Southeast Missouri State University
3-2 , 2-1
Tennessee Tech
0-6 , 0-3
| Team | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | Final F |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Southeast Missouri | 21 | 28 | 14 | 7 | 70 |
| Tennessee Tech | 3 | 14 | 7 | 14 | 38 |
Redhawks Rout Tennessee Tech, 70-38, Behind Santacaterina’s Huge Night
10/6/2018 11:09:00 PM | Football
SEMO scored 10 touchdowns with seven different players scoring at least one. The Redhawks racked up a single game record 692 yards along the way. And, the 70 points were SEMO's most in a game against an NCAA Division I opponent and most in any Ohio Valley Conference game since the Redhawks joined the league in 1991.
"I was most pleased with our strong start," said head coach Tom Matukewicz. "We were clicking all around and simply dominated."
Santacaterina, who threw four interceptions two weeks ago at Eastern Kentucky, completed 16-of-21 passes for 273 yards and three TDs in a massive first half. SEMO scored touchdowns on offense, defense and special teams en route to its 49 first-half points.
The Redhawks began their assault with three touchdowns in the first eight minutes of the contest.
Santacaterina threw a 6-yard pass to Kristian Wilkerson on SEMO's opening drive which covered 83 yards on seven plays in a stretch of 2:33.
Freshman Aaron Alston's first career blocked punt resulted in a touchdown when Taylen Waller fell on the ball in the end zone to make it 14-0 in favor of SEMO with 10:30 left in the first quarter.
Another freshman, this time Zion Custis, broke free for a 24-yard touchdown, the second of his career, to widen the Redhawks lead to 21-0. Custis' score capped a 4-play, 55-yard march in 1:21.
After TTU got on the board with a 52-yard field goal by Nick Madonia, SEMO countered with two more touchdowns that came only 14 seconds apart.
Cornett caught a 10-yard pass from Santacaterina for his first career touchdown at the 9:06 mark. Then, linebacker Zach Hall recovered TTU quarterback Bailey Fisher's errant pitch in the end zone to give SEMO a 35-3 advantage.
TTU managed to score rushing touchdowns by Andrew Goldsmith (1 yard) and David Gist (57 yards), but SEMO added another two of its own to go up 49-17 at the half.
Santacaterina's third touchdown pass, a 60-yard strike to Orr, came with 5:22 left before Mark Robinson hit paydirt on a 10-yard run for his first career SEMO touchdown at the 2:27 mark.
SEMO tacked on 21 more points in the second half, including 14 in the third quarter.
Santacaterina delivered a 69-yard touchdown pass to Cornett following a 4-yard touchdown run by Custis in the third quarter.
Anthony Cooper later threw a 36-yard touchdown pass to Waller with 9:24 in the fourth quarter for SEMO's final score of the night. The touchdown pass was the first of Cooper's career, while the reception and TD were both career firsts for Waller.
Santacaterina completed 20-of-27 passes as his 395 yards were third-most in a game by a SEMO quarterback. His 395 marks surpassed former Redhawk quarterback and current offensive coordinator Jeromy McDowell's 391 yards at Southern Illinois (Sept. 8, 2001) for the third-place spot. Santacaterina's four touchdown passes tied for third-most in a game, as well.
"There was no doubt Daniel was going to bounce back," said Matukewicz. "It was great how he responded and how focused he was. His confidence and decision-making were on point."
Orr caught four passes for a game-high 121 yards and a touchdown, while Cornett followed with three receptions for 115 yards and two scores. It was the first time the Redhawks had two 100-yard receivers in a game since 2014. A total of 10 different SEMO receivers had a catch.
Robinson ran for a team-high 75 yards, while freshmen Custis and Geno Hess added 66 and 64 yards on the ground, resepectively.
Defensively, Demarcus Rogers turned in a career-high 10 tackles and Hall followed close behind with eight. Hall added a breakup and fumble recovery for SEMO's defensive touchdown.
The Redhawks ended a five-game losing streak against TTU in Cookeville. SEMO won at Tucker Stadium for the first time since 2003 (24-20).
SEMO, which hasn't played at home a month, returns to Cape Girardeau to host Austin Peay during its Homecoming on Oct. 13. Kickoff is set for 1 p.m., CT, at Houck Field.
Players Mentioned
Team Stats
SEMO 7, TTU 0
SEMO - WILKERSON, K. 6 yd pass from SANTACATERINA (LITANG, N. kick) 7 plays, 83 yards, TOP 2:33
SEMO 14, TTU 0
SEMO - WALLER, Taylen 0 yd blocked punt return (LITANG, N. kick)
SEMO 21, TTU 0
SEMO - CUSTIS, Zion 24 yd run (LITANG, N. kick), 4 plays, 55 yards, TOP 1:21
SEMO 21, TTU 3
TTU - MADONIA, Nick 52 yd field goal 9 plays, 25 yards, TOP 2:41
SEMO 28, TTU 3
SEMO - CORNETT, Colby 10 yd pass from SANTACATERINA (LITANG, N. kick) 12 plays, 55 yards, TOP 4:52
SEMO 35, TTU 3
SEMO - HALL, Zach 0 yd fumble recovery (LITANG, N. kick)
SEMO 35, TTU 10
TTU - GOLDSMITH, Andr 1 yd run (MADONIA, Nick kick), 6 plays, 75 yards, TOP 2:30
SEMO 42, TTU 10
SEMO - ORR, Jerrick 60 yd pass from SANTACATERINA (LITANG, N. kick) 3 plays, 75 yards, TOP 1:00
SEMO 49, TTU 10
SEMO - ROBINSON, Mark 10 yd run (LITANG, N. kick), 7 plays, 70 yards, TOP 2:04
SEMO 49, TTU 17
TTU - GIST, David 57 yd run (MADONIA, Nick kick), 5 plays, 75 yards, TOP 1:58
SEMO 49, TTU 24
TTU - SINGLETARY, Cam 24 yd pass from FISHER, Bailey (MADONIA, Nick kick) 7 plays, 75 yards, TOP 2:31
SEMO 56, TTU 24
SEMO - CUSTIS, Zion 4 yd run (LITANG, N. kick), 9 plays, 87 yards, TOP 3:00
SEMO 63, TTU 24
SEMO - CORNETT, Colby 69 yd pass from SANTACATERINA (LITANG, N. kick) 3 plays, 73 yards, TOP 1:25
SEMO 63, TTU 31
TTU - STAFFORD, Darri 85 yd pass from FISHER, Bailey (MADONIA, Nick kick) 6 plays, 85 yards, TOP 2:10
SEMO 70, TTU 31
SEMO - WALLER, Taylen 36 yd pass from COOPER, Anthony (LITANG, N. kick) 5 plays, 75 yards, TOP 3:13
SEMO 70, TTU 38
TTU - GIST, David 46 yd run (MADONIA, Nick kick), 5 plays, 75 yards, TOP 1:54
