Austin Peay football snaps nation's longest losing streak at 29 games in win over Morehead

Austin Peay football ended its 29-game losing streak, defeating Morehead State 69-13 Saturday night in Clarksville.

The Governors dominated on the ground and on defense, jumping out to a 42-7 lead in the first half without much trouble.

The streak lasted through two coaching staffs and parts of four seasons. The last win came on Oct. 18, 2014, against Murray State and continued through the first two games of the 2017 season. Coach Will Healy picked up his first win in his 14th game with the Governors.

Delaware State, losers of 14 straight games, now owns the longest active losing streak in Division I football. The Governors will look to extend their winning streak to two games on the road next week against Murray State.

Here are five takeaways from the game.

Win No. 1 for Will Healy

Will Healy's been waiting for this moment for a while now. He and his staff have talked about changing the culture, building from the ground up and creating something special in Clarksville for two seasons. Saturday's win could mark the start of a change

perhaps a significant moment for the program

Defense looks elite

Peay's defense came into the game ranking 17th among FCS teams in total defense through two weeks. Those numbers were impressive already, even before you take into account those games were against FBS teams. Austin Peay's defense proved their defensive dominance is here to stay, stalling long drives all night long.

Running game is back

Austin Peay's offensive identity is in its running game. The team struggled to gain big runs in the first two games against Cincinnati and Miami, but that wasn't a problem against Morehead State. The team relied on its backs early and often in the win, as the Governors rushed for 342 yards and six touchdowns in the first half, and built upon those numbers in the second half. It appears the offense is settling into its FCS schedule.

Penalties galore

It wasn't all good for Austin Peay in this one. Eleven first-half penalties for 115 yards didn't bother the Governors' performance too much in Saturday's win, and it probably won't be on the minds of the coaching staff as they celebrate the monumental program win. But the lack of discipline is something to watch going forward. Of course, that probably won

Home crowd showed out in Clarksville

Prior to Austin Peay's home opener, it was fair to ask how many fans would show up to support a team that had lost 29 straight games. That question was answered early on, as few empty seats were visible on the Austin Peay home side. A total of 8,152 fans showed up to Fortera Stadium and the majority of them stayed the entire game to witness the end of the team's losing streak. If the team keeps winning, this could become a trend.

Reach Colton Pouncy at cpouncy@gannett.com or on Twitter @CTPSports.