INDIANS MAY FIND RAIDERS GRUMPY

It's likely that Middle Tennessee State's football team will not be in a good mood today when the Blue Raiders serve as Southeast Missouri State University's homecoming foe.

The Raiders were right in the thick of the Ohio Valley Conference race -- until they suffered a stunning 35-32 home loss to Eastern Illinois last Saturday.

That defeat was stunning not so much for the fact Eastern Illinois won -- but how MTSU lost. The Raiders led 32-21 with 1:25 remaining but saw the Panthers rally with 14 late points, including the game-winning touchdown with only six seconds remaining.

So there's no doubt the Raiders (3-4 overall, 3-2 OVC) will be looking to make amends today when they take on the Indians (3-5, 2-3) in a 1 p.m. kickoff at Houck Stadium.

"They're a very good football team and they lost an 11-point lead in the last 1:25," said Southeast head coach John Mumford. "They have to be reeling from that."

The Indians will be looking to make some amends of their own as they play their final home game of the season. Southeast has lost two straight by a combined score of 83-17, including last Saturday's 45-10 setback at Southwest Missouri State.

"We've got to get back to playing like we were earlier," said Mumford. "We just need to get back to basics as far as running the ball and moving the chains.

"We're really beat up right now, but we have to play through a lot of bumps and bruises. It's homecoming and we're playing Middle Tennessee so it shouldn't be hard to get the team ready to play."

What Mumford figures could be hard is slowing down an explosive MTSU offense that features some of the OVC's top weapons.

Sophomore tailback Torin Kirtsey, a transfer from Georgia, leads the OVC in rushing with 730 yards. He averages 5.2 yards per carry and has scored seven touchdowns.

Senior end Sulecio Sanford is second in the OVC in receiving at more than five receptions per game. He has caught 36 passes for 438 yards and five touchdowns. Sanford also ranks second in the league in kickoff returns and fourth in punt returns.

Redshirt freshman quarterback Wes Counts is having a solid season, completing nearly 65 percent of his passes (96 of 148) for 1,021 yards, with eight touchdowns and just one interception.

"Kirtsey will be the best running back we have faced this season and Sanford is very aggressive and makes things happen on receptions and returns," Mumford said. "They are a very talented football team, big and fast. And on defense they are very active."

The Raiders have shown some weaknesses defensively, ranking seventh in the eight-team OVC in yards allowed at 375 per game.

"I think we can run on this team, which is something we'll have to be able to do," said Mumford. "We have kind of gotten away from that the past few weeks but we need to get back to it."

Southeast has some weapons of its own on offense. Senior tailback Corey Williams, appearing just about fully recovered now after missing most of three games with a dislocated elbow, leads the OVC in scoring with 10 touchdowns.

Senior end Dante Bryant has 35 receptions, which puts him fifth in the OVC. Bryant now has 103 receptions for his Southeast career.

Quarterback Bobby Brune -- like Counts a redshirt freshman -- is having an impressive debut season. The former Cape Central standout has completed 63 percent of his passes (60 of 96) for 750 yards, with five touchdowns and five interceptions.

And sophomore Corey Chester is third in the OVC in kickoff returns.

Defensively, despite struggling the past two weeks, the Indians rank second in the OVC in total defense, allowing 334 yards per game.

"Our guys are still playing hard but we just haven't been executing," Mumford said. "This is our last home game and I know our guys are wanting badly to go out with a win."

Today's game will mark the final meeting between the Indians and Raiders -- at least for the time being.

MTSU is moving up to the Division I-A level for football next year, meaning the Raiders are dropping out of the OVC for that sport although they will continue to be a league member in all other sports.

Middle Tennessee at SEMO

When: Today, 1 p.m.

Where: Houck Stadium, Cape Girardeau

Records: SEMO 3-5, 2-3 OVC; MTSU 3-4, 3-2 OVC

1997 records: SEMO 4-7; MTSU 4-6

Last Week: SEMO lost to Southwest Missouri 45-10; MTSU lost to Eastern Illinois 35-32

Coaches: John Mumford (SEMO) 37-59, 9th year; Boots Donnelly (MTSU) 152-93, 22nd year

Series record: MTSU leads 8-1

Last meeting: MTSU won 55-6 in 1997

Radio: K103-FM

Middle Tennessee at SEMO

Probable Starters

SEMO Offense

TE - John Borne 6-1 235 Jr.

LT - Ian Walters 6-3 280 Jr.

LG - James Williams 6-2 275 Sr.

C - Chris Kiefer 6-3 270 Jr.

RG - Jessie Eaton 6-3 320 Sr.

RT - Carlos DeJesus 6-3 300 Sr.

WR - Corey Chester 5-11 175 So.

WR - Dante Bryant 6-1 190 Sr.

QB - Bobby Brune 6-4 205 Fr.

FB - Broderick Benson 5-10 215 Jr.

TB - Corey Williams 6-2 215 Sr.

PK - Nick Reggio 5-10 175 Jr.

SEMO Defense

DL - Troy Baglio 6-1 280 Sr.

DL - Marcus McClellan 6-3 250 Sr.

DL - Jason DeWolf 6-3 250 Fr.

DL - Brad Richardson 6-2 255 Jr.

LB - Gabe Jenkins 6-0 230 Sr.

LB - David Bowling 6-0 210 Jr.

LB - Kevin Meachem 6-2 215 Sr.

CB - Fred Hambrick 5-10 185 Sr.

CB - Brian Hinton 5-10 180 Jr.

FS - Isaac Powell 6-1 180 So.

SS - John Smith 6-1 190 Jr.

P - Justin Keen 6-5 180 Fr.

MTSU Defense

DL - LeBron Elder 6-3 255 So.

DL - Jeff Thomas 6-2 274 Jr.

DL - Martez Phelps 6-2 276 So.

DL - Wes Stephens 6-4 242 Fr.

LB - Kenrick Whitehead 6-1 198 So.

LB - Clay Griffin 6-1 237 Jr.

LB - Keith Pauldo 5-11 239 So.

LB - Isiah Brown 6-1 174 So.

CB - Cedric Stegall 5-10 175 Sr.

CB - Darrell Love 5-11 172 Sr.

FS - Mario Kelso 5-11 175 So.

P - Joey Burstyne 6-0 180 Jr.

MTSU Offense

TE - Gary Davis 6-3 230 Sr.

LT - Chris Howington 6-3 268 So.

LG - Andrew McDonald 6-1 292 Sr.

C - Matt Norwood 6-1 282 Sr.

RG - Konrad Kaul 6-4 280 Sr.

RT - Barry Hall 6-6 302 So.

WR - Tri Heard 5-11 198 Sr.

WR - Sulecio Sanford 5-11 194 Sr.

QB - Wes Counts 6-1 188 Fr.

FB - Kelvrick Green 5-9 194 Jr.

TB - Torin Kirtsey 5-11 189 Jr.

K - Keegan Ray 6-2 220 Jr.