CARBONDALE, Ill. -- Indiana State senior Darrius Gates finished his Sycamore football career in style by rushing 179 yards and scoring a pair of touchdowns as he topped the 1,000-yard mark for the season as ISU fell 49-21 at Southern Illinois in the season finale for both teams.

ISU finished off its first winning season since 1996 with a final record of 6-5 and its ending mark of 4-4 in league play is the most conference wins for a Sycamore team since 1988. SIU finished 5-6, 4-4 MVFC.

Gates' 179 yards gave him 1,057 for the season which is the first 1,000-yard rushing season for a Sycamore since 1999 when Sheraton Fox accomplished the mark from the quarterback position. Gates' 179 yards were a season-high as he rounded out his career with 1,909 yards, which is the seventh-most in the history of the program. He finished the season with 19 touchdowns scored, which also is a new school single-season standard.

ISU quarterback Ronnie Fouch failed to reach 200 yards passing for the first time in eight games as he only was able to participate in the Sycamores' first three plays from scrimmage, leaving with a shoulder injury following a quarterback sack. Fouch finished the season with 2,252 yards passing and 20 touchdowns, also a new school record.

The Sycamore offense finished the year with a school record 351 points scored and reached the end zone a total of 48 times.

Justin Hilton finished the game as the Sycamores' leading receiver with three catches for 30 yards while Bryant Kent had a trio of receptions for 17 yards. Brock Lough caught two passes for 26 yards and a touchdown.

Defensively, Calvin Burnett picked off his sixth pass of the season while Jacolby Washington paced ISU with 13 tackles. It was the third games in a row in which Washington led ISU in total stops. Alex Bettag had a career-high 12 tackles. Dillon Painter had a fumble recovery in the fourth quarter while Larry King and Josh Scott posted tackles for loss.

Burnett's interception came with ISU already down 21-0 in the game's first quarter to stop the Salukis' fourth drive of the contest. Darrius Gates broke off a 65-yard run to kick start the ensuing drive in which he rushed for all 85 yards to cut the SIU advantage down to 21-7 with his 10-yard scoring rush at the 14:35 mark of the second quarter.

ISU scored again with 1:06 left before the half on a 12-yard pass from Coy Glass to Brock Lough to make it 21-14.

Indiana State came all the way back to knot the contest on the opening drive of the third quarter with seven-play, 71-yard drive that saw Gates finish it off with a 20-yard run at the 10:52 mark. SIU would score 28 unanswered points for the 49-21 victory in ISU's first appearance at brand new Saluki Stadium.

With Fouch out the of the contest, Glass was called upon for his first extended duty of the season and he went 11-of-22 passing for 116 yards and the touchdown to Lough.