Semoball

Coach Tuke looks ahead to Redhawks football in the COVID era

Southeast head coach Tom Matukewicz is seen on the sidelines during a game against Eastern Kentucky University Saturday, Nov. 9, 2019, at Houck Stadium in Cape Girardeau.
Southeast Missourian file

Friday is likely a red-letter day for the Southeast Missouri State University football program.

Head coach Tom Matukewicz, in his seventh season at the helm, expects to find out August 7 some critical information about the 2020 schedule.

“I think we’ll know by then if we’ll be playing (Ohio Valley Conference) teams only or OVC plus-1,” said Matukewicz, in remarks to a local service club on Tuesday.

On Wednesday, the OVC-defending champions begin their first full squad practice.

Just as is the case for practically everyone, the coronavirus is not far from Coach Tuke’s mind.

“(The team) just had a second COVID test,” said Matukewicz, who said no one was positive for the virus this time. A test earlier in the summer did have one positive result and Tuke said the squad followed all the protocols.

Schedule disrupted

SEMO has lost two opponents from its announced schedule thanks to the pandemic.

The September 3 home opener against Dayton and the September 12 “money” game at Ole Miss both canceled.

As it stands, the first contest of the fall will be Sept. 19 at SIU-Carbondale.

Coach’s prognosis

“Some say we’ll have a natural dropoff because we lost 17 seniors in 2019,” said Matukewicz, “but I don’t believe it.”

Matukewicz is bullish about the team’s prospects, pointing to the 24 seniors on the ’20 squad and the 14 starters returning – eight on offense, six on defense.

“We’ve got our number-2 receiver (Aaron Alston) coming back, both tight ends (Austin Crump, Caleb Strauss), our number-1 running back (Zion Custis) and four of five guys on the offensive line,” Matukewicz said.

“The roster is deeper and more talented than ever,” he said.

Quarterback

The main question mark involves the most important position.

“Quarterback is our biggest concern,” Tuke said, noting the loss to graduation of signalcaller Daniel Santacaterina.

Santacaterina’s backup last year, Joe Pyle, is back but Tuke has brought in a former Big Ten player to challenge him under center.

Andrew Bunch spent the last three seasons with the Nebraska Cornhuskers and Tuke clearly values his experience heading into a COVID-damaged campaign.

“We lost spring ball (to the virus) and we signed (Bunch) with one year of eligibility left because he’s had valuable QB reps,” Matukewicz said.

Linemen are key

Matukewicz is a big believer in the men upfront to help deliver positive results.

“What separates the Top 25 (teams) from the rest of the pack,” said Tuke, "is the O-line and the D-line,” noting part of Southeast’s recruiting model is “to bring in big people.”

Fans at Houck?

Asked what social distancing guidelines will be in place for home games at Houck Stadium, assuming fans are allowed, Tuke demurred.

“That’s the athletic director’s job,” said Matukewicz. “My focus is on what happens on the field.”

Pandemic worry

All roads lead back to COVID-19 in this most unusual of seasons.

“There is a threshold if we have in-season positive tests,” said Matukewicz.

“If we have two or three positives, those guys go into quarantine and we test daily,” he said.

“If we have 10 percent or more positive, that’s classified as an outbreak and at minimum we shut down the following game,” Matukewicz said.

Coach Tuke said he is eager to get going.

“We’ve been separated (as a full team) for 120 days,” said Matukewicz, “and it’s still early. We’re finding out who this team is going to be.”

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