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KENNESAW, Ga. -- Sophomore QB Chandler Burks rushed for three touchdowns for the second straight week, and the Kennesaw State football team won its fourth straight game by pulling away from Missouri S&T, 49-16, Saturday at Fifth Third Bank Stadium.
 
Burks did yeoman's work on the ground, carrying a career-high 29 carries for 118 yards. His third TD of the day put the game out of reach at 35-16 with 12:53 remaining.
 
"I'm glad we won, but we didn't play particularly well," said head coach Brian Bohannon. "But we fought through it, we challenged them at halftime, and I'm proud of the fact we won. We've won a few a few in a row now and we're getting ready to go into conference play. We're coming off two very emotional road wins, and we found a way to win today when we didn't play our best."
 
The Owls (4-1) have strung together four consecutive wins for the first time in the program's two-season history, and remain home next Saturday at 7 p.m. to host Liberty (2-3) in the Big South Conference opener for both teams.
 
The Miners (3-3), a Division-II program from Rolla, Mo., used a big play on their opening drive to seize a quick 7-0 lead when QB Tyler Swart found Braxton Graham for a 73-yard touchdown pass on the game's third play. But Kennesaw State responded with three touchdowns over the next 10 minutes to seize a 21-7 lead.
 
Chaston Bennett also matched his career high with two rushing scores as the Owls nearly doubled up the Miners in total yards (471-248), including a decisive edge on the ground (369-109). Kennesaw State entered the game as the nation's fifth-best rushing team at 282.0 yards per game.
 
Over this four-game winning streak, the Owls are averaging 46.5 points per game.
 
"We felt like we could run the ball today," said Bohannon. "And early on we were moving it at will. The wind was an issue in terms of being able to throw it. We tried to throw it some, but we felt like we could run the ball and that's what we did."
 
Isiah Hardy gave the visitors' life when he returned a fumble 65-yard for a touchdown, making it 21-13, and S&T closed the half on a 9-0 run when Ben Styron booted a 44-yard field goal to make it 21-16 at the break.
 
It was all Owls in the second half, triggered by a 52-yard touchdown pass from Burks to Xavier Harper just 50 seconds into the third quarter. Burks, Bennett and backup QB Daniel David all added short rushing touchdowns to put the game away.
 
The defense pitched a second-half shutout for the second time this season (Point), and forced three more turnovers in the winning effort. The Owls have forced 11 turnovers over the last three games and are plus-six in turnover margin for the season.
 
Dante Blackmon, who entered the game tied for the FCS lead in interceptions, picked off his fifth pass of the season, while Derrick Farrow (interception) and Dez Billingslea (fumble recovery) each recorded their first takeaways.
 
The Owls turned Blackmon's interception into a 14-7 lead when Burks capped a 10-play, 56-yard drive with an eight-yard TD run. Billingslea's fumble recovery deep in Miner territory led one play later to the game's final points -- a two-yard TD run by David.
 
Next Saturday's game versus Liberty is the Owls' annual Homecoming Game. For tickets, visits KSUOwls.com/tickets.



POST-GAME #NESTNOTES
 
FOUR STRAIGHT...
Kennesaw State's 49-16 victory over Missouri S&T gave the Owls their first four-game winning streak in program history. During the streak, KSU has outscored its opponents 186-74, averaging 46.5 points per game and 513 yards over that span. In fact, Kennesaw State has outscored its opponents 45-15 in the fourth quarter over the last four games and shutout Missouri S&T in the entire second half – marking the third time in program history the defense has thrown up zeros over the final 30 minutes of action.
 
MOVING THE CHAINS
The Owls took advantage of a 37:05 to 22:55 disparity in time of possession for the game and moved the chains with 26 first downs. The team set a school record with four fourth-down conversions on five attempts.
 
TURNING THINGS OVER
Dante Blackmon, who entered the day tied for the FCS lead in interceptions (four), picked off another pass. It was his fifth interception over the last three games. Derrick Farrow also picked off a pass, the second of his career.  For the season, the Owls are now a +29 in points-off-turnover scoring (45-16) and have forced at least one turnover in 13 of their 16 games in program history. The team is 4-0 this season when forcing at least one turnover, and 9-4 over the last two.
 
OWLS CAN RUN JUST AS FAST AS THEY FLY
Kennesaw State's high-powered offense entered the day ranked fifth nationally in rushing yards per game (282.0) and 12^th nationally in scoring (38.5), and once again backed those numbers up with 369 yards rushing and 49 points. For the second consecutive week, Kennesaw State scored six rushing touchdowns, tying the school's single-game record. The Owls have 18 rushing TDs on the season, which paces the Big South Conference.
 
CB3 BACK AT IT AGAIN
Sophomore QB Chandler Burks was a force on the ground for the Owls, carrying the ball for a career-high 29 times for 118 yards and three touchdowns. Burks has totaled back-to-back games with three rushing scores and has a team-high eight on the year. The QB also completed 2-of-6 passes for 73 yards and a score, as he was responsible for four of KSU's seven touchdowns on the day.
 
HARPER STEPPING UP
With sophomore wide out Justin Sumpter sidelined due to injury, Xavier Harper stepped in and caught two passes for a career-high 81 yards and a touchdown. The sophomore broke free for a 52-yard pass in the third quarter, marking his first of the season and second of his career (Liberty, 2015).

GETTING TO THE QUARTERBACK
Kennesaw State totaled six tackles for a loss, three sacks, two interceptions and recovered a fumble. SS Taylor Henkle's two TFL set a career high and LB Anthony Gore Jr. tallied his first sack of 2016. DE Desmond Johnson registered his fifth sack, which have all come over the last three games.
 
FIRST TIME FOR EVERYTHING
Braylon Young swatted away a field-goal attempt in the fourth quarter to mark the program's first-ever blocked field goal.

BENNETT'S BIG DAY
RB Chaston Bennett did a bit of everything for the Owls, totaling 100 all-purpose yards thanks to 51 on the ground, 21 through the air and 28 on kickoff returns. His two rushing touchdowns matched a career high (Point, 2015).





Fifth Third Bank is the Official Bank of Kennesaw State Athletics. Fifth Third Bank Stadium, the signature athletics landmark on the Kennesaw State University campus, is a world-class facility that has been recognized as one of the premier multi-use outdoor athletics venues in the country. In the fall of 2015, it became the official home of Owls football team and is also home to Owls soccer and lacrosse.
 
Keep up with Kennesaw State Athletics by following KSU on Twitter @KSUOwlNation and or by liking Kennesaw State Owls on Facebook. You also can follow Kennesaw State football at @KennesawSTFB and The Owls fund on Twitter at @TheOwlsFund.

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