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The record that never was

This time there will be no doubt, no complex calculations and no confusion. SIU quarterback Joel Sambursky will be the school's all-time total offense leader.

All he needs is 12 yards to surpass Sherard Poteete's record of 5,009 yards and, this time for sure, become the most prestigious offensive weapon in SIU history - again. Sambursky had broken the SIU all-time record for total offense Saturday, or so he thought.

After trudging into a room in the bowels of Stambaugh Stadium after dismantling Youngstown State, the Saluki quarterback addressed reporters. He answered a few game questions and was eventually asked how it felt to break the all-time total offense.

"I did?" Sambursky replied. "I had no idea."

Sambursky went on to thank his teammates, who he said make him look better than he actually is, and to say how flattered he is to hold the record. Teammates were interviewed, saying how Sambursky had earned it and how he has been a role model to everyone.

Sambursky, to his credit, was sincerely surprised and sincerely humble.

"I'm really taken aback by it right now," he said.

The only problem, as Sambursky found out later, is that he was still 12 yards short.

In the initial tally given to reporters, Sambursky's 13-yard sack was not accounted for. In college football, unlike the NFL, sacks count as negative rushing yards and can put a significant chunk in the total yards and average of a quarterback. For Sambursky, that chunk was enough to cost him the record for a week.

The sack came when Sambursky was unable to escape two Penguins defenders last Saturday, resulting in an intentional grounding call and a safety, meaning he is going to have to give the same speech about the record this coming Saturday.