Southeast Missouri at Arkansas State

Date: Saturday, September 1, 2018
Kickoff: 6 p.m., CT
Location: Jonesboro, Ark.
Stadium: Centennial Bank Stadium (30,406)
Surface: GEO Surfaces Field Turf
Weather Forecast: Clear, 69 degrees
Series History: SEMO leads, 7-3-1
Last Meeting: ASU 21, SEMO 3 (Sept. 13, 2003 | Jonesboro, Ark.)
Head Coaches: Tom Matukewicz (16-30 overall; 15-30 at SEMO; 12-19 OVC). Blake Anderson (31-20 overall; 31-20 at ASU).

Media Coverage
Radio: Real Rock 99.3 FM (Erik Sean)
Video: ESPN+  (Roger Twibell, Pete Cordelli)
Live Stats: AStateStats.com
Twitter: @SEMOFootball
Southeast Missouri Notes

Redhawks Open Season Saturday
Southeast Missouri opens its 2018 season at Football Bowl Subdivision and Sun Belt Conference member Arkansas State Saturday. Kickoff is set for 6 p.m., CT, at Centennial Bank Stadium.

Follow the Redhawks
Fans can listen to Saturday's game on the radio Real Rock 99.3 FM. Erik Sean will call the action. Video can be accessed online at ESPN+. Live stats are available at AStateStats.com. Twitter updates provided @SEMOFootball.

Series History
This year marks the 12th meeting between Southeast Missouri and Arkansas State. The Redhawks hold a 7-3-1 advantage in the all-time series. These teams last met on Sept. 13, 2003. ASU won that game, 21-3, in Jonesboro, Arkansas. Nine of the first 11 meetings between ASU and SEMO were shutouts. The Redhawks blanked the Red Wolves seven times in that span. This season marks the second time SEMO faces ASU since it joined the NCAA Division I ranks in 1991.

Season-Openers
The Redhawks are 9-18 all-time in season-openers since joining the Football Championship Subdivision in 1991. SEMO's last win in a season-opener on the road came at Austin Peay (38-13) on Sept. 2, 2006. The Redhawks kick off a season against a Football Bowl Subdivision opponent for the 11th time in 2018. SEMO is 0-10 in season-openers against FBS teams.

Against the Sun Belt Conference
Arkansas State marks the first Sun Belt Conference opponent Southeast Missouri faces in 15 years. SEMO has played three Sun Belt Conference foes in its football history. The Redhawks are 8-6-1 all-time against such teams -- 7-3-1 vs. Arkansas State, 1-1 vs. Troy, 0-2 vs. Louisiana-Monroe.

Starting Debuts 
Ten players are expected to make their starting debuts at Southeast Missouri during week one. Elijah Swehla (LG), Jimmy Keutzer (RT), Austin Crump (TE), Jerrick Orr (WR) and Daniel Santacaterina (QB) are listed at the top of the Arkansas State game two-deep on offense, while Demarcus Rogers (ILB), Marcus Goree (OLB), Al Young (CB), DJ Freeman (FS) and Taj Jenkins (CB) will make their first Division I start on defense.

Santacaterina Earns Starting Quarterback Job
At the conclusion of Southeast Missouri's preseason camp, Northern Illinois transfer Daniel Santacaterina was named the Redhawks starting quarterback. Santacaterina will make his first career start at SEMO Saturday against Arkansas State. A native of Geneva, Illinois, Santacaterina played in six games and made four starts at NIU in 2017. He completed 62-of-97 passes for 712 yards and seven touchdowns. Santacaterina boasted a .639 completion percentage and averaged 118.7 passing yards per game. He threw for 128 yards on 15-of-22 passes to lead the Huskies to a 21-17 victory over Nebraska. Santacaterina joined the Redhawks in the spring, but was limited due to a shoulder injury. He was cleared before the start of camp and had a strong preseason. He succeeds Jesse Hosket who was SEMO's starting signal-caller the last two seasons. Hosket recently signed with upstart Alliance American Football League's Memphis.

Terry and Forbes Garner Preseason All-America Honors
Senior tailback Marquis Terry and senior left tackle Drew Forbes earned Preseason All-America honors. Terry was a First-Team Phil Steele's Preseason All-America selection, while Terry made the Lindy's Sports (second-team) and STATS (third-team) Preseason All-America teams.

Terry Named OVC Preseason Offensive Player of the Year
Senior tailback Marquis Terry became Southeast Missouri's first Preseason Ohio Valley Conference Offensive Player of the Year. The OVC began selecting the Preseason Offensive Player of the Year on a regular basis since 2008. Terry rushed for 1,076 yards and seven touchdowns on 239 carries and averaged 4.5 yards per attempt in his first season at SEMO in 2017. He led the OVC with 97.8 rushing yards per game and was one of two running backs in the conference to rush for over 1,000 yards. Terry rated 13th in the Football Championship Subdivision in total rushing yards and 16th in rushing yards per game. He ran for over 100 yards four times with a season-high 184 vs. Eastern Kentucky. Terry went over 100 yards in two of his final three starts of the season as his 1,076 yards marked the fifth-most in a season at SEMO. Also an OVC All-Newcomer pick, Terry ranked fourth in the league in all-purpose yards (1,185) and caught 20 passes for 109 yards out of the backfield.

More Preseason Accolades
Senior offensive tackle Drew Forbes and junior inside linebacker Zach Hall joined teammate Marquis Terry on the 2018 Preseason All-Ohio Valley Conference team. Forbes ranks at the top of the Athlon Sports Breakout Lineman Across FCS Football list. Hall led the Redhawks in tackles (79), tackles for loss (15) and sacks (9) in 2017. He forced a fumble and blocked a kick as well. Hall turned in 10 or more tackles in four of his final five starts of the season. He ranked eighth in the OVC in tackles, fourth in sacks and third in tackles for loss. Hall finished the year rated 18th in the nation in sacks and 27th in tackles for loss.

Redhawks Picked Seventh in OVC Preseason Poll
Southeast Missouri was picked seventh in this year's Ohio Valley Conference Predicted Order of Finish with 62 points. Jacksonville State is the preseason favorite after earning 14 first-place votes and 126 points in the overall voting by the conference's Head Coaches and Communications Directors. Austin Peay (112 pts.), UT Martin (95 pts.), Eastern Illinois (73 pts.), Eastern Kentucky (69 pts.) and Tennessee State (64 pts.) were also picked ahead of the Redhawks. Murray State (24 pts.) and Tennessee Tech (23 pts.) complete the poll.

Starting Streak
Senior Drew Forbes enters Saturday's season-opener at Arkansas State with a streak of 22 consecutive starts at left tackle. Forbes anchors an offensive line that returns three starters.

Interesting Trend
Southeast Missouri has had three winning seasons in its NCAA Division I era (since 1991). All three of those winning seasons have come at eight-year intervals (1994, 2002, 2010). The 2018 campaign marks eight years from SEMO's last winning campaign. The Redhawks went 9-3, won their only Ohio Valley Conference title and made the NCAA Playoffs that 2010 season.

Against the FBS
Southeast Missouri is 1-22 all-time against Football Bowl Subdivision opponents. The Redhawks have dropped their last 17 matchups with FBS schools. Additionally, SEMO has neverbeaten a BCS team.
11-12-94     at Hawai'i     L, 0-34
10-19-96     at Arkansas State     L, 9-38
08-31-00     at Marshall     L, 7-63
09-01-01     at Eastern Michigan     L, 12-16
09-14-02     at Eastern Michigan     L, 32-35
09-28-02     at Middle Tennessee     W, 24-14
08-30-03     at Ohio     L, 3-17
09-13-03     at Arkansas State     L, 3-21
09-11-04     at Bowling Green     L, 10-49
09-18-04     at Central Michigan     L, 27-44
09-10-05     at Kent State     L, 12-33
10-14-06     at Arkansas     L, 7-63
08-30-07     at Cincinnati     L, 3-59
09-06-08     at #6 Missouri     L, 3-52
09-12-09     at #23 Cincinnati     L, 3-70
09-02-10     at Ball State     L, 10-27
09-17-11     at Purdue     L, 0-59
08-30-12     at Central Michigan     L, 27-38
09-07-13     at Ole Miss     L, 13-31
09-06-14     at Kansas     L, 28-34
09-05-15     at #24 Missouri     L, 3-34
09-03-16     at Memphis     L, 17-35
09-02-17    at Kansas    L, 16-38
SEMO's future dates with FBS opponents include: Sept. 21, 2019 at Missouri; Sept. 12, 2020 at Ole Miss; Sept. 3, 2022 at Iowa State

OVC Action
Eight of the nine Ohio Valley Conference teams will be in action during week one of the 2018 college football season. Southeast Missouri (at Arkansas State), Austin Peay (at Georgia), UT Martin (at Missouri) and Eastern Illinois (at Arkansas) open the season on the road against Football Bowl Subdivision opponents. #6 Jacksonville State was the first in the league to play a game this year when it fell to #14 North Carolina A&T, 20-17, on Aug. 25. JSU's regular-season win streak of 41 straight against non-FBS opponents came to an end in the annual Guardian Credit Union FCS Kickoff.

Year Five
Tom Matukewicz sets to begin his fifth season as head coach at Southeast Missouri. Matukewicz has three wins over ranked opponents, most in program history. He received a two-year contract extension through the 2020 season.

Roster Talk
The Redhawks 2018 roster consists of 98 players, including 16 seniors, 24 juniors, 24 sophomores and 34 freshmen. Five of SEMO's seniors are fifth-year players. The Redhawks also return nine starters with five on offense and four on defense. Lucas Orchard (C), Junior Pierre (G), Drew Forbes (OT), Marquis Terry (RB) and Kristian Wilkerson (WR) return on offense, while Zach Hall (ILB), Bydarrius Knighten (FS), Reggie Miles (NT) and Clarence Thornton (DE) are back on defense.

Where They Ranked
Southeast Missouri led the Ohio Valley Conference and ranked sixth in the Football Championship Subdivision with 37 sacks in 2017. The Redhawks also ranked among the top four teams in the OVC in scoring defense (4th, 21.8 ppg allowed), rushing offense (4th, 137.7 ypg), kickoff returns (3rd, 22.8 ypr), punt return average (3rd, 10.1 ypr), sacks allowed (3rd, 14), fourth-down conversions (3rd, 50 percent), turnover margin (t2nd, +3) and red zone defense (4th, 75 percent).

Close Games
Winning close games is a big emphasis for the Southeast Missouri football team in 2018. The Redhawks lost five games by a combined 17 points last season. Four of those losses were by three points or less. Since 2014, SEMO has dropped 16 contests by seven points or less and took four one-point losses in that stretch. Also, SEMO was either up or down a score in the fourth quarter a total of 16 times before coming up short in those instances during the last three years alone.

Redhawks in the FCS
The Redhawks ranked among the top-30 teams in the Football Championship Subdivision in five categories last season. Southeast Missouri was sixth in sacks (37), 13th in kickoff returns (22.8 ypr), 21st in tackles for loss (7.4 per game), 26th in punt returns (10.1 ypr) and 28th in red zone defense (.750).

On Watch
Jake Reynolds, Zach Hall and Justin Swift enter the season ranked among Southeast Missouri's all-time career leaders. Reynolds is seventh in punting average (39.56 ypp), Hall is tied for seventh in sacks (10.0) and 16th in tackles for loss (18.5), and Swift is tied for 20th in sacks (7.0).

Road to 100
Junior wide receiver Kristian Wilkerson is 13 receptions away from 100 in his career. Wilkerson has caught 87 passes for 1,296 yards and nine touchdowns as Southeast Missouri's top receiver. He averages just under 15 yards per catch (14.9) in his career.

Deep Defensive Line
Southeast Missouri's defensive line is relying heavily on its depth this season. The Redhawks want to be relentless affecting the quarterback and stopping the run, two areas the defensive line excelled in a year ago. In 2017, SEMO led the Ohio Valley Conference in sacks and tied for first with Jacksonville State in fewest rushing touchdowns allowed. Against the run, the Redhawks allowed only seven rushing touchdowns. SEMO did not allow a rushing TD in each of its first three games of the season. Nose tackle Reggie Miles is the only senior on this year's defensive line. 

Season 114
The 2018 campaign is Southeast Missouri's 114th season of football. The Redhawks enter their 28th season at the NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision level. SEMO joined the NCAA Division I ranks in 1991 and compiled an overall record of 104-200 with one Ohio Valley Conference title (2010) and one NCAA Playoff appearance as a D-I program.

Scoring Streak
The Redhawks presently have the second-longest scoring streak in the Ohio Valley Conference. Southeast Missouri has scored in 77-consecutive games and ranks behind Murray State (142) in that category. The last time the Redhawks were shutout in a game was at Purdue (59-0) on Sept. 17, 2011.