Indians did much more than put up a winning record

What a season!

Those three words neatly sum up Southeast Missouri State University's 2002 football campaign that ended Saturday night with a win over Samford at Houck Stadium.

I know coach Tim Billings, his assistants and their players believed this would be the year the Indians finally broke through and shook the losing ways that had marked Southeast football for a long time.

But let's be honest. How many of you fans truly believed the Indians would go 8-4 -- and pull off monumental upsets of Middle Tennessee State and Eastern Kentucky along the way -- to post their first winning record since 1994 and their best record since 1969?

I'm not about to lie and say I saw it coming.

I had no doubt the Indians were making steady progress and had continued to significantly improve their talent level since Billings took over the program three years ago.

But I thought a .500 season was about as good as it could get this year, and I -- like probably many others -- was even skeptical about that after quarterback Jeromy McDowell suffered a season-ending knee injury following the first game, and after the way the Indians' defense was shredded for more than 600 yards by Division II Arkansas-Monticello during that shaky double-overtime victory in the opener.

But in a scenario that closely resembles when Kurt Warner took over for an injured Trent Green and led the Rams to glory, Jack Tomco stepped in for McDowell and put together the finest season by a quarterback in Southeast history.

Led by Tomco, the sensational and fellow record-setter Willie Ponder at wide receiver and a host of others, the Indians' offense set numerous school records and ranked among the nation's best in NCAA Division I-AA.

Couple that with a defense that was shaky at times, especially early, but steadily improved as the season went along and the result was a breakthrough season.

To be honest, I thought Southeast football was so down, I wasn't sure anybody could dig it out of the hole, especially not with some of the program's less-than-ideal facilities.

But Billings and his staff sure did it this year and for that they deserve an unbelievable amount of credit. Calling them miracle workers might be a stretch, but it's not all that far off.

And the thing is, the season could have even been better. The Indians led Eastern Michigan with less than two minutes left and were tied with Murray State with under one minute to go before losing both games.

Win one of those two contests and the Indians would probably be looking at the program's first I-AA playoff berth -- they're still holding out faint hopes of a bid, but it's a longshot -- although I'm sure no long-suffering Southeast fan is about to complain about 8-4.

Now the key for the Indians is to show that this season wasn't just a one-shot deal, but with all the young players Southeast used this year, that doesn't appear likely.

Although the Indians lose a few key seniors -- most notably the amazing Ponder, who will be virtually impossible to replace -- the bulk of their main players were underclassman, so the future looks nothing but bright and it's not inconceivable to think that Southeast just might be one of the OVC favorites next year. Now wouldn't that be a switch.

If you're a Southeast football fan, you probably can't wait for 2003 to get here.

Congratulations to KFVS sports director Steve Sotak for winning this year's Southeast Missourian Media Grid Picks competition.

Steve has struggled mightily with his selections over the last few years -- and I have reminded him about it on more than one occasion, although always in a good-natured way because Steve really is a good guy.

But Steve came up big this year to win a close race that was hotly contested just about all the way through. His final record was an impressive 87-31.

Zimmer Radio's Erik Sean used Southeast's upset of Eastern Kentucky last week to break a logjam and finish in second place all by himself. He went 86-32.

Your's truly, the Missourian's Jeremy Joffray and Zimmer Radio's Todd Bonacki all tied for third at 85-33.

The Missourian's Jeff Breer placed sixth (84-34), Withers Broadcasting's Jeff Brightwell finished seventh (79-39) and Missourian sports editor Jamie Hall brought up the rear (74-44), but I better not make fun of him. After all, he's my boss.

Norman Prather, a 6-foot-4 guard at Mineral Area College who had been expected to sign with Southeast's men's basketball program in the last few days, still has not faxed his letter of intent to the Indians' coaching staff.

But Prather still reportedly plans to sign with the Indians, most likely Monday during a ceremony at the junior college in Park Hills, Mo. The early signing period ends Wednesday.

While Southeast men's basketball coach Gary Garner has had a weekly radio show on KGIR-1220 the past few years -- it's at Show Me's Restaurant this season and hosted each Wednesday from 6-7 p.m. by Erik Sean -- women's coach B.J. Smith will also be getting a little extra air time.

Smith, in his first season at Southeast, will have a weekly radio show at Buffalo Wild Wings airing on KAPE-1550 each Thursday from 5-6 p.m. Jeff Brightwell will serve as host.

It should be quite an atmosphere at Houck Stadium Monday night when Cape Girardeau Central High School's football team faces Eureka in a Class 4 quarterfinal game that is drawing plenty of attention from around the state.

This will no doubt be one of the biggest football games Central has played in a long time as it features two squads who are regarded as serious state title contenders.

Good luck to the Tigers as they chase a state championship, and also to the region's other teams still alive in the playoffs.

Marty Mishow is a sports writer for the Southeast Missourian