SDSU notebook: Running game continues to thrive for Jackrabbits

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Sep. 27—BROOKINGS — South Dakota State's rushing attack was a question mark heading into this season.

The Jacks averaged a meager 3.8 yards per rush in 2025, and the top rusher from that team, Julius Loughridge, graduated.

Loughridge was a quality feature back for SDSU, rushing for 1,020 yards and averaging a sturdy 4.7 per attempt, but his longest run of the season went for 37 yards. A trio of freshmen — Corey Blair, Josiah Johnson and James Basinger, all had mixed results in relief of Loughridge. The longest rush of the season for SDSU was a 75-yarder by wide receiver Jack Smith. Their longest run of the season by a running back was a 42-yard gain by Blair.

The Jacks felt good about Blair, Johnson and Basinger returning, and they added Division II transfer Ramon McKinney to the group, but no one knew for sure how things would go, especially with Sam Hagen and Nate Adams moving on from the offensive line.

Five games in and it's pretty safe to say that these questions have been answered.

SDSU has rushed for 1,512 yards — an average of 302.4 yards per game. They've nearly doubled their yards per carry to 6.8. They've already scored 20 touchdowns on the ground. They had three runs longer than last year's longest by a running back just last night against Eastern Illinois. They've had five 100-yard games from three different backs. They've rushed for a whopping 717 yards in just the last two games, including 408 in the 42-7 win over the Panthers.

And it hasn't just been against weak non-conference opponents. The Jacks ran for 147 yards against Northwestern, one of the better defense in the Big Ten, and Johnson ran for 238 yards in the Valley opener against Youngstown State.

"It's really kind of what I thought needed to happen and can happen," said head coach Dan Jackson, whose 2nd-ranked team is 4-1. "Josiah's a great player, and he ran very well again tonight. But I just don't believe that when you're a team that wants to be physical and run the ball 40, 50, 60 times in a game, that it can be one person. And I've loved how James Basinger has grown and developed. It's been fun to see when he's got his opportunities, he runs like a man that wants more carries and touches. And so when you do that, you're going to get rewarded in our program. It's a meritocracy. So I'm proud of James. I'm proud of Josiah. I thought Corey ran hard when he was in there. And then we'll get (McKinney) back here very soon. So I'm proud of the running back room and their development."

Certainly the offensive line has played a role in that. They've been clearing gaudy holes up front allowing the backs to reach the second level, and the receivers and tight ends have done impressive work against linebackers and the secondary to help turn already explosive runs into home runs.

Notably on Saturday against Eastern Illinois, Zach Van Meeteren was 40 yards downfield pushing a safety off the field as if he were on roller skates to help Blair finish off his 61-yard run.

"The effort is pretty amazing," Jackson said of the #605Hogs. "It's not always perfect. But when you play really hard and you're really physical and you get some knock-back, you can make up for mistakes. And I don't think they're trying to be perfect. And that's actually a positive for everybody. You can put a lot of pressure on yourself trying to be perfect when really football is about getting off the ball and hitting the guy across from you and moving him and creating some lanes. And so I think (offensive line) coach (Mike) Bangston has done a really nice job with that group in the development because we're playing six or seven guys consistently."

At one point the Jacks had six offensive linemen on the field at once, moving left tackle Quinten Christensen out to a tight end spot and then bringing him in motion to the right side.

Christensen has been grading out very highly so far, while Shane Willenbring has improved in his second year at center, guards Will Paepke and Jackson Kerstin have also been good and John Pica and Kyan Rauk have been solid sharing duties at right tackle. Kenyon Big Bow has starting experience, can play guard or tackle, and should be returning from injury soon.

"It's really cool to see when we get our 9th, 10th, 11th offensive lineman in there and we can still run the ball," Jackson said. "The run game in general, I would say the backs and the offensive line are much more in sync with their movements and steps and understanding and reads. I would love to see eight offensive linemen in there at one time because I think defensively I don't know what I would do if I was the defensive coordinator. As long as they keep blocking well and playing hard, we'll draw some things up where more of them can play."

Krcil shines in the middle

Jes Krcil, the linebacker who transferred from Wayne State after being named 2025 NSIC defensive player of the year, had his best game as a Jackrabbit against EIU. Krcil made 12 tackles and broke up two passes, showing the lateral quickness and physicality that allowed him to overtake Joe Ollman, last year's leading tackler, as the starting Mike. Ollman still gets plenty of playing time, and was third on the team with four tackles against the Panthers.

"I think Jess has played awesome," Jackson said. "When you go back and watch the games, he's so impactful. The Northwestern game, he made five plays that if he doesn't make them, they may be touchdowns. He made them look routine. So I'm really proud of his growth. He's very hard on himself. He's a perfectionist in a lot of ways, and I am starting to see him relax and play free.

"Then, it's very cool to see our linebacker room, not only our linebacker room, but I'd say our linebacker and running back room, the depth that we have and the amount of players in which we play," Jackson added. "That could be tough for some guys because everybody wants to play. They want their statistics. Our guys are just having fun supporting one another."

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