Robert Morris (2-6, 0-3 Big South-OVC) vs. Southeast Missouri (4-4, 3-0 Big South-OVC)

Game Information
Date: Saturday, November 4, 2023
Kickoff: 1 p.m., CT
Location: Cape Girardeau, Mo.
Facility: Houck Field (8,000)
Surface: Field Turf
Series: First Meeting
Head Coaches: Tom Matukewicz (55-56 Overall; 54-56 at SEMO; 41-27 Big South-OVC). Bernard Clark, Jr. (15-40 Overall; 15-40 at RMU; 0-3 Big South-OVC).

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

Redhawks Welcome Robert Morris 
Southeast Missouri (4-4, 3-0) hosts Robert Morris (2-6, 0-3) in its final home game of the season Saturday. Kickoff is set for 1 p.m., CT at Houck Field.

Follow the Redhawks
Fans can listen live on the radio at Real Rock 99.3 FM. Erik Sean and Rick Wieser will be on the call. Video can be accessed online at ESPN+. Live stats are available at SEMORedhawks.com. Twitter updates will be provided @SEMOFootball.

Series History
This year marks the first meeting between Southeast Missouri and Big South member Robert Morris. Robert Morris is located in Moon Township, Pennsylvania, over 650 miles away from Cape Girardeau. The Colonials were 0-11 a year ago.

Three in a Row
Southeast Missouri carries a three-game winning streak into this weekend's game against Robert Morris. SEMO beat Eastern Illinois (35-28, Oct. 14) at home and both Tennessee Tech (28-3, Oct. 21) and Nicholls (35-31, Oct. 28) on the road. It is the longest an only winning streak for SEMO this season.

Strong October
The Redhawks completed a strong October with their 35-31 road win at Nicholls (Oct. 28). Southeast Missouri posted a 3-1 record in October, its best month of the season so far. SEMO scored 131 points for an average of 33 points per game in October.

Lewis Celebrates Takeaway of the Year 
In a back-and-forth game that featured six ties and two lead changes, Southeast Missouri used an interception on Nicholls' final offensive play to nail down a 35-31 victory on Oct. 28. On third-and-10 at SEMO's 14-yard line, Nicholls running back Collin Guggenheim threw a pass back to quarterback Pat McQuaide on a trick play. However, defensive lineman Steven Lewis intercepted the pass and ran 36 yards to the Colonels' 44. After that, the Redhawks ran the last 45 seconds off the clock to hang on. Lewis' first career pick marked SEMO's 12th takeaway in 2023.

First in the Big South-OVC
Following #13 UT Martin's 38-34 loss to Gardner-Webb, Southeast Missouri moved into sole possession of first in the Big South-OVC standings. SEMO is the only undefeated team in conference play with its 3-0 record. UT Martin (3-1), Tennessee State (2-1), Bryant (2-1) and Gardner-Webb (2-1) are close behind with one loss each.

Conference Winning Streak
The Redhawks are on a nine-game winning streak in conference games dating back to the end of the 2021 season. Southeast Missouri won its final league contest that year and went undefeated at 5-0 against Ohio Valley Conference foes in 2022. So far this season, SEMO is 3-0 against league opponents.

Senior Day Recognition
Southeast Missouri will honor its 14 seniors prior to kickoff of Saturday's game. Ryan Flournoy, Damoriea Vick, Christian Fuhrman, Mike Matthews, Dalyn McDonald, Garrett Todd, Q'Nairies Anderson, Jacob Morrissey, Lunden Manuel, AJ Laux, Clive Truschel, LaWilliam Holmes and student-assistants Izeal Terrell and Caleb Williams will be honored.

Back-to-Back Road Wins
The Redhawks picked up their first road win of the season when it beat Tennessee Tech, 28-3, on Oct. 21. Southeast Missouri ended a four-game road losing streak dating back to its FCS Playoff loss at Montana in 2022. A week later, SEMO pulled off a 35-31 win to complete a two-game sweep of Southland Conference member Nicholls (Oct. 28). The matchup with Nicholls was the Redhawks final non-conference game of the season.

McDonald Takes Big South-OVC Co-Specialist of the Week
Southeast Missouri senior return specialist Dalyn McDonald claimed Big South-OVC Association Co-Specialist of the Week honors on Oct. 30. SEMO picked up one of the league's awards for the second week in a row. A native of Gautier, Mississippi, McDonald ran back three punts for 75 yards and two kickoffs for 47 yards in the Redhawks' 35-31 road win at Nicholls. The game was tied at 21-21 when McDonald returned a punt 65 yards for a touchdown and SEMO did not trail from that point on. His first career punt return for a touchdown marked the first special teams TD for the Redhawks this year. Additionally, the 65-yard punt return is the fifth-longest for a touchdown in program history.

Quarter Scoring Streak Ends at 24 
Southeast Missouri scored in 24-straight quarters prior to the final 15 minutes of its 35-31 win at Nicholls (Oct. 28). It marked the first scoreless quarter for the Redhawks since the third quarter of the Lindenwood game on Sept. 9.

Over 100 Yards Again
For the third time in four starts, Geno Hess ran for over 100 yards and scored a touchdown. Hess recently finished with 128 rushing yards and a touchdown on 18 carries at Nicholls (Oct. 28). He averaged over seven yards per carry (7.1) and scored on a season-long 64-yard run to give Southeast Missouri a 35-28 lead with 2:31 remaining in the third quarter. Additionally, Hess caught three passes for 23 yards. SEMO racked up 210 rushing yards against the Colonels, its second-most in a game this season.

Second Career Start Goes Well for Heitert
Redshirt-freshman quarterback Patrick Heitert made just his second career start under center at Nicholls (Oct. 28). Heitert completed 12-of-23 passes for 139 yards and a touchown, and ran for 18 yards. He threw a 26-yard touchdown pass to Ryan Flournoy and ran the ball in on the ensuing 2-point conversion to tie the game at 21-21 with 10:24 left in the third quarter. Heitert is 2-0 as SEMO's starting quarterback with both starts coming after Paxton DeLaurent sustained injuries.

Hess Approaching 5,000 Rushing Yards
Geno Hess is 208 rushing yards away from reaching 5,000 in his career. Hess, Southeast Missouri's all-time leading rusher, has 4,792 yards. He is on pace to become the first player in program history to ever rush for 5,000 career yards. Hess has 680 yards in eight starts this year.

Home Finale
Saturday's game against Robert Morris is Southeast Missouri's final home contest of the season. SEMO is 2-1 at Houck Field this year with wins over Lindenwood (45-7, Sept. 9) and Eastern Illinois (35-28, Oct. 14).

Among the Top-Five
Southeast Missouri has two players among the top-five in the Big South-OVC Association in tackles. Bryce Norman currently stands third with 61 stops and Lawrence Johnson is fifth with 56.

Tale of Two Halves
Southeast Missouri is outscoring its opponents, 135-96 (+39), in the first half this year. However, the second half has been a different story. Opponents hold a 123-104 (+19) advantage over the Redhawks in the final two quarters. Opponents have scored 86 of their points in the fourth quarter alone. However, in the last three games, SEMO has outscored its opponents by a combined 57-24 (+33) in the second half.

Red Zone Offense
The Redhawks lead the Big South-OVC Association and rank 19th in the Football Championship Subdivision in red zone offense through eight games this season. Southeast Missouri scored on all but two of its chances (26-of-29) in the red zone. SEMO scored 21 touchdowns and kicked five field goals inside its opponent's 20-yard line.

Turnover Time
Southeast Missouri won the turnover battle in five of its eight games this season. SEMO has 12 takeaways for a +7 turnover margin thus far. The Redhawks are second in the Big South-OVC Association and rank ninth in the Football Championship Subdivision in that category.

Active Conference Leaders
Redhawks Geno Hess, Paxton DeLaurent and Ryan Flournoy are presently active leaders in Big South-OVC Association categories. Hess is the conference's active career leader in rushing (4,792 yards), scoring (378 points), rushing touchdowns (61) and all-purpose yards (5,177). DeLaurent is the active leader in passing average per game (263.3), pass efficiency (140.1 rating) and total offense (4,839 yards). Flournoy tops the Association in receptions (5.76) and receiving yards (91.7) per game.

Big South-OVC Leaders
Several Southeast Missouri players are first in the Big South-OVC Association in various statistical categories this season. Paxton DeLaurent leads the league in total offense (266.7 ypg), Damoriea Vick is first in receptions (7.0) per game, Ryan Flournoy is first in both receiving yards (637) and receiving yards per game (106.2) and DC Pippin tops the conference in scoring (kick) (7.8 ppg). As a team, SEMO leads the Big South-OVC in fewest interceptions (2), punt return average (13.4 ypr), interception return yards (157), third down conversions (52-of-119, 43.7 pct.), red zone offense (26-of-29, 89 pct.) and interceptions (10).

All Aboard the Hess Express
Geno Hess is 358 yards away from breaking the Ohio Valley Conference all-time career rushing record. Hess is Southeast Missouri's all-time leading rusher with 4,792 yards. Eastern Kentucky's Markus Thomas presently holds the record with 5,149 yards from 1989-92. Hess also owns SEMO career records in rushing attempts (819), rushing touchdowns (61), most 100-yard games (21), most 200-yard games (4), points scored (378), total touchdowns (63) and all-purpose yardage (5,177). He is the OVC's all-time leading scorer, career rushing touchdowns leader and career all-purpose yardage leader as well.