Southeast Missouri State football team falls on the road to Tennessee Tech

Southeast Missouri State's Tyler McLemore attempts to haul in a pass while being defended by Tennessee Tech's Maleek Hall during a game Saturday, Oct. 22, 2016, in Cookeville, Tennessee.

TTU Sports Information

COOKEVILLE, Tenn. — The game’s only turnover and a pair of missed field goals inflicted too much damage on the Southeast Missouri State football team during Saturday’s game.

The Redhawks outperformed Tennessee Tech in a number of statistical categories, but it was those decisive moments that stood out the most in the Golden Eagles’ 21-20 homecoming win at Tucker Stadium.

“It really felt like we were playing well. It was just critical situations where we didn’t,” Southeast coach Tom Matukewicz said. “We lost the most important one, which was the turnover margin — they turned that into 7. ... Every time they were in the red zone, they got a touchdown, so they won the most critical situations even though statistically we outplayed them.”

Southeast Missouri State's Jesse Hosket makes a pass against Tennessee Tech during a game Saturday, Oct. 22, 2016, in Cookeville, Tennessee.

TTU Sports Information

The Redhawks racked up 379 yards of total offense while allowing TTU to churn out only 244 yards. Southeast (2-5, 2-2 Ohio Valley Conference) also finished with five more first downs than the Golden Eagles but came away with points on only two of its four red-zone opportunities.

Trailing 10-0, senior quarterback Michael Birdsong engineered a 12-play, 75-yard scoring drive for TTU (3-5, 3-3 OVC) that lasted 7 minutes, 33 seconds and spanned into the second quarter. The drive, which was extended by a personal foul on third down and a defensive pass interference on second-and-19, was capped by a 2-yard touchdown run by Yeedee Thaenrat at the 13:05 mark of the second period.

The Golden Eagles took their first lead of the game, 14-10, on the next play from scrimmage when junior middle linebacker Elliott Normand intercepted Southeast QB Jesse Hosket’s pass over the middle and returned the ball 25 yards to the end zone.

It was only Hosket’s second interception on the season, but it came when the Redhawks’ momentum appeared to be fleeting.

“Jesse’s always made great decisions. That one I wish he could have back,” Matukewicz said. “It was a dig. He should’ve held on for one more window and then been able to deliver the football. We’ll look at it.

“It’s just one of those things you can’t do. I know if he had the chance to do it again, he wouldn’t throw that.”

Hosket redeemed himself later in the quarter, delivering a well-placed deep ball along the left sideline to redshirt freshman wide receiver Kristian Wilkerson for a 47-yard touchdown and giving the Redhawks a 17-14 lead with 5:55 remaining before the break.

Southeast Missouri State's Tremane McCullough carries the ball against Tennessee Tech during a game Saturday, Oct. 22, 2016, in Cookeville, Tennessee.

TTU Sports Information

“It was a great pass, great protection,” Matukewicz said about the play. “It was a contested route and so really just a good ball and a great catch.”

Hosket finished 15-of-27 passing (56 percent) for 197 yards, while Wilkerson notched his first career 100-yard receiving game, finishing with a game-high 116 yards on four catches.

“Coach Tuke really emphasizes that it’s not about what happens but how you respond to it. Jesse did a phenomenal job with that,” junior WR Tyler McLemore said. “He’s a great quarterback. I’m glad he’s my quarterback.”

TTU answered on the following drive and took the lead for good, going 77 yards in seven plays. The drive ended when Birdsong rolled right and found wide receiver Dontez Byrd in the back corner of the end zone for a 10-yard TD catch that gave the Golden Eagles a 21-17 advantage with 3:00 remaining in the opening half.

Birdsong, who entered the game with the most passing yards in the OVC, completed 14 of 23 passes (61 percent) for 170 yards and did most of his damage outside of the pocket.

“He’s a good player,” said Southeast junior outside linebacker Chad Meredith, who finished with a team-high eight tackles and two sacks. “We missed a couple opportunities and took bad angles on him, but when he had his opportunity, he did what he needed to do. We just needed to take better angles and contain.”

Southeast kicker Ryan McCrum missed a 35-yard field goal inside the final minute of the half, and TTU was content in taking its four-point lead into the intermission.

McCrum atoned for his miss by knocking down a 30-yard field goal that trimmed Southeast’s deficit to 21-20 with 5:48 remaining in the third quarter on SEMO’s first drive of the second half.

But with the Redhawks positioned to take the lead in the early minutes of the final quarter, McCrum sailed a 30-yard kick wide right on fourth-and-1.

“He had to go out there because of somebody else’s mistake. Otherwise, we wouldn’t have been out there on fourth down,” Matukewicz said. “The first one he missed, he just hit it off the toe. The second one, he just pushed it wide right. So we’ve just got to go to work.

“There’s no magic pill. There’s no fairy dust I can sprinkle on it. It’s just he’s got to go back to work and just have a positive attitude that in the next one, he’s going to kick a game-winner for us.”

The Redhawks’ offense was unable to capitalize on two more drives before senior punter Alex Knight pinned the Golden Eagles inside their own 1.

Birdsong managed to create some breathing room with a 6-yard run on first down before finding Byrd along the sideline for a 22-yard reception on third-and-4. An 18-yard run by Thaenrat on third-and-4, which stood as the hosts’ longest run of the game, allowed TTU to wrap things up in victory formation.

The Golden Eagles were led in receiving by Byrd, who finished with 97 yards on eight grabs. As a team, they racked up 74 yards rushing on 29 carries, averaging only 2.6 yards per carry.

Southeast took a 7-0 lead on the opening drive of the game, a series of nine plays that spanned 70 yards. Will Young extended the drive with a 6-yard rush on fourth-and-1 before a 44-yard pass from Hosket to Wilkerson set the Redhawks up at the TTU 12. Three plays later, Young pounded his way into the end zone from 1 yard out with 10 minutes, 19 seconds remaining in the first quarter.

Young racked up a game-high 102 yards on 16 rushes.

“I really felt good about our game plan this week. I thought we had them dialed in well,” Matukewicz said. “The offensive guys went right down and scored, so that was great to see.”

A pair of back-to-back sacks by Chad Meredith and Kendall Donnerson forced the Golden Eagles to punt the ball on the ensuing drive, and the Redhawks increased their lead to 10-0 on a 51-yard field goal by McCrum with 5:38 remaining in the period. The kick was a season-long for the senior.

“He was confident,” Matukewicz said. “That was 10-0, exactly how you want to start it.”

Southeast has now lost five straight games in Cookeville, as 11 of the last 14 matchups have been decided by seven points or less.

The Redhawks are on a two-game losing streak but will look to bounce back against the bottom feeder of the conference in Austin Peay. Southeast will take on the Governors at 1 p.m. Saturday at Houck Stadium.

“We’ve just got to take it one week at a time, and that’s all you can really do,” McLemore said. “Believing just comes from deep down inside. I feel like after a loss like this that nobody should stop believing. There’s a lot of ball games left to be played. A lot of things happen in the OVC. Everybody’s great. Anybody can lose any given day, so we’ve just got to keep coming out and fighting every day.

“Whether it’s in practice, in a game, in the weight room, we’ve just got to keep fighting, and eventually we’ll break through.”