TERRE HAUTE, Ind. – Indiana State football dropped its 2019 home opener to Dayton, 42-35, Saturday afternoon at Memorial Stadium. The Sycamores scored 14 points to tie the game in the fourth quarter before Dayton went 85 yards in 4:35 to take the lead for good after a 13-yard rushing touchdown from Sean Prophit with 1:57 left in the game.
 
The Sycamores (0-2) moved the ball into the red zone in under two minutes after Peterson Kerlegrand jumpstarted the drive with 26 yards rushing on the first two plays. Ryan Boyle would convert a fourth-and-one play with a quarterback keeper to keep the drive alive, but UD's Zach Rumpke came up with an interception a play later to ice the game.
 
ISU outgained Dayton 358 to 176 on the ground and had two players rush for over 100 yards for the first time since October 15, 2018 when Ryan Boyle and Titus McCoy achieved the milestone. Kerlegrand went for a career high 194 yards and a pair of touchdowns against the Flyers while Boyle added 103 yards on 17 attempts.
 
Chris Childers added 52 yards and two rushing touchdowns while Toledo transfer Nick Sims carried the ball three times for 11 yards. On the day, ISU lost yards on a rush just one time totaling just two yards.
 
Boyle finished just 13-of-28 passing on the game for 147 yards, a touchdown and two interceptions. The Urbandale, Iowa native connected with Dante Hendrix with :05 second left in the second quarter to pull the Sycamores within seven points heading into the locker room.
 
Kerlegrand capped off a 10-play drive to open the game with a 14-yard rushing score and things looked to be in ISU's favor. That was before the Flyers answered with a kickoff return to the 50-yard line and eventually punched in the ball from three yards out -- the first of three touchdowns for Prophit on the day. Dayton would go on to score 21 unanswered points before Hendrix stopped the bleeding with his six-yard touchdown reception just before half.
 
ISU used that momentum in the third quarter as the defense forced a three-and-out of the Flyers and Dakota Caton returned a punt 35 yards to the Dayton 30-yard line. Childers would pick up his first rushing touchdown of the day when he punched in the ball from a yard out to tie the game at 21.
 
Dayton (1-0) took the energy out of the stands with back-to-back scoring drives in which Jack Cook picked up rushing touchdowns to put the Flyers ahead 35-21 heading into the fourth quarter.
 
Kerlegrand would get his second touchdown of the day early in the fourth quarter to make it a seven-point game at 35-28. After the defense picked up a fourth down stop thanks to a batted down ball by Inoke Moala, the Sycamores went 64 yards for the score to tie the game at 35 after Childers walked in from five yards out.
 
Dayton outgained ISU through the air 251 to 147. UD's Jack Cook finished 21-of-29 for 251 yards and two touchdowns while adding 59 yards on the ground to go with a pair of rushing scores.
 
Caton led all Sycamores with 52 yard receiving on three receptions. His 22-yard catch in the second quarter was the longest of the day. Hendrix caught five passes for 38 yards and a touchdown.
 
Clayton Glasco led all Sycamores with 13 tackles including four solo stops on the day. Jonas Griffith had 11 tackles, including 1.5 tackles for loss and a sack for seven yards. The senior also picked off Cook in the third quarter of action.
 
Brandon Easterling led the Flyers with 13 stops while Tim Simon had 11 tackles and the interception that ended the game late.
 
ISU finished the game with 505 yards of total offense while Dayton picked up 427 yards. Dayton won the turnover battle with two Interceptions and a fumble recovery while ISU picked up an interception but gave the ball right back to the Flyers with a fumble before the play ended. The Sycamores also had seven penalty plays that accounted for 104 yards.
 
Sycamore senior kicker Jerry Nunez broke the school record for career PAT's in the game after the second touchdown, breaking a record that was set in 1985 by Scott Bridges (87 PAT's).
 
Indiana State continues their homestand next Saturday, September 14 when Eastern Kentucky makes the trip to Terre Haute for the first meeting since the FCS Playoffs in 2014. Kickoff is set for 1 p.m. ET from Memorial Stadium.
 
For the latest information on the Sycamore Football team, make sure to check out GoSycamores.com. You can also find the team on social media including Facebook and Twitter.