COACH'S CORNER: INDIANS LOOK TO POSITIVES FROM DEFEAT VS. MURRAY

Murray State provides too much quick-strike ability and firepower to spot an early 14 points. But that's what we did Saturday night as the Racers prevailed 45-18.

After a blocked punt and a pass interception early in the game for Murray touchdowns, we played our best football to date in the first half.

Again, trying to take the positive play out of a loss never sounds right and never will, but must be done, particularly at this point in the season.

Offensively, we opened the game by showing the quick pass with a good run mix. It proved effective as we moved the ball well down the field. Turnovers -- a pass interception and a fumble on the Murray 12 -- stopped drives that were well executed.

The fumble on the 12 was costly in terms of momentum. The score was 14-0. We called the option as per game plan versus the blitz. Murray fired off the end and caused the fumble. Had we been able to pitch the ball, our tailback would have scored.

After the fumble, the Racers scored 14 more points quickly to build a 28-0 halftime lead.

The second half proved to be somewhat more productive as we again moved the ball but finished in the end zone three times.

David Fielder played well in the offensive line. John Borne continues his consistent play at tight end and receivers Jerl Huling and Leslie Weaver had good nights catching the ball. Huling has been impressive in the last two games. He caught two touchdown passes against the Racers.

Defensively, Brad Richardson gave us more playmaking at his end position. Linebackers David Bowling, Donovan LaViness and Jeremy Atwell made several plays. Brian Hinton and Isaac Powell were steady in the secondary.

The quarterback position, as always, remains at the forefront of attention. I will begin by saying that putting all of the focus on one position doesn't tell the whole story. Any quarterback's success depends greatly on the other 10 men around him.

When asked immediately following the Murray game about the situation, I insisted that before making any judgment, the film needed to be evaluated. Conversation about personnel moves immediately after the game's emotional swings just is never prudent, anywhere, no matter what the record is.

Bobby Brune played well during the Murray game. He made some plays and missed some plays. The bottom line of any offense is where it finishes. Mike Gross has entered the last two games late and moved the offense into the end zone.

The performances of both Bobby and Mike will be evaluated closely to decide who gets a shot at moving the club early in a game. We simply want to start where we left off moving the ball and scoring against Murray.

I'm sure much will be made of this but at Western Kentucky this Saturday night it will take total team execution in all three phases to come out victorious.

John Mumford is the head football coach at Southeast Missouri State University