Southeast Football

There hasn’t been a football team in the Ohio Valley Conference that has won more games (18) over the past two seasons than Southeast Missouri State. So it might be surprising to learn what seventh-year Redhawk coach Tom Matukewicz’s mindset is right now.

There is the Hollywood version of what transpires on a college football-recruiting visit. For those old enough to recall Anthony Michael Hall playing the role of a coveted quarterback in the fairly decent movie “Johnny be good.”

The recruiting class of 2020 for Southeast Missouri State football has a lot to live up to in comparison to the group that just departed from the program. The 2019 senior class of Redhawks was the most successful class in the history of the program...

The Southeast Missouri State football program has strung together a pair of special seasons, the latest having culminated in a recent FCS Playoff loss to Illinois State.

The Southeast Missouri State football program has strung together a pair of special seasons, the latest having culminated in a recent FCS Playoff loss to Illinois State.

The Southeast Missouri State football program recently concluded its second consecutive highly-successful season despite its loss to Illinois State in the 2019 FCS Playoff opening round.

Three significant pieces for the Southeast Missouri State football program gathered Saturday for the postgame press conference in wake of the Redhawks’ 24-6 loss to Illinois State in the opening round of the FCS Playoffs.

The indications that Southeast Missouri State football was in peril against Illinois State in the opening round of the 2019 FCS Playoffs Saturday at Houck Stadium began to smolder prior to the game when fifth-year senior quarterback Daniel Santacaterina was held out – at least initially – due to multiple injuries.

There was no secret as to what Illinois State wanted to do in its FCS Playoff game Saturday at Southeast Missouri State.

For the second consecutive season, the Southeast Missouri State football program will host its opening game of the FCS Playoffs.

Sixth-year Southeast Missouri State football coach Tom Matukewicz heaped praise earlier this week on senior defensive lineman Josh Avery for his ability to peak at the proper time.

The above statement could not be more accurate, and it was made by a guy who openly admits to having been a mediocre student to the point that he “hated school.” But sixth-year Southeast Missouri State football coach Tom Matukewicz was correct in his assessment of what has allowed the Redhawks to achieve unprecedented success.

In the final minutes of its recent 31-24 loss at Southeast Missouri State, the Murray State football squad had the ball at midfield with an opportunity to put together a game-tying drive.

Good Sports is a weekly feature that appears in the Southeast Missourian, as well as online on Semoball.com. It profiles the life of a person connected to sports and allows our readers the opportunity to know the people who are impacting athletics throughout Southeast Missouri in a deeper way. Responses have been edited for brevity and clarity...

The student-athletes and coaches within the Southeast Missouri State football program were rewarded Sunday with an at-large bid into the 2019 FCS Playoffs.

Winning a share of the Ohio Valley Conference football championship Saturday with its 31-24 win over Murray State at Houck Stadium was a first in nine years for the Southeast Missouri State program.

Three feet. That is the distance the Southeast Missouri State football offense needed to gain in the closing minutes of its game with Murray State Saturday to secure a share of the Ohio Valley Conference championship for the first time in nearly a decade.

As an individual player, the numbers for the 2019 season for Southeast Missouri State fifth-year senior quarterback Daniel Santacaterina have fallen from a year ago.

Sixth-year Southeast Missouri State football coach Tom Matukewicz defined the word faith earlier this week as “belief without evidence.”

A lot is riding on today’s Southeast Missouri State vs. Murray State football game at Houck Stadium (1 p.m.).

The scoreboard during the Southeast Missouri State vs. Murray State football game Saturday at Houck Stadium (1 p.m.) will indicate which team is winning ON the field. However, regardless of the score, the Redhawk program will be a success along the sideline.

The Southeast Missouri State football coaches preach physicality from the opening of training camp until the final game of the season and that toughness stems from work put in the weight room throughout the entire year.

The Southeast Missouri State football program will close out its regular season Saturday and a victory would be memorable in terms of the history of this program.

Following his team’s recent win over Eastern Kentucky, sixth-year Southeast Missouri State football coach Tom Matukewicz was thankful for the victory but spoke critically of his work through the week in preparing his team to play well early in that game.

The numbers associated with the Eastern Illinois football program -- meaning the Panthers' 1-9 record -- don't frighten many people. However, the fact that Eastern Illinois won at Tennessee State 49-38 last week is just one indication that it can be dangerous at times...

When a football team is trailing 31-14 with 25 minutes left in the game AND it is facing an opponent that has based its entire offensive scheme on running the ball and eating clock, the team that needs 17 points is in serious trouble.

Prior to halftime of its Ohio Valley Conference football game against Eastern Kentucky Saturday at Houck Stadium, the Southeast Missouri State offense had committed five turnovers and punted twice. It didn’t have much going its way.

Southeast Missouri State is battling to stay amid the Ohio Valley Conference football race today. The No. 17-ranked Redhawks (6-3, 4-1 OVC) are hosting Eastern Kentucky (5-4, 3-2) at Houck Stadium at 1 p.m. and they need to win to keep pace with league-leader UT Martin (6-3, 5-1) and Austin Peay (6-3, 4-1).

The top-seeded Southeast Missouri State soccer fell to fourth-seeded SIU Edwardsville 2-1 in the semifinals of the Ohio Valley Conference Tournament on Friday at Houck Field. The Redhawks outshot the Cougars 18-8 and had 10 shots on goal but were unable to get one past SIUE goalkeeper Jensen Schoch until less than five minutes were left in the game...

The No. 17-ranked Southeast Missouri State football program enjoyed a brief respite last Saturday from its harrowing tests it has endured throughout this Ohio Valley Conference season.

The Southeast Missouri State football program isn’t currently the absolute best team in the FCS in turnover margin, as they were a year ago, but it’s close. The Redhawks are ranked atop the Ohio Valley Conference in the statistical category and are the ninth-best team in the country...

Southeast Missouri State football has a luxury few teams at any level enjoy. The Redhawks have three running backs — Geno Hess, Mark Robinson and Zion Custis — capable of producing at a high level, so when Custis missed Saturday’s game at Tennessee State, the Redhawk coaches simply had the ball handed-off to Hess 14 times. All the redshirt freshman did was gain a career-best 156 yards and score twice.

Southeast Missouri State fifth-year quarterback Daniel Santacaterina entered Saturday’s game at Tennessee State having completed just 21 of his last 49 pass attempts and was coming off of a game in which he had been benched for the entire second half.

Despite the fact sixth-year Southeast Missouri State football coach Tom Matukewicz made a quarterback switch at halftime of last week's win against UT Martin, Redhawk fans should expect to see plenty of typical starter, fifth-year senior Daniel Santacaterina, when Southeast (5-3, 3-1 Ohio Valley Conference) visits Tennessee State (2-6, 1-3) at 2 p.m. Saturday...

The veteran Southeast Missouri State football players such as Kristian Wilkerson, Taj Jenkins and Eric Williams know what it's like to beat Tennessee State. The Redhawks did so a year ago, winning 38-21 at Houck Stadium. But to make the trip to Nashville and ride home feeling positive, well those guys weren't even alive when that last occurred...

Despite the fact, Southeast Missouri State ranks seventh out of nine Ohio Valley Conference teams in total defense (numbers may not lie, but they can be extremely misleading), those that have watched the Redhawks in league play this season have to be impressed with how the unit has performed.

A hardy remnant of Southeast Missouri State football faithful, wearing raincoats and ponchos and sporting umbrellas, were in the stands at Houck Stadium Saturday.

It wouldn’t be the least bit surprising if sixth-year Southeast Missouri State football coach Tom Matukewicz woke up Sunday and had developed a cold. After all, he spent three-plus hours Saturday standing in a chilling wind and rain guiding his Redhawk team to an impressive 17-10 win over UT Martin in front of a courageous (given the weather conditions) – if not large - Homecoming crowd at Houck Stadium.

Go to any Southeast Missouri State football home game and you’ll find Felix Kinsley III. Section F, row G, seat 4.

Southeast Missouri State is an enviable position in that it mostly controls its own fate in the Ohio Valley Conference football race.

On any other FCS football team in America, Southeast Missouri State senior linebacker Justin Swift would more than likely be the defensive focal point of every fan’s attention. However, when you play mere feet away from Zach Hall, who should graduate as the most productive defender in the history of the Redhawk program, it is easy to fall into his shadow.

JACKSONVILLE, Ala. – Southeast Missouri State football coach Tom Matukewicz knew of Redhawks’ defensive coordinator Bryce Saia’s football intellect long before the two arrived in Cape Girardeau together six years ago.

JACKSONVILLE, Ala. – When you walk up to Burgess-Snow Field at Jacksonville State, the magnificence of the facility is awe-inspiring.

The Southeast Missouri State football team has not won a game this season away from Houck Stadium. Jacksonville State (5-2, 2-1 Ohio Valley Conference) hasn’t lost a game at home in 32 outings, a stretch that dates back six years.

There were no Southeast Missouri State football fans that got in their cars Saturday for the 165-mile drive back to Cape Girardeau following the Redhawks’ 28-24 loss at Austin Peay and were feeling good. However, if they would have narrowed their focus some, most notably to the second half play of fifth-year quarterback Daniel Santacaterina, they HAD to have felt positive about that.

CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. – With just over four minutes remaining and trailing 28-24 in its football game Saturday at Austin Peay, Southeast Missouri State faced a critical fourth down that essentially would determine whether it had any chance to win the game or not.

There are just three football teams that are unbeaten within Ohio Valley Conference play at this early juncture and two of them meet today at Austin Peay (2 p.m.) when the Governors host Southeast Missouri State. Austin Peay (3-2, 1-0) is coming off a bye week after beating No. 11-ranked Jacksonville State 52-33, while the No. 20-ranked Redhawks (3-2, 1-0) beat Tennessee Tech 43-37 in double overtime Saturday...

"We are fired up to announce this year's class. The future is bright!”

There are only three remaining unbeaten football teams in the Ohio Valley Conference in terms of league play and two of them will meet Saturday when No. 20 Southeast Missouri State travels to Austin Peay at 2 p.m.

There were several things that Southeast Missouri State football fans would have felt assured of entering the 2019 season.