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
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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.
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"I was most pleased with our strong start," said head coach Tom Matukewicz. "We were clicking all around and simply dominated."
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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.
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The Redhawks began their assault with three touchdowns in the first eight minutes of the contest.Â
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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.Â
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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.
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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.
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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.Â
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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.
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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.
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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.Â
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SEMO tacked on 21 more points in the second half, including 14 in the third quarter.
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Santacaterina delivered a 69-yard touchdown pass to Cornett following a 4-yard touchdown run by Custis in the third quarter.
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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.
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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.
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"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."
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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.
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Robinson ran for a team-high 75 yards, while freshmen Custis and Geno Hess added 66 and 64 yards on the ground, resepectively.Â
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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.
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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).
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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.
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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
