Hosket-led Southeast Missouri State football team gets ready for season opener at Memphis

Southeast Missouri State junior quarterback Jesse Hosket throws a pass during a scrimmage on Aug. 8 at Houck Stadium. Hosket will lead the Redhawks' offense on Saturday when they travel to Memphis for the season opener.

Fred Lynch

It was never going to be an easy decision, but now that it's been made, Southeast Missouri State football coach Tom Matukewicz likes what he's been seeing from his new signal caller.

Junior Jesse Hosket, a transfer from East Central Community College, got the nod at starting quarterback over sophomore Dante Vandeven on Aug. 22 and will lead the Redhawks when they take the field at 6 p.m. Saturday against Memphis in both teams' season opener at Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium in Memphis, Tennessee.

The battle between the JUCO transfer in Hosket and reigning Ohio Valley Conference Freshman of the Year in Vandeven was far from contentious, but rather supportive, as the two players used the opportunity to improve themselves while constantly maintaining a team-first approach.

"It's a tough situation to be in because you can only name one," Matukewicz said about naming a starting QB. "Everybody automatically assumes that Dante didn't do something well, but actually it was just close. I think Dante's a lot better of a player than he was a year ago, but at the end of the day, I had to make that decision. And I love the fact that Jesse's very mature. His football IQ is high. He's physically very big, and I love what he can do within the pocket hitting hands."

Hosket joins the Redhawks on the heels of a sophomore season in which he threw for 1,504 yards and 16 touchdowns on 117-of-191 (61.3 percent) passing. He guided ECCC to the semifinals of the Mississippi Association of Community and Junior Colleges Playoffs, finishing the year ranked fifth in the league in passing.

Southeast Missouri State coach Tom Matukewicz expresses himself during a scrimmage Saturday, Aug. 8, 2016 at Houck Stadium.

Fred Lynch

"I'm glad to be put in the position, but I realize I'm new to this place. There's still other leaders out here," said Hosket, a native of French Camp, Mississippi. "I think Dante's a great leader for the offense still. Even if he's on the sideline, he's still a leader. We have older senior linemen that are great leaders, so I just think I need to come out here and do my job. I don't have to do everything. I don't have to win the game. I just need to control the game."

Since naming his Week 1 starter, Matukewicz has seen a lot of improvement in the timing between his receivers and Hosket, who has been developing a rapport since arriving in the summer.

"We've got lots of new receivers, so there's just a lot of new players out there that we're trying to get in a rhythm," Matukewicz said. "That's why I kind of wanted to name a starter early on so we can really get those reps going. These last three practices, I really feel like there's been some consistency with the timing."

Southeast will take on a Memphis team still searching for a new identity after the departure of four-year coach Justin Fuente, who's now at Virginia Tech, and three-year starting QB Paxton Lynch, who led the Tigers to a 9-4 record as a junior before being picked by the Denver Broncos in the first round of the NFL Draft in April. Mike Norvell takes over for Fuente after serving four years as an assistant coach at Arizona State, while junior transfer Riley Ferguson is set to replace Lynch at quarterback.

"We know they're talented," Matukewicz said about the Tigers. "Their two tailbacks are really good. They've got a couple of wideouts that do a really nice job. Defensively, I think there are going to be some other schemes, so we're just kind of working a lot of stuff. We've got to be able to coach on gameday and be able to make adjustments."

Memphis won its first eight games of the season a year ago, reaching No. 13 in the first College Football Playoff poll, before dropping four of its final five games, including a 31-10 loss against Auburn in the Birmingham Bowl. The Tigers were predicted to finish third in the West Division of the American Athletic Conference preseason poll, the same spot they finished a year ago.

After a 4-7 campaign in 2015, the Redhawks return in Matukewicz's third year at the helm with hopes of reaching the top tier of the Ohio Valley Conference. Southeast, which was 3-4 in the OVC last season, was picked to finish fifth in the preseason coach's poll.

Despite losing one of the school's all-time greats in wide receiver Paul McRoberts, the Redhawks' offense returns one of its top contributors from last season in senior Tremane McCullough. The 5-foot-7 McCullough was a First-Team All-OVC selection in 2015 after rushing for 1,028 yards and five touchdowns on 170 carries. He'll be making the move from running back to slot receiver, but Matukewicz plans to utilize the veteran speedster in whatever way he can.

"He played wideout in junior college, so this is definitely not foreign to him," Matukewicz said about McCullough. "He's done a great job. His ball skills are really good. He can do the long ball because he's got the speed. Underneath, all he needs is a little bit of space and he can make a lot of plays.

"You're going to see him in a lot of places. We're going to hand it to him. We're going to throw it to him. We're going to pitch it to him. We're really going to try to get him the football as much as we can."

Matukewicz said he's been pleased with his players' intensity heading into their season opener. He's also been emphasizing to his players the importance of maintaining a healthy regimen.

"We've just got to be intentional," Matukewicz said. "You can't be a normal college student and have beer and pizza and eat at midnight and sleep until 10. You have to take care of your body. You've got to hydrate. Input's output.

"A lot of people don't understand just even a normal practice is so excruciating that if you don't treat your body right, it'll fail you. The point is to come back from practice fully healed from today's practice. That's just something we constantly harp on because, for whatever reason, since I've been here, we've been injured. We can't have any season-ending injuries. We've got to try to prevent as many of those as we can."

Series history

Memphis leads series 2-1-2

Last meeting

Southeast won 6-0 in 1934

By the numbers

28 -- The number of touchdown passes thrown by Paxton Lynch last year during his final season in a Memphis uniform. He only had four interceptions and tied an FBS record with seven TD passes in a half during a 63-0 win over Southern Methodist. Lynch declared for the NFL Draft following his junior year and was selected by the Denver Broncos with the 26th overall pick.

106 -- The number of tackles in 2015 by Southeast linebacker Roper Garrett, who was the team’s leading tackler and returns to lead the Redhawks’ defense as a senior. Garrett finished the season with 10 tackles for loss, including 4.5 sacks. In total, Garrett accounted for nearly 8 percent of Southeast’s total team tackles.

82 -- The number of years since the Redhawks and Tigers last met. There have been five total meetings between the two programs, and a total of 31 points have been scored during during those matchups in 1929, 1930, 1932, 1933 and 1934. Memphis has a 2-1-2 lead in the series, but Southeast won the last meeting in a 6-0 decision.

Stat leaders

Memphis

Passing: None

Rushing: Sam Craft 333 yards, Jae’Lon Oglesby 59 yards, Tearris Wallace: 31 yards

Receiving: Anthony Miller 694 yards, Phil Mayhue 670 yards, Roderick Proctor 335 yards

Tackles: Shareef White 63, Genard Avery 53, Dontrell Nelson 47

Southeast

Passing: Dante Vandeven: 1,568 yards

Rushing: Tremane McCullough 1,028 yards, Vandeven 292 yards, Darrius Darden-Box 28 yards

Receiving: McCullough 279 yards, Darden-Box 37 yards, Adrian Davis 89 yards

Tackles: Roper Garrett: 106, Chad Meredith: 68, Eriq Moore: 60

Returning leaders

Memphis' new football coach, Mike Norvell, speaks during a news conference Friday, Dec. 4, 2015, in Memphis, Tenn. (Mark Weber/The Commercial Appeal via AP)

Opposing coach's view

“I think SEMO, when you look at them, they’re one of the more experienced teams in college football coming back. ... It’s not going to be their first time jumping out on the big stage. They play well together. They’re going to have a new quarterback. Last year, their quarterback was the freshman player of the year in their conference, and he actually got beat out by a junior college quarterback that’s coming in to be able to play for them. They have a 1,000-yard back that they’re moving out to receiver because of a couple of additions and transfers that have come in, so even though it’s a very experienced group, we know there’s going to be some new faces. They’re definitely a quality opponent that’s multiple on both sides of the ball, so it’s going to be a great game. We’re looking forward to being able to kick it off here Saturday.”

-- Mike Norvell, Memphis coach

Scouting the opponent

The biggest change for Memphis starts at the top with Mike Norvell replacing Justin Fuente. The program is continuing to find its footing after Fuente guided the Tigers to a 26-23 record during his four years, but TigerSportsReport.com publisher Bryan Moss-Namowicz believes the players have shown no trouble embracing the new coaching staff.

"The transition has been a smooth one," Moss-Namowicz said in an email. "The players have quickly bonded with this new staff. Coach Norvell has talked about playing faster and more physical. Last year was the fastest and most physical I've ever seen Memphis play in my 10 years covering them, so it's going to be interesting to see how much faster and physical this team can get."

On the field, no loss will be felt more than the departure of quarterback Paxton Lynch, who was taken in the first round of the NFL Draft after a prolific junior season. Lynch threw for 3,776 yards with 28 touchdowns and four interceptions while completing 66.8 percent of his passes.

The Tigers have no returning players on their roster at QB but will benefit from the addition of Riley Ferguson, a 6-foot-4 transfer from Coffeyville Community College, where Southeast coach Tom Matukewicz spent two years as a coach (1999-2000).

"It's going to be hard to top NFL first-rounder Paxton Lynch, but Ferguson has the physical tools and smarts to lead this team," Moss-Namowicz said. "What will help Ferguson a lot is having a dynamic receiver like Anthony Miller. Miller is a workhorse. He's quick, shifty and has great hands. He'll make life easier for Ferguson."

Miller is Memphis' top returning wideout from last season, finishing the year with 694 yards receiving and five touchdowns. He'll be joined by Phil Mayhue, who hauled in 51 receptions for 670 yards a year ago.

The Tigers had a number of plays featuring the read-option last season, but Moss-Namowicz doesn't expect to see the same sort of approach under Norvell.

"Because of the type of player Lynch was, they were more of a passing team. I think you'll see a more balanced approach this year," Moss-Namowicz said. "Running back Doroland Dorceus will start, but true freshman Darrell Henderson was outstanding in fall camp and could push for some playing time early."

Memphis runs a 3-4 on defense and will be led by the strength of its linebacking corps, which features a pair of top tacklers from last season in Shareef White (63 tackles) and Genary Avery (53 tackles).

"You have a thunder and lightning combo with Genard Avery and Shareef White. One has abnormal strength, and the other is quick," Moss-Namowicz said. "The surprise of the fall camp has been the maturity of the secondary. Last year wasn't a standout year for the secondary. At times they looked great, and other times, very mediocre. They have looked much improved, especially corner Arthur Maulet.

Moss-Namowicz said this year's team is "fast, focused and physical," but the unknown lurks as a form of weakness. No one will really know what the new coaching staff has instilled in this year's squad until the Tigers take the field Saturday night.

"Most feel that getting to a bowl game will be a success, but deep down, they want to contend for a conference championship. They have the talent to do so," Moss-Namowicz said. "It's a matter of can they put it all together? They are capable of beating anyone on their schedule. Will they stay focused, and can they stay healthy to accomplish that? Time will tell.

"Coach Norvell has talked about wanting to see a clean game. He doesn't want Memphis to get into trouble with penalties. He wants his team to remain focused and play a good, mistake-free game."

OVC schedule

Saturday

* Eastern Kentucky at Purdue, 11 a.m.

First-year coach Mark Elder will lead the Colonels onto the field in their season opener against a Big Ten opponent in the Boilermakers.

EKU has faired well against Football Bowl Subdivision teams in recent years, beating Miami (Ohio) 17-10 in 2014 and dropping close contests against Indiana, Louisville, Kansas State and Kentucky.

The Colonels, who were picked to finish second in the Ohio Valley Conference preseason coaches poll, return six starters on offense and three on defense. They’ve added 44 new players, including 10 FBS transfers, since Elder and his staff took over in December.

* Murray State at Illinois, 2:30 p.m.

* Austin Peay at Troy, 5 p.m.

* Arkansas Pine-Bluff at Tennessee State, 6 p.m.