Eastern Illinois (4-2, 0-1 Big South-OVC) at Southeast Missouri (1-4, 1-0 Big South-OVC)

Game Information
Date: Saturday, October 14, 2023
Kickoff: 2 p.m., CT
Location: Cape Girardeau, Mo.
Facility: Houck Field (8,000)
Surface: Field Turf
Series: EIU leads, 18-12
Head Coaches: Tom Matukewicz (52-56 Overall; 51-56 at SEMO; 39-27 Big South-OVC). Chris Wilkerson (57-38 Overall; 6-11 at EIU; 1-5 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 Host Eastern Illinois 
Southeast Missouri (1-4, 1-0) resumes Big South-OVC Association action when it hosts #25 Eastern Illinois (4-2, 0-1) during Homecoming weekend 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 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
Eastern Illinois holds an 18-12 advantage in the overall series between the teams. Southeast Missouri has won each of the last five games of the series. SEMO has seven of its wins over the Panthers at Houck Field. The Redhawks won, 31-7, in Charleston the last time these teams met on Nov. 12, 2022.

Back to Conference Action
Preseason Big South-OVC Association favorite Southeast Missouri is back in conference play when Eastern Illinois comes to Cape Girardeau Saturday. SEMO is currently 1-0 in such games with its first league win at home vs. Lindenwood (45-7) during week two of the season on Sept. 9. Five of the Redhawks final six contests will be Big South-OVC games.

It's Homecoming!
Southeast Missouri is 16-15 in Homecoming games since joining the NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision in 1991. SEMO has won four of its last five Homecoming games and is 5-3 in such matchups under Head Coach Tom Matukewicz. This year marks the fourth time Eastern Illinois visits Houck Field on Homecoming. The Panthers went 1-2 against the Redhawks in those contests. SEMO last played EIU on Homecoming in 2021 (W, 38-15, Oct. 30).

Another Close Loss
The Redhawks came up on the short end of another close game when they fell to #23 Central Arkansas, 38-33, on Oct. 7. Southeast Missouri held a 30-6 lead with 53 seconds remaining in the third quarter, but UCA scored 32 points in the final 15 minutes to pull off a stunning comeback win. The Bears scored their fourth-quarter points in just 6:07.

Looking to Get Back on Track 
Southeast MIssouri is looking to end a three-game losing streak when it faces Eastern Illinois Saturday. SEMO lost its last three games by a combined nine points. The Redhawks led until the last 11 seconds of their game against #15 Southern Illinois (Sept. 16). Desman Hearns stripped the ball away from Geno Hess and recovered with 1:46 left. On fourth-and-1, Nic Baker threw a 9-yard touchdown pass to Izaiah Hartrup to give the Salukis a 26-25 win with 11 seconds on the clock. A week later, the Redhawks held a 38-31 lead with 2:34 left to play at Eastern Kentucky (Sept. 23). EKU marched 93 yards in 2:04 to tie the game with 30 seconds to go. On the second play of SEMO's ensuing drive, Paxton DeLaurent fumbled and the Colonels recovered at the Redhawks 29-yard line. Patrick Nations then kicked a game-winning 46-yard field goal as time expired giving EKU a 41-38 victory. Most recently, Central Arkansas scored 32 points in the fourth quarter to wipe out a 24-point deficit in a 38-33 win over SEMO on Oct. 7. Kylin James scored the game- winning touchdown on a 9-yard run with 19 seconds on the clock.

Tale of Two Halves
Southeast Missouri is outscoring its opponents, 94-58 (+36), in the first half this year. However, the second half has been a different story. Opponents hold a 99-47 (+52) advantage over the Redhawks in the final two quarters. Opponents have scored 76 of those points in the fourth quarter alone.

Norman Surpasses 200 Career Tackles 
With his 10 tackles at Eastern Kentucky (Sept. 23), Bryce Norman surpassed 200 in his career. Norman, a Preseason All-American and Buck Buchanan Award candidate, led Southeast Missouri in tackles each of his first two seasons as a Redhawk. He finished with 119 as the Ohio Valley Conference's second-leading tackler in 2022. The year before that, Norman registered 66 stops. So far this season, he is third on the team with 29 stops. Norman has 214 tackles in his career.

Flournoy Returns
Starting wide receiver Ryan Flournoy returned for Southeast Missouri's game at Central Arkansas (Oct. 7). Flournoy missed both the Southern Illinois (Sept. 16) and Eastern Kentucky (Sept. 23) contests due to a fractured left hand. He caught six passes for 79 yards and a touchdown against the Bears. Flournoy scored his second touchdown of the season on a 15-yard reception in the first quarter at UCA.

Red Zone Offense
The Redhawks lead the Football Championship Subdivision and Big South- OVC Association in red zone offense through fivegames this season. Southeast Missouri scored on all 17 of its chances in the red zone. SEMO scored 14 touchdowns and kicked three field goals for a total of 106 points inside its opponent's 20-yard line.

Turnover Time
Southeast Missouri won the turnover battle in three of its first five games this season. SEMO has nine takeaways for a +6 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. SEMO forced nine turnovers for an average of 1.8 per game.

Hess Approaching Career All-Purpose Yardage Record
Geno Hess is coming up on Southeast Missouri's all-time career all-purpose yardage record. Hess is currently second with 4,780 all-purpose yards. He needs 140 yards to break the record held by Spencer Davis (4,919 yards, 2010-14). Hess has 4,487 rushing and 293 receiving yards in his career.

I Think I'll Pass
Saturday's matchup will feature the top two Big South-OVC Association passing teams. Southeast Missouri leads the league with 273.2 passing yards per game and Eastern Illinois is second with 256.8 yards per contest. SEMO (9) and EIU (11) have combined for 20 passing touchdowns this season. The Redhawks and Panthers are also 16th and 19th in the FCS in passing offense, respectively.

DeLaurent Climbing Record Lists
After his big performance at Eastern Kentucky (Sept. 23), Paxton DeLaurent cracked Southeast Missouri's top-10 career lists in passing completions, most touchdown passes and total offense. DeLaurent ranks 10th in passing completions (343), seventh in total offense 4,363 yards), and ninth in most touchdown passes (28).

OVC Individual 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 passing average (270.2 ypg) and total offense (278.2 ypg), Damoriea Vick is first in receiving yards (88.4 ypg) and receptions (8.4) per game, DC Pippin tops the conference in scoring (9.2 ppg), field goals (7-of-8) and field goal percentage (87.5 pct.) and both Antonio Taylor and Eric Ivory Jr. are tied for first with two interceptions apiece.

DeLaurent Fourth in FCS in Completions Per Game
Paxton DeLaurent ranks fourth in the Football Championship Subdivision in completions per game. DeLaurent is completing 26.6 passes per contest over five starts this year. He is also 10th nationally with 270.2 passing yards per game.

Conference Winning Streak
The Redhawks are on a seven-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. Last season marked the first time in program history where SEMO went undefeated in conference play. The Redhawks have posted winning records in league play a program record five-straight years.