Southeast Missouri (1-3, 1-2 OVC) at #8 Jacksonville State (6-1, 3-0 OVC)

Game Information
Date: Sunday, March 21, 2021
Kickoff: 2 p.m., CT
Weather Forecast: Sunny, 66 degrees
Location: Jacksonville, Ala.
Facility: Burgess-Snow Field (24,000)
Surface: Pro Grass Artificial
Series: JSU leads, 17-7
Last Meeting: SEMO 24, JSU 21 (Oct. 19, 2019 | Jacksonville, Ala.)
Head Coaches: Tom Matukewicz (35-41 overall; 34-41 at SEMO; 26-24 OVC). John Grass (64-19 overall; 64-19 at JSU).

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

Redhawks Travel to #8 Jacksonville State
Southeast Missouri (1-3, 1-2) travels to #8 Jacksonville State (6-1, 3-0) Sunday. Kickoff is set for 2 p.m., CT at Burgess-Snow Field.

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

Series History
Southeast Missouri and Jacksonville State meet for the 25th time Sunday. JSU holds a 17-7 lead in the all-time series. The Redhawks are 2-10 against the Gamecocks in Jacksonville, Alabama. SEMO beat the Gamecocks on their home field for the first time during their NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision era on Oct. 19, 2019 (24-21). The Redhawks have won each of the last two meetings of the series.

Streak Stopper
The Redhawks put an end to two major Jacksonville State winning streaks the last two times it faced the Gamecocks. On Oct. 20, 2018, Southeast Missouri wrecked JSU's 36-game winning streak in Ohio Valley Conference games. At the time, it was the longest conference winning streak in the nation. A year later, the Redhawks snapped the Gamecocks 32-game winning streak in regular-season home games when the scored 14 fourth-quarter points in a 24-21 victory on Oct. 19, 2019. JSU is on a six-game winning streak entering Sunday's contest. 

Against Ranked FCS Teams
Southeast Missouri squares off against a ranked opponent for the second time this season when it visits #8 Jacksonville State. The Redhawks are 8-28 in their last 36 meetings with ranked Football Championship Subdivision teams. SEMO's last win over a ranked opponent was at then-#14 Jacksonville State (24-21) on Oct. 19, 2019. The Redhawks won three of their last five games against ranked FCS foes since the 2018 campaign.

So Close
The Redhawks three losses this season were by a combined 13 points. Southeast Missouri lost, 20-17, on a last second field goal at #24 Southern Illinois (Oct. 30). Against Murray State (Mar. 7), the Redhawks lost by a score of 24-21. And, most recently, SEMO suffered a 49-42 double overtime setback against Austin Peay (Mar. 14). In 2019, the Redhawks were involved in five games decided by seven points or less. SEMO, however, won all of those contests that year -- 43-37 vs. Tennessee Tech; 24-21 at Jacksonville State; 17-10 vs. UT Martin; 38-31 vs. Eastern Kentucky; 31-24 vs. Murray State.

Hess Express
Geno Hess ran for 115 yards and a career-high four touchdowns in Southeast Missouri's double overtime loss to Austin Peay (Mar. 14). Hess carried the ball 38 times en route to his second 100-yard game of the season. He scored the game-tying touchdown on a 5-yard run to force overtime with 23 seconds left in regulation. Hess then gave SEMO a 42-35 lead with a 2-yard touchdown on the Redhawks first possession of overtime. 

OVC Leading Rusher
Following his big performance against Austin Peay, Geno Hess moved to first in the Ohio Valley Conference in rushing with 88.5 yards per game. Hess is averaging 4.5 yards per carry and is tied for first in the league with seven rushing touchdowns. He is first in the OVC in scoring and scoring (TDs) with 10.5 points per contest, as well. 

Wait, There's More
Geno Hess' four rushing touchdowns against Austin Peay (Mar. 14) tied for second-most in a game in Southeast Missouri's program history. Only three other Redhawks ran for four or more touchdowns in a game. Marquis Terry (at Southern Illinois, 2018) and Ron Coleman (at Austin Peay, 2013) ran for four TDs, while Walter Smallwood holds the school's all-time single-game record with five rushing touchdowns (vs. Central Missouri, 1968). 

What a Drive!
Southeast Missouri put together an impressive 21-play, 75-yard drive to tie the game at 35-35 with 23 seconds left in regulation against Austin Peay (Mar. 14). The Redhawks converted on fourth down four times during that possession which ended with a 5-yard touchdown run by Geno Hess. That drive also consumed over seven minutes (7:21). SEMO also had a 93-yard scoring drive in the second quarter.

Clutch Catches
Zack Smith finished with five receptions for 41 yards in his latest start vs. Austin Peay (Mar. 14). All of Smith's catches came on third or fourth down and resulted in Southeast Missouri moving the chains. Smith also returned three kickoffs for 70 yards. He ranks second on the team with 16 receptions for 145 yards this year.

Terrell and Johnson Pave the Way
Outside linebacker Izeal Terrell and strong safety Lawrence Johnson each posted new career-highs in tackles against Austin Peay (Mar. 14). Terrell recorded 12 tackles in his first career start. Johnson followed with 10 tackles. It was the first time this season where Southeast Missouri had two double-digit tacklers in a game. 

Brickyard Game
Every time Southeast Missouri beats a ranked opponent, the score and date of those victories are laid to rest in the "Brickyard." The "Brickyard" is a wall that commemorates all of wins against FBS and ranked FCS teams located in the Redhawks locker room. SEMO has a total of nine wins against ranked FCS teams in its program history. Six of those victories belong to Tom Matukewicz, the most of any SEMO head coach. Here are Matukewicz's "Brickyard" wins:
9/20/14     #3 Southeastern La.     W, 24-23
10/4/14     #20 Tennessee State     W, 28-21
10/1/16     #13 Eastern Illinois     W, 21-13
10/20/18     #4 Jacksonville State     W, 37-14
11/24/18     #15 Stony Brook     W, 28-14
10/19/19     at #14 Jacksonville State     W, 24-21

About Jacksonville State
Jacksonville State moved to eighth in this week's STATS Perform FCS Media Poll. JSU is tied for first in the Ohio Valley Conference standings with an overall record of 6-1 and 3-0 in league play. The Gamecocks carry an OVC best six-game winning streak into their matchup with Southeast Missouri. JSU leads the conference in scoring defense (14.4 ppg allowed), total offense (387.9 ypg), rushing offense (187 ypg), pass efficiency (145.1), field goals (12-of-14) and third-down conversions (41-of-88, 46.6 pct.). With starting quarterback Zerrick Cooper out for the spring with a  broken leg, Zion Webb has played well in his absence. Webb leads the OVC in pass efficiency (153.2) and passing touchdowns (7), ranks sixth in both passing average (122.5 ypg) and total offense (141.5 ypg). Defensively, Nicario Harper rates eighth among league leaders in tackles per game (7.1) and Chris Hardie is first in sacks (5). 

Let's Score Some Points
The Ohio Valley Conference's top two scoring teams hook up on the gridiron Sunday. Southeast Missouri leads the league with 31.8 points per game and Jacksonville State is second with an average of 25.6 points per contest.

First in Total Offense
Andrew Bunch leads the Ohio Valley Conference in total offense with 196.8 yards per game. Bunch also enters the week ranked third in passing average (164.5 ypg) and fifth in pass efficiency (97.6).

Pick Six
The Redhawks returned an interception for a touchdown in two of their first three games this spring. Al Young had a 25-yard interception return for a touchdown at Eastern Illinois (Feb. 28) and Shabari Davis ran back his interception 33 yards vs. Murray State (Mar. 7). Davis' touchdown gave the Redhawks a 21-17 lead with 11:47 remaining in the game. Young and Davis are tied for first on the team with two interceptions each. Southeast Missouri ranks second in the Ohio Valley Conference with eight interceptions and has intercepted a pass in every game this season.

Fourth Down Stops
The Redhawks have stopped their opponents on fourth down eight times this year. Opponents are 4-of-12 against Southeast Missouri's defense on fourth down. That equates to 33 percent. SEMO is tied for first in the Ohio Valley Conference in opponent fourth down conversions.

Good on Fourth Down
Southeast Missouri leads the Ohio Valley Conference in fourth-down conversions. The Redhawks are 8-of-11 for 72.7 percent on fourth down this year. SEMO was a near-perfect 5-of-6 in fourth-down conversions against Austin Peay (Mar. 14).

Haynes Second in Punting
Redshirt-freshman Zach Haynes punted for the first time in his Southeast Missouri career at Southern Illinois (Oct. 30). Haynes' first career punt sailed 50 yards and was downed at SIU's 1-yard line. He punted three times for 135 yards, averaging 45 yards per punt that game. Three games into the spring, Haynes is second in the Ohio Valley Conference in punting with 40.3 yards per punt.

Matukewicz vs. Jacksonville State
Tom Matukewicz is 2-4 against Jacksonville State. Matukewicz defeated the Gamecocks in each of the last two seasons.

Games with a Catch
Aaron Alston has caught a pass in 19-straight games dating back to the 2018 season. Alston finished with six receptions for 75 yards vs. Austin Peay (Mar. 14).

Senior Driven
Southeast Missouri's current group of 18 seniors is just three victories away from becoming the all-time winningest senior class in program history. This senior class (2017-present) has 22 wins. The senior class from 2016-19 holds the record with 24 victories.