For Southeast football, any win is a good win

No, Southeast Missouri State did not beat a traditional power Saturday night.

Far from it.

Indiana State, which fell to the Redhawks 13-10, has now lost 30 of its last 31 games.

The contest at Houck Stadium could have gone either way. The teams had nearly identical yardage totals. Better ball security (ISU lost three fumbles) and a better kicker (ISU missed two field goals of less than 40 yards) might very well have given the Sycamores the victory.

So Southeast fans certainly should not start jumping for joy, ready to proclaim the Redhawks Ohio Valley Conference title contenders.

By the same token, I don't think people should simply dismiss the win as irrelevant.

When your program is in a rebuilding stage (as Southeast's is), and when your team is so young and inexperienced (as Southeast's is), any victory over another Division I-AA squad is welcome, especially one from a power conference like the Gateway.

As the Redhawks prepare to start their league schedule -- it opens Saturday at Samford -- nobody really knows yet what kind of team they are or what their prospects for OVC success are.

But I do know that, for the Redhawks to have any realistic shot at a solid season, they had to be 2-1 through three games, meaning wins over Division II Southwest Baptist and ISU (the opening loss at Cincinnati was a given).

In that regard, Southeast is right on course.

I also know that the Redhawks were feeling pretty good about themselves as they left the field Saturday night following their second straight triumph, a lot better than they would have felt had ISU prevailed.

Where that dose of confidence takes them is anybody's guess, but we'll soon find out if it takes them to a win at Samford, which appears realistic since the Bulldogs are also rebuilding.

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Houston Lillard's strong showing Saturday night has certainly added an interesting twist to Southeast's quarterback situation.

After Victor Anderson ran wild at Cincinnati in the season opener, it looked like he had a major leg up on securing the bulk of the playing time.

But after neither QB was impressive the next game against Southwest Baptist, Lillard had by far the Redhawks' best passing performance of the year against ISU.

So now it looks like the two are in a dead heat again, which is where they basically started the year.

Based on the first three games, Anderson is by far the better runner, while Lillard is definitely the better passer, although things can change in a hurry.

For at least the immediate future, I'm sure coach Tony Samuel will keep going into games with the idea of using both signal callers, and then base their playing time on how things develop.

From what I've seen so far, with neither Anderson or Lillard showing they're clearly the best option, I think I would do the same thing.

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The third annual Hal Hempen Memorial Golf Outing will be held Saturday at 11 a.m. at Indian Hills Golf Course in Mount Vernon, Ill.

Hempen, who played baseball at Southeast in 1986 and 1987, died in 2005 in a golf course accident involving lightning. He ranks second on Southeast's career saves list with 10 and is second on the program's single-season saves list with eight.

Anyone interesting in playing in the tournament should call (618) 765-2703 or (618) 765-2516.

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The Cape Girardeau Ford & Sons American Legion baseball team had a solid season before faltering in the District 14 tournament.

But Cape can at least say that it beat the best American Legion squad in the world.

On June 30, during a tournament in Paducah, Ky., Brad LaBruyere pitched Cape past Columbia, Tenn., 5-1.

Columbia went on to win the American Legion World Series.

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Finally, for those of you who are wondering why my column has switched to Monday after running on Sunday for so many years:

I just thought it would give me the chance to write more consistently about timely topics, especially as related to Southeast athletics, which is my primary beat at the Missourian.

Because of deadlines, it was virtually impossible to touch on a Saturday night Southeast event -- especially basketball -- in Sunday's column.

Considering that most Southeast basketball games played on a Saturday are at night, and considering how many people around here follow the Redhawks, I thought that was a shame.

Ditto for Southeast football, whose games during the first half of the season are usually played at night.

In general, this change will allow me the opportunity to pretty well sum up the entire week of sports if I so desire.

Anyway, that's my story and I'm sticking to it.

Marty Mishow is a sports writer for the Southeast Missourian