thought they did a good job,” Scelfo said.
Peace came in for the injured Eric Rodriguez after he suffered an apparent lower leg injury. Peace was 18/25 for 161 yards and a touchdown, while Rodriguez was 7/13 for 54 yards before his injury.
Wideout Christian Jourdain led the visiting Lions with eight catches for 96 yards.
UP NEXT
The Green and Gold will travel to Houston, Texas, to play Houston Christian University (3-3, 1-0 SLC) on Saturday, Oct. 12, at 2 p.m.
Tune in on ESPN+ to watch the game live, and visit The Lion’s Roar for more information and coverage on Southeastern football.