Murray State (2-3, 0-1 OVC) vs. Southeast Missouri (2-4, 2-1 OVC)

Game Information
Date: Saturday, October 16, 2021
Kickoff: 2 p.m., CT
Location: Cape Girardeau, Mo.
Facility: Houck Field (10,000)
Surface: FieldTurf 
Series: MSU leads, 41-13-1
Last Meeting: MSU 24, SEMO 21 (Mar. 7, 2021 | Cape Girardeau, Mo.)
Head Coaches: Tom Matukewicz (40-46 overall; 39-46 at SEMO; 31-26 OVC). Dean Hood (60-41 overall; 7-5 at MSU).

Follow the Redhawks
Radio: Real Rock 99.3 FM (Erik Sean, Rick Wieser, Rusty Hendricks)
Video: ESPN+
Live Stats: SEMORedhawks.com
Twitter: @SEMOfootball
Game Notes: Southeast Missouri (PDF)

Redhawks Host Murray State
Southeast Missouri (2-4, 2-1) plays host to Murray State (2-3, 0-1) Saturday. Kickoff is set for 2 p.m., CT at Houck Field.

Follow the Redhawks
Fans can listen live on the radio at Real Rock 99.3 FM. Erik Sean, Rick Wieser and Rusty Hendricks will be on the call. Watch on ESPN+. Live stats are available at SEMORedhawks.com and Twitter updates will be provided @SEMOfootball.

Championship Recognition
Southeast Missouri's baseball, softball, women's track & field, women's tennis and gymnastics teams will be recognized during Saturday's football game vs. Murray State. The baseball, softball, women's outdoor track & field and women's tennis teams all won Ohio Valley Conference titles a year ago. Meanwhile, the SEMO gymnastics team won the USAG Women's Collegiate National Championship last spring.

Next Two Games
This weekend's matchup with Murray State and next week's away contest at UT Martin (Oct. 23) do not count toward the Ohio Valley Conference standings. OVC football playing members will play six conference games in a round-robin format as part of this year's official league schedule.

Series History
The Redhawks and Racers meet for the 56th time on the gridiron Saturday. Murray State holds a 41-13-1 lead in the series. Southeast Missouri won four of the last six meetings with MSU. Nine of SEMO's 13 wins against the Racers have come at Houck Field.  

Redhawks in October
The Redhawks are 14-12 in October games under Head Coach Tom Matukewicz. Over the last four years, Southeast Missouri has won eight of their previous 11 games in October. 

Massive Defensive Effort
Southeast Missouri recorded a season-high six takeaways in its win at Austin Peay (Oct. 9). Ty Leonard, Brandon Mincey and Dony'e Taylor each had an interception, while Jacob Morrissey, Taylor and Austin Carter all recovered fumbles. The outstanding defensive effort allowed SEMO's offense to begin five drives in APSU territory. 

Nice "Pick" Me Up
The Redhawks finished with a season-best three interceptions to help nail down its first road win of the season at Austin Peay (Oct. 9). Brandon Mincey and Dony'e Taylor each posted the first interception of their careers, while Ty Leonard had his team-best second this season. Southeast Missouri leads the Ohio Valley Conference and ranks 18th in the Football Championship Subdivision with seven picks this year. It was also SEMO's second game with multiple interceptions in 2021.

Halftime Leads
Southeast Missouri led at halftime in each of its last three games and went 2-1 in those contests. The Redhawks did not allow a point in the first half against both Tennessee State (Sept. 25) and Tennessee Tech (Oct. 2). SEMO outscored its opponents in the first half by a count of 42-8 during its previous three contests.

OVC Update
UT Martin presently stands as the only Ohio Valley Conference team with an overall winning record at 4-1. Southeast Missouri leads the league with two OVC victories thus far. UTM (1-0) and Eastern Illinois (1-0) are tied for first atop the conference standings entering this weekend. 

Approaching 2,000 Rushing Yards
Geno Hess needs 109 more rushing yards to reach 2,000 in his career. Hess is 10th among Southeast Missouri's all-time career rushing leaders with 1,891 rushing yards. He is on pace to become the ninth player in SEMO football history to get more than 2,000 career rushing yards.

On a Roll
Geno Hess ran for 116 yards and three touchdowns at Austin Peay (Oct. 9). Hess has scored an Ohio Valley Conference best nine rushing touchdowns through six games this year. He scored a rushing touchdown in five-straight games and ran for over 100 yards on three occasions this year. Seven of Hess's touchdowns have come in the last three games alone.

Moving On Up
Geno Hess is tied for third among Southeast Missouri's all-time career leaders in rushing touchdowns. Hess enters the week with 27 career rushing TDs, including nine in 2021. Twenty one of those scores came since the start of the 2020 campaign. He is 10 rushing touchdowns away from breaking SEMO's all-time career record of 36 presently held by Walter Smallwood (1965-68). 

Stormin' Norman
Freshman Bryce Norman, who started the last two games at inside linebacker, is Southeast Missouri's leading tackler through six games. Norman leads the Redhawks in total tackles (31), solo tackles (21), tackles for loss (6.5) and forced fumbles (3). He finished as SEMO's top tackler in three games this year. Norman leads the Ohio Valley Conference in forced fumbles and is fifth in the nation in that category. Additionally, he is third among OVC freshmen in tackles behind Eastern Illinois' Colin Bohanek (47) and Jordan Vincent (38).

Mincey and Hess Nab OVC Accolades
For the second time this season, Southeast Missouri had two players win Ohio Valley Conference weekly honors. Inside linebacker Brandon Mincey was named OVC Defensive Player of the Week and running back Geno Hess claimed Co-Offensive Player of the Week  on Oct. 10. A native of Miami, Florida, Mincey recorded six tackles, two tackles for loss, a forced fumble and one interception in the Redhawks 30-14 victory over Austin Peay (Oct. 9). He added five solo stops and was one of three Redhawks with a pick. Mincey helped key a SEMO defense that forced six turnovers against the Governors. Hess, who hails from Peoria, Illinois, ran for 116 yards and three touchdowns in that game. He averaged 4.1 yards per carry on 28 attempts. Hess ran for over 100 yards for the sixth time in his career and third this season.

Leonard Leads the Way 
Ty Leonard collected a career-high nine tackles to lead Southeast Missouri against Austin Peay (Oct. 9). All of Leonard's tackles were solo stops. He also returned his team-high second interception of the season for 27 yards.

McCall Logs First Start 
Highland Community College transfer William McCall logged his first career start in the Redhawks secondary at Austin Peay (Oct. 9). McCall was Southeast Missouri's second-leading tackler with eight tackles, including five solo. He also added one pass breakup against the Governors.

Smith Returns
Wide receiver Zack Smith returned and led Southeast Missouri with five catches for 53 yards against Austin Peay (Oct. 9). Smith missed four weeks with a foot injury.

OVC Leader
Southeast Missouri leads the Ohio Valley Conference in kickoff returns (23.4 ypr), interceptions (7), net punting average (40.2 ypp), fourth-down conversions (6-of-8, 75 pct.), turnover margin (+6), red zone offense (20-of-20, 1.000) and onside kicks (2-of-2).

Multiple Quarterbacks 
Starting quarterback CJ Ogbonna and Jalyn Williams are currently splitting time at quarterback. Williams completed 7-of-14 passes for 68 yards and ran for 54 yards on 13 carries, while Ogbonna completed 3-of-9 passes for 25 yards and a touchdown at Austin Peay (Oct. 9). Southeast Missouri has used multiple quarterbacks in five of six games this season.

Red Zone Perfection
Southeast Missouri's offense is perfect inside the red zone through four games this season. SEMO scored on all 20 of its chances inside the 20-yard line. The Redhawks have scored 123 of their 157 points in the red zone for 78.3 percent of their total scoring output. SEMO leads the Ohio Valley Conference and is tied for first in  the Football Championship Subdivision in red zone offense.

More Red Zone Success
The Redhawks have gone 16-straight games without turning the ball over inside the 20-yard line. In fact, Southeast Missouri's last turnover in the red zone came on an interception at Eastern Illinois on Nov. 16, 2019.

Takeaway Time
Southeast Missouri recorded five more takeaways in its recent win at Austin Peay (Oct. 9). SEMO leads the Ohio Valley Conference with 13 takeaways and boasts a league best +6 turnover margin through six games. The Redhawks have also gone 20-consecutive games with a takeaway dating back to the 2019 campaign.APSU had six turnovers, one of which 

Don't Mess with Hess
Tailback Geno Hess ran for a career-high 205 yards and three touchdowns to lead Southeast Missouri to its first win of the season, a 47-14 victory over Tennessee State (Sept. 25). Hess averaged 8.2 yards per carry on 25 attempts. He scored touchdowns on runs of two, 63 and eight yards, respectively. Two of his touchdowns came in the third quarter. The 63-yard run was the third-longest of Hess' career. He became only the third Football Championship Subdivision player to rush for over 200 yards in a game this season joining Youngstown State's Jaleel McLaughlin (242 yards vs. Incarnate Word) and Montana State's Isaiah Ifanse (217 yards vs. Portland State). Hess leads the Ohio Valley Conference and ranks seventh in the nation with 586 rushing yards. He is also second nationally and first in the league with nine rushing touchdowns. Additionally, Hess ranks 12th in the FCS and first in the conference in rushing yards per game (97.7).

Keep it Going
Geno Hess has scored a rushing touchdown in eight of his last nine games. Hess scored multiple touchdowns and ran for over 100 yards three times during that stretch. He had at least one rushing touchdown in his last five starts.

Top Scoring Threat 
Geno Hess is first in the Ohio Valley Conference and 16th in the FCS in scoring with nine points per game. Hess scored 54 points on nine rushing touchdowns.

Matching Up with Hood 
Dean Hood led Murray State to an Ohio Valley Conference title during his first year as head coach with the Racers last spring. Hood was the head coach at Eastern Kentucky from 2008-15 before he went on to serve in assistant coaching roles at Charlotte (2016-17) and Kentucky (2017-19). He is 8-1 all-time against Southeast Missouri. The only time the Redhawks beat Hood as an OVC head coach was in 2010 (40-21, Oct. 23, Cape Girardeau).

Single-Game Rushing Marks
It's no secret that Tom Matukewicz's Southeast Missouri teams like to run the football. The Redhawks have established three of the program's top 11 single-game rushing marks in their NCAA Division I era during eight years with Matukewicz at the helm. Here is a look at those performances.
Rank    Game    Yards
8.    Tennessee State, Sept. 25, 2021    380
10.    at Southern Illinois, Sept. 15, 2018    352
11.    at Tennessee Tech, Nov. 8, 2014    348

Fourth Quarter Points
Southeast Missouri has scored 49 fourth-quarter points through six games, second-most in the Ohio Valley Conference. The Redhawks put up 21 points in the final quarter at Football Bowl Subdivision member Missouri (Sept. 18). The 21 points tied for third-most in the fourth quarter during SEMO's NCAA Division I era. Austin Peay leads the league with 57 fourth-quarter points. SEMO has been outscored in every quarter except the fourth (49-45) so far this year.

Transfer Quarterbacks
A transfer has started at quarterback in all seven of Southeast Missouri's season-opening games with Tom Matukewicz at the helm. Kyle Snyder (Ohio University, 2014), Tay Bender (Iowa Western, 2015), Jesse Hosket (East Central CC, 2016 & 2017), Daniel Santacaterina (Northern Illinois, 2018 & 2019) and Andrew Bunch (Nebraska, 2020-21) form that group. CJ Ogbonna is the third junior college transfer to start as SEMO's quarterback under Matukewicz.

100-Yard Games
Geno Hess ran for over 100 yards for the sixth time in his career when he gained 116 at Austin Peay (Oct. 9). Hess also ran for 205 yards vs. Tennessee State (Sept. 25, 2021), 156 yards at Tennessee State (Nov. 2, 2019), 128 yards at Southern Illinois (Oct. 30, 2020), 124 yards vs. Austin Peay (Mar. 14, 2021) and 104 yards vs. Southern Illinois (Sept. 2, 2021).

Redhawk Graduates
A total of six Southeast Missouri players will be playing their 2021 season as graduates. Veterans Omardrick Douglas (OLB) and Zack Smith (WR) are both in their sixth year with the program. Shabari Davis (CB) returns for his fifth season and Terry Cook (OL) is back for his third year at SEMO. Maine transfer Kenny Doak (K) and Northern Illinois transfer Jordan Cole (OLB) are also in their final college football season with the Redhawks in 2021. 

From Walk-On to Scholarship
A trio of Southeast Missouri walk-ons were awarded scholarships prior to the 2021 season. Kicker/punter Adam Krause and running back Shamenski Rucker received their scholarships during the offseason, while quarterback Patrick Maddox was given his on the final day of the Redhawks preseason camp (Aug. 21). A total of 18 walk-ons have earned scholarships during Tom Matukewicz's eight years as SEMO's head coach. 

Unprecedented Success
In 2020-21, Southeast Missouri Athletics reached unprecedented success when it won its first-ever Ohio Valley Conference Commissioner's Cup. The Commissioner's Cup is the league's ultimate symbol of overall athletic excellence in Conference-sponsored championships. SEMO accumulated 119 points and finished 7.5 points ahead of second-place Belmont (111.5) to win the coveted prize. Since the start of the 2019 calendar year, the Redhawks have won 11 conference championships, most in the OVC. Five of those titles came during a COVID-19 plagued spring in 2021. The Redhawks completed their remarkable 2020-21 campaign with a 93-42-1 (.688) record in conference regular-season play, their highest OVC regular-season conference winning percentage in school history. In addition, SEMO was the only OVC school that qualified for every conference championship last season.

South Side of Houck Field Closed for 2021 Season
A recent structural assessment revealed that Houck Field's south grandstand structure has surpassed its original useful life and the rate of deterioration of the concrete structure has accelerated. The safety of the fans is of utmost importance and, as a result, Southeast Missouri made the difficult decision to cease the use of the south grandstand and press box area of the stadium. The decision results in modified gameday operations and reduced spectator capacity for the fall 2021 season. Houck Field will turn 91 years old on Oct. 3.

Construction Approved for First Phase of a New Houck Field
On September 24, 2021, the Southeast Missouri State University Board of Governors approved action to begin the first phase of construction for a new Houck Field. The first phase of the project will include demolition of the existing south grandstand structure as well as construction of a new south seating bowl and concourse with new restrooms and concession areas. Current plans indicate this phase will be complete in time for the Fall 2022 season. Beyond the initial work to be completed, the remainder of the South Sideline project has two additional phases, which will be completed as funding is identified. Items to be incorporated in these phases include a locker room for the football and soccer teams, an athletic training space, centralized ticketing, and a two-level press box, equipped with operational areas and a new club level. Future plans for the Houck Field renovations will not be limited to the South Sideline rebuild. Additional phases will involve renovation of the North Sideline seating area and construction of a new field house. Southeast Missouri State University contracted with Hollis + Miller, an architecture and design firm based in Kansas City, Missouri. Hollis + Miller Architects were selected through a competitive Request for Qualifications (RFQ) process to provide professional architectural, engineering, scheduling and planning services for stadium renovation and construction. Conceptual designs for a stadium renovation were completed in August 2019 and have served as the focal point of the Department of Athletics' plan to rebuild Houck Field.