Southeast Missouri State football team begins OVC slate against rival Murray State

By Trent Singer ~ Southeast Missourian

Thursday, September 22, 2016

Southeast Missouri State coach Tom Matukewicz talks to Justin Swift during the second quarter Saturday at Houck Stadium.

Fred Lynch

Southeast Missouri State football coach Tom Matukewicz knows nothing can be done to change the outcome of his team's 0-3 record to start the season. All that can be done is to learn from the past and focus on the future.

And a clean slate should help.

The Redhawks begin their Ohio Valley Conference schedule at 6 p.m. Saturday when they square off against Murray State at Roy Stewart Stadium in Murray, Kentucky.

"I think with these non-conference games, you're trying to learn more about your team, trying to get constant progress. We have issues pop up, so you've got opportunities to fix them," Southeast coach Tom Matukewicz said. "You've got to stay healthy, which we have done, and so now we're ready for OVC play."

The Redhawks are coming off a heartbreaking loss in last week's home opener against Indiana State. Southeast watched an 11-point lead dwindle in the final minutes, as ISU quarterback Isaac Harker connected on a 15-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Miles Thompson in the end zone with 10 seconds remaining for the game-winning score. The Sycamores held on for a 27-24 win.

Southeast Missouri State's Kendall Donnerson forces a fumble by Indiana State quarterback Isaac Harker during the first quarter Saturday, Sept. 17, 2016 at Houck Stadium. Southeast recovered the ball.

Fred Lynch

While an inability to stop ISU on the final drive proved to be the difference, Matukewicz believes there were a number of things that played into how the final minutes transpired.

"It's a team sport, so the offense wasn't able to do what we call a four-minute drill, which is run the clock down," Matukewicz said. "We had a negative yardage play right away that got us behind the chains, and then we had to punt. And they got the ball with 1:35 and one timeout left, and at that point, now we're at risk. If the offense would've taken time off the clock, then the game's over.

"Now when that happens, our defense has got to respond and get them stopped. We had several long-yardage situations. We had a critical error on a roughing the passer. Those are all teachable moments."

A simulation of that final drive took place during Tuesday's practice, as the Redhawks' offense marched downfield into goal territory before being stopped by the defense on fourth down.

Southeast's defense was nearly flawless for the majority of last week's game. Outside of scoring a touchdown on the first play from scrimmage and two more in the final three minutes, ISU was only able to score six points.

Matukewicz said closing out games has been a point of emphasis to his players.

"Hopefully we learned a great lesson about how important the fourth quarter is," Matukewicz said. "When we do a four-minute drill, you've got to realize the game is on the line, so you've got to take this stuff serious."

The Redhawks will hit the road for the third time this season against an MSU team that boasts an identical 0-3 record.

The Racers, who are in their second year under coach Mitch Stewart, are coming off a 50-17 loss last week at Southern Illinois, a team that defeated Southeast 30-22 a week prior. Against the Salukis, MSU was without its standout QB in redshirt senior KD Humphries, who was recovering from an injury in his throwing shoulder, and Matukewicz believes there's nothing to take away from either team's performance against SIU.

"The SIU game has nothing to do with the Murray game, and certainly they pick up a really good player," Matukewicz said. "But there's a lot of other things, so we just really need to focus on what it is we need to do better and then focus on Murray and what they present."

Despite allowing 495 yards of total offense, Southeast limited MSU to only one touchdown and came away with a 27-10 victory last season at Houck Stadium. Tremane McCullough ran for 220 yards and had a touchdown while the Redhawks' defense stood tall in the red zone against the Racers.

MSU's offense will have a very similar look to last year's team, according to senior strong safety Eriq Moore.

"They run a spread offense," said Moore, who had a team-high 11 tackles in last year's game against the Racers. "KD Humphries throws the ball a lot, throws the ball well. ... The high-tempo offense that they run and the big plays that their offense is capable of, we're going to do what we did last year and try to stop those big plays, and when they get in the red zone, we're going to try to make them kick field goals instead of score touchdowns."

Sophomore running back Cameron Sanders and junior running back Chase Abbington each scored their first rushing TD in a Southeast uniform last week, while senior RB Will Young also scored for the Redhawks. Young leads Southeast on the ground with 49 carries for 234 yards and two TDs. He's averaging 4.8 yards per carry.

McCullough has 64 touches for 235 yards from scrimmage but has yet to find the end zone, while redshirt freshman WR Kristian Wilkerson has 12 catches for a team-high 191 yards (15.9 yards per catch) for Southeast.

The Redhawks are 8-17 all-time in OVC openers, as they begin conference play against MSU for the second year in a row.

In order to establish a team breakthrough and secure his team's first win of the season, Matukewicz said he's stressing the importance for each of his players to have a personal breakthrough.

"As players, you've got to have a breakthrough before the team has a breakthrough. How do you do that? Well, that's personal execution," he said. "Everybody has something that they can do. Go execute your job and try to take off the film what it is you need to take off. ... We just come out daily and try and give our best.

"We're excited because all we've talked about is the OVC. We haven't talked about non-conference. We've talked about the OVC, and we've got a great first game to start."

Series history

Murray State leads 39-10-1

Last meeting

Southeast won 27-10 on Oct. 3, 2015, in Cape Girardeau

By the numbers

9 -- The career-high number of tackles by Southeast outside linebacker Kendall Donnerson in last week�s loss against Indiana State. Donnerson also had three tackles for loss, a sack and a first-quarter forced fumble, which the Redhawks� offense later turned into a touchdown. Donnerson ranks third in the OVC in sacks with 2 1/2 on the season.

38 -- The number of points the Racers allowed in the first half of last week�s loss in Carbondale, Illinois. The Salukis jumped out to a 17-0 lead, starting the game with a 98-yard kickoff return by DJ Davis. The Racers trimmed their deficit to 14 points by the end of the first quarter, but SIU tacked on two touchdowns in the second quarter to add to its lead.

214 -- The number of passing yards Southeast quarterback Jesse Hosket had in last week�s loss to Indiana State. The Redhawks� first-year starting QB finished 16-of-25 passing (64 percent) and has thrown 98 straight passes without an interception this season.

Stat leaders

Murray St.

Passing: KD Humphries 519 yards

Receiving: Jordon Gandy: 246 yards, Demetric Johnson 123 yards, Jesse Blackburn 91 yards

Rushing: Johnson 116 yards, Mareio McGraw 87 yards, Mark Dodson 16 yards

Tackles: Zachary Wade 28, Lamont Crittendon 26, Dylan Boone 20

Southeast

Passing: Jesse Hosket 596 yards

Receiving: Kristian Wilkerson 191 yards, Adrian Davis 155 yards, Tremane McCullough 132 yards

Rushing: Will Young 234 yards, McCullough 103 yards, Cameron Sanders 59 yards

Tackles: Roper Garrett 23, Chad Meredith 22, Ryan Moore 19

Murray State coach Mitch Stewart

Tab Brockman ~ Murray State Athletics

Opposing coach's view:

�They do a lot of things defensively that just make it tough from a protection standpoint, run-game standpoint. And then offensively, obviously the biggest thing that we�re going to have that�s going to challenge us this week is duplicating the bodies that they have � the tight ends that they have and the big personnels that they run on offense and all of those things. We don�t have a lot of those bodies laying around here. ... They�re awfully good at what they do on both sides of the football, and they�re pretty creative at what they do, in my opinion.�

-- Mitch Stewart, Murray State coach

Scouting the opponent

Murray State redshirt senior quarterback KD Humphries is 53-of-83 passing (64 percent) with 519 yards, two touchdowns and five interceptions.

Tab Brockman ~ Murray State Athletics

After graduating more than 20 seniors last year, the Racers are still looking to find the right pieces at key positions, according to Paducah Sun sports reporter Edward Alan Marlowe.

"Head coach Mitch Stewart knew there would be a learning curve, particularly at wide receiver, but he's wanting that rust to fall off sooner rather than later," Marlowe said in an email. "Be that as it may, the schedule didn't coincide with the Racer growing pains, as Murray State opened 0-3 against Illinois, an improved Missouri State team and a hungry SIU squad.

"My overall impression of the team is that they look really good in base defense and offense but haven't handled the intricacies of complex looks. They haven't confused opponents with playcalling, and the offensive line has really struggled against equal or greater competition."

Junior left tackle Joe Irby is the most experienced player on the Racers' offensive line, which hasn't done well keeping Humphries upright thus far. MSU's opponents have recorded 12 sacks on the season, and a left foot injury to Ole Miss transfer Mark Dodson in Week 1 created an early change of plans in the team's rushing attack.

In Week 2 against Missouri State, Humphries sustained an AC sprain in his throwing shoulder, one that will be monitored for the remainder of the year.

"Humphries has mixed in moments of pure brilliance and frustration," Marlowe said. "He's having a hard time trusting his receivers -- all new except for the return of preseason All-OVC wideout Jesse Blackburn. The misfires on routes are understandable. And yet, he still completed 60 percent of his passes and gained 360 yards against Missouri State, nearly circumnavigating around his four turnovers (three interceptions, one lost fumble).

"What stands out on offense is that they don't stand out at all. That was Stewart's message this week. When you look at Racer tape right now, you can't really tell what type of team they are. They haven't run it well (less than 40 yards per game), and they haven't passed it well (eight interceptions among three quarterbacks)."

In his two games, the 6-foot-3 Humphries is 53-of-83 passing (64 percent) with 519 yards, two TDs and five interceptions. Redshirt junior Cameron Birse has 228 yards through the air in two games and will serve as the backup QB.

MSU junior WR Jordon Gandy has 12 receptions for a team-high 246 yards and three touchdowns, while redshirt junior RB Demetric Johnson has 123 yards on a team-leading 14 catches. Johnson is the Racers' only rusher to reach the century mark, with 43 carries for 116 yards.

Despite giving up big numbers against Illinois and SIU, Marlowe believes the defense is improved as a whole and has been most effective in its base 4-2-5 scheme.

"Lamont Crittendon, Quincy Williams and Jonathan Jackson have continued to send a message that this is a harder-hitting defense than years past, and the secondary of Dylan Boone, Zachary Wade, Marquez Sanford and D'Montre Wade have brought that same message," Marlowe said. "The Racers are still a little outgunned in the trenches and haven't been able to create any type of pressure on the quarterback. Part of that is they've played tougher lines, but part of that has been scheme."

Wade, a redshirt junior cornerback, leads the team with 28 tackles, but Crittendon has been the defense's leading force. The redshirt junior linebacker has 26 tackles, including 4 1/2 for loss, while Boone, a junior free safety, has racked up 20 tackles and a fumble recovery.

A tough non-conference schedule has made it hard to gauge the progress of the Racers' program, but an influx in youth has ignited more excitement in Stewart's second year at the helm, according to Marlowe.

"There is more excitement because there are so many new names to prep for the future of the program," Marlowe said. "If you look at the roster, you'll see 30-plus freshmen and five more JUCO players who will suit up again for 2017. That, alone, is the biggest difference between 2015 and 2016.

"... Humphries has a ton of pressure on his shoulders to go out and lead the team, and as such, it has really put him in a bind with the running game getting off to a poor start. If the Racers are going to exceed any sort of expectations, the offensive line has to improve and the running game has to get going. Or just be serviceable."

OVC schedule

Saturday

* Austin Peay at #16 Eastern Illinois, 1 p.m.

* Tennessee Tech at UT Martin, 2 p.m.

UTM will be looking to win its fourth straight game against TTU, as the two teams enter their 38th all-time meeting. The Golden Eagles lead the all-time series 22-13-2.

The Skyhawks faced a pair of Football Bowl Subdivision opponents to start the season but picked up their first win in an 84-6 decision against NAIA Bacone College last week.

TTU lost 34-27 last week against Mercer, which rallied with 10 fourth-quarter points.