After putting up more than 600 yards and scoring more than 30 second-half points, football (2-0, 0-0 MAC) won its second consecutive game Saturday, defeating Murray State (1-1) in a 57-26 rout.

The Racers punted on their first two possessions after moving into good field positions. The Huskies were able to move the ball into the red zone on their second drive after a 49-yard run by junior wide receiver Aregeros Turner. The drive was capped off with a 4-yard touchdown toss from junior quarterback Drew Hare to sophomore tight end Shane Wimann, but was followed by a missed point after touchdown.

The Racers put on a 10-play drive towards the end of the first, moving the ball down the field for 81-yards.

Sophomore quarterback KD Humphries ended the drive with a six-yard touchdown throw to Nick Taylor, giving Murray State the 7-6 lead to close the quarter.

Freshman tailback D.J. Brown opened the second quarter with a 23-yard run, putting the Huskies in scoring range. Junior running back Joel Bouagnon would go on to run for a touchdown, putting the Huskies up 13-7. The Racers closed the gap with a 26-yard field goal that brought the game to 13-10 on the next drive.

After a three-and-out series from the Huskies, the Racers were able to successfully move the ball against NIU’s defense, converting on a long third and 17. The drive halted after Humphries threw an interception to senior corner Paris Logan in the endzone.

“It was a stupid call on my part,” said Murray State head coach Matt McMahon. “We thought we had something. It was a dumb call but it was an even worse throw. KD [Humphries] knew as soon as it left his hand.”

NIU punted but raised the lead on the next drive, scoring on a second touchdown catch from Hare to Wimann. The Huskies led 20-10 heading into halftime.

“We got the interception and we didn’t score,” said NIU head coach Rod Carey. “We got a stop then we came out and scored in the two minute drill, which is really good to see that we executed well.”

The Huskies went on to score 37 more points in the second half, holding the Racers to just nine points and 128 yards of offense. Murray State also committed two turnovers in the second half.

“I’m proud of my kids,” McMahon said. “They gave their best effort and going into a game like this where you know that third and fourth quarter is going to wear down on you. We don’t have a lot of guys to sub in at that point. We’re playing the same guys we played at the beginning of the game, and I’m just proud of the effort.”

Hare threw for 358 yards and four touchdowns in the game, throwing no interceptions and taking no sacks in the game.

Junior wide receiver Kenny Golladay caught eight balls for 144 yards and a couple of scores, becoming the first receiver to have back-to-back 100-yard games since Da’Ron Brown accomplished the feat in 2014 in games against UNLV and Northwestern.

Junior running back Joel Bouagnon ran the ball 15 times in the game, rushing for a total of 55 yards and picking up two touchdowns on the day.

NIU racked up 643 yards of total offense, racing their way to a 31-point lead and eventual victory over the Racers.

“Really happy about the win,” Carey said. “I don’t think we had the fast start we were looking for, but you have to give credit to Murray State. They’re a well-coached ball club. Coach [Stewart] had them ready to go.”

Following a 2-0 start at home, the Huskies will be on the road this week as they prepare for a nationally-televised game against Big Ten powerhouse Ohio State.

The Buckeyes are currently the number-one ranked team in the nation and are 2-0 following a 38-0 rout of Hawaii. The game is set to take place at 2:30 p.m. on Saturday at Ohio Stadium in Columbus, Ohio.