Travis Glasford scored five times to help No. 2 Western Illinois to a 54-20 win at Youngstown State on Saturday. Meanwhile, Southern Illinois’ Tom Koutsos scored three times to lift the Salukis to a 6-0 record for the first time since 1983 and became the league’s all-time leading rusher in the process.

Elsewhere, UNI edged Indiana State, 22-14, as the Panthers moved to 5-1. Western Kentucky used three field goals from Matt Lange to beat SMS, 9-6, in a Saturday night game.

No. 2 Western Illinois 54, Youngstown State 20
Western Illinois’ running back Travis Glasford tied the Gateway Conference record with five touchdowns to lead the No. 2-ranked Leathernecks over the Youngstown State football team 54-20 on Saturday afternoon.

Glasford, who rushed for 198 yards on 35 carries, scored on runs of two, eight, 19, 26, and 45 yards. Quarterback Russ Michna was 11-of-18 for 156 yards and threw one touchdown pass while Reggie Gray had seven reception for 156 yards and a touchdown.

Matt Rycraft had rushed 21 times for 152 yards and two touchdowns while adding another through the air to lead the Penguins. Western Illinois jumped out to a 27-0 lead in the first half after scoring on five of their first eight possessions and forcing four YSU fumbles.

No. 12 UNI 22, Indiana State 14
The Panthers defeated Indiana State 22-14 in the UNI-Dome in front of a crowd of 14,018 on Homecoming weekend. UNI is now 5-1 overall, 2-0 in the Gateway Conference, while ISU falls to 3-4 overall, 0-2 in the Gateway.

UNI out-rushed ISU 166-48 as well as dominating the passing game by completing 13 passes for 156 yards compared to ISU’s seven completed passes for 94 yards. The defense was critical in the game for the Panthers – only allowing the Sycamores one third-down conversion out of 11 tries.

UNI’s Terrance Freeney scored twice, his second a 10-yard TD run at the 8:18 mark in the third period to push the Panthers ahead 19-0 after the two-point conversion attempt failed. Indiana state nabbed an interception for a 72-yard touchdown return to put them on the scoreboard and make it a 19-7 game. After a UNI (Brian Wingert) field goal, ISU bounced back with an eight-yard touchdown run to bring the score to 22-14 with just 5:29 left in the game.

No. 9 Western Kentucky 9, SMS 6

Senior PK Matt Lange of Western Kentucky converted all three of his field goals Saturday, the last with one second remaining on the clock, to lead the ninth-ranked Hilltoppers to a 9-6 Gateway Football Conference win over Southwest Missouri State at L.T. Smith Stadium/Jimmy Feix Field.

The Toppers (4-2, 1-1 Gateway) snapped a two-game losing streak, while the Bears (3-3, 0-2) fell for the second time in as many weeks. WKU has won all three meetings between the two schools since joining the Gateway Conference in 2001, and lead the all-time series 5-2.

Lerron Moore ran for a career-best 192 yards on 32 carries, the second consecutive week that he has posted a personal high. Casey Rooney caught six of Justin Haddix’ seven completions for 52 yards, while Ronnie Lilly added 54 yards on seven carries in his first appearance since the 2001 regular-season finale.

Darryl Robinson led all players with 14 tackles for SMS, Daryl Warren added 13 and Kevin Sears 10. Cody Pratt paced the Bears with 139 yards on 22 carries.

No. 8 Southern Illinois 45, Illinois State 17
Tom Koutsos ran for 153 yards and three touchdowns, becoming the all-time leading rusher in the Gateway Conference, as the eighth-ranked Southern Illinois University football team moved to 6-0 with a 45-17 drubbing of Illinois State Saturday.

The Salukis (2-0 Gateway) clinched their first winning season since 1991 and are off to their best start since 1983, when they went 13-1 and won a national championship.

Koutsos came in needing 141 yards to pass Willie High of Eastern Illinois for the top spot on the all-time Gateway list. He had just 56 yards at halftime, but exploded for 97 yards in the second half, breaking the record in dramatic fashion on a 35-yard touchdown run late in the fourth quarter. The fifth-year senior now has 4,244 career rushing yards.

Koutsos was just one of three Salukis to rush for at least 90 yards, as SIU piled up 358 yards on the ground and 506 overall. Brandon Robinson added 101 yards rushing and quarterback Joel Sambursky had 92 on the ground.

Mike Souza was 17-for-33 passing for 207 yards and a touchdown for the Redbirds, hooking up with Dwayne Smith four times for 85 yards. Sha-Ron Edwards added 88 yards rushing and a touchdown for ISU.