COLLEGE FOOTBALL: SOUTHEAST FACES TOUGH ROAD GAME TODAY AT E. ILLINOIS

Eastern Illinois was brought back down to earth a bit last Saturday, but the Panthers are still having an impressive turnaround football season.

Today, Southeast Missouri State University will look to derail the high-flying Panthers when the squads hook up in a 1:30 p.m. Ohio Valley Conference game at O'Brien Stadium.

EIU, hit with a myriad of key injuries last year, suffered through a 2-10 season. But the 21st-ranked Panthers are 6-2 overall and 4-1 in the OVC so far in 2000, although last Saturday's 34-12 loss to Western Kentucky eliminated them from league title contention as the Hilltoppers wrapped up the crown.

While disappointed with the performance against Western Kentucky, EIU coach Bob Spoo acknowledged that this season has overall been a satisfying one for his squad so far. And he offered a few reasons for the turnaround.

"I think it has a lot to do with personnel, and personal relationships between the players and coaching staff," said Spoo. "We have great senior leadership and those seniors were very determined that things would change. I think that has a lot to do with it.

"We hired a new defensive coordinator (Kim Dameron) and he's had a lot to do with it. We're playing pretty well defensively, a lot better than last year."

And last but not least, according to Spoo, is the emergence of sophomore quarterback Tony Romo, who saw limited action as a freshman backup last year. Romo leads I-AA in passing efficiency.

"Our quarterback has been another key factor," Spoo said. "Going into the fall, we were questioning whether or not he'd be able to do it, but he's certainly come on."

Southeast (3-5 overall, 1-4 OVC) is coming off its first win in more than a month, a 34-14 triumph over hapless Tennessee-Martin, but Indians' coach Tim Billings knows how difficult it will be to make it two in a row today.

"They've got an excellent football team on both sides of the ball," he said. "It's going to be a big challenge for us, but we've got some confidence now after last week's game and we're excited."

EIU leads the OVC in total offense, averaging 438 yards per game. They are second in both passing offense and rushing offense, the ground game averaging 196 yards a contest. And defensively, which was a major problem last year, the Panthers are second in yards allowed, giving up just 276 per game.

Romo, having a monster season, has completed 60 percent of his passes (126 of 209) for 1,895 yards, with 20 touchdowns and nine interceptions. His favorite target has been Paul Massat with 29 receptions while Frank Cutolo and Kenny Alsop have each caught 20 passes.

"Their quarterback is very efficient," Billings said. "He knows where to go with the ball and he doesn't take a sack. Their great running attack really helps him out."

The Panthers have several capable running backs, led by Jabarey McDavid, who ranks fifth in the OVC with 567 yards and averages 5.1 yards per carry. J.R. Taylor has gained 359 yards and averages 5.8 yards per attempt while Andre Raymond has compiled 279 yards and averages a whopping 7.9 yards per carry.

As a team, the Panthers average a healthy 5.1 yards per rushing attempt. Said Billings, "They've got a great running attack. They've got probably the best two running backs we've seen (McDavid and Taylor). They can run and throw efficiently, which makes it really tough."

Southeast beat EIU 45-38 last year in Cape Girardeau, with quarterback Rashad West having a huge game passing and running. West, who has been injured for much of this season, returned as the starter against Tennessee-Martin and has Spoo concerned.

"I still can't get rid of the memory of last year's game, with Rashad West," Spoo said. "We never could tackle him. He was the key factor in us getting beat. He's a very fine football player."

Spoo, who said he expects a tough game today, has emphasized to his team how much it still has to play for even though an OVC title is no longer attainable.

"What I tried to tell our team after the game Saturday (against Western Kentucky) is we have a lot left to play for," he said. "I think we've turned things around and we have a chance to have a great season if we can finish strong."

INDIAN NOTES: Southeast senior safety Joe Williams is ranked second nationally in tackles per game among NCAA Division I-AA players. He has 112 tackles for an average of 14 per contest, which leads the OVC.

Fellow senior safety Isaac Powell ranks 25th nationally in tackles with 11 per game.