ALAMOSA, Colo. - Midwestern State's Daniel Polk accounted for 362 yards and three touchdowns to lead the No. 23 Mustangs to a 41-15 win over Adams State Saturday afternoon at Rex Stadium.
Polk also blew past Dominic Rhodes to become MSU's top all-time rusher with a 54-yard dash to paydirt less than three minutes into the contest. The senior quarterback from South Oak Cliff finished the game with 68 yards rushing and now has 2,584 for his career.
But it's what he did with his arm that was even more impressive as he completed 28-of-37 passes for 295 yards and two touchdowns to to help the Mustangs to their second most prolific game in term of offensive output.
Midwestern rolled up 678 yards of total offense which ranks second to the 2001 squad's 737 yards on Oct. 13, 2001.
Senior wideout DelJuan Lee paced a pack of 10 players to record receptions for the Mustangs with six receptions for 69 yards, including a 27-yard TD to put the Mustangs up 14-0 with 1:54 left in the opening quarter.
But the Mustangs received a big-time lift from a new-look backfield that chewed up 383 yards on the ground led by true freshman Marcus Mathis, who ran for 126 yards on 12 carries.
Junior transfer Joe Chatman joined Mathis in the century club with 108 yards on 16 carries.
Senior Adrion Butler added 60 yards on 12 totes including a 1-yard scoring plunge in the fourth quarter, while B.J. Mathis added 22 yards on four carries.
While the offense put on a dominated display, the defense was more than up to the task as it limited Adams State to 208 yards and 12 first downs.
True freshman Ryan Craven from Rockwall, Texas paced the Mustangs with seven tackles and intercepted a pass on the first play from scrimmage of the season.
Sophomore linebacker Emanuel Bagley added five tackles, while Cedric Johnson also added an interception.
Midwestern will take a week off before playing host to Southwestern Oklahoma State on Sep. 8 at Memorial Stadium. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m.
Game Notes
With a 41-15 win at Adams State, the Mustangs have now won their last seven season openers including all six in the Bill Maskill era… MSU has posted a 22-15 all-time record in openers and is 12-8 since reviving the football program in 1988… MSU is now 5-8-1 in games played in the Mountain Time Zone… Senior quarterback Daniel Polk (6-2, 202, Sr.) became the school's all-time leading rusher on his first carry of the season – a 54-yard TD run 2:46 into the contest. He finished the game with 68 yards on seven carries and now has 2,589 yards moving past current Oakland Raider RB Dominic Rhodes, who rushed for 2,541 yards in 1999-2000… Polk accounted for 363 yards of total offense (295 passing, 68 rushing), which ranks second in his career to a 393-yard outburst (149 passing, 249 rushing at Eastern New Mexico on Oct. 29, 2005… the MSU offense set a pair of school records on its way to the program's second best day in terms of offense as the Mustangs 678 yards. MSU set high-water marks in first downs (33) and time of possession (44:15)… MSU's 383 rushing yards against Adams State ranked No. 8 all-time… true freshman RB Marcus Mathis (5-8, 170, Fr-HS) paced Mustangs with 126 yards on 12 carries, while transfer Joe Chatman (5-11, 195, Jr.) added 108 yards on 16 carries…
Pregame notes package
