Indians shake UTM late for 2-0 OVC start

MARTIN, Tenn. -- Tennessee-Martin once again proved to be a pesky opponent for Southeast Missouri State University -- but the Skyhawks eventually wilted under another offensive outburst by the Indians.

For the second straight week, the Indians reached a team record for points on the NCAA Division I-AA level. And they needed most of them Saturday afternoon as they posted a wild 50-35 victory in front of 4,713 fans at Hardy Graham Stadium.

It was the most points Southeast has scored since the Division II Indians beat the Skyhawks 57-17 in 1985.

"I was worried about us being flat after having big games the last two weeks, and we were," Southeast coach Tim Billings said. "Tennessee-Martin really feels they have an opportunity to beat us and we always have a tough time with them. The only time they come close" in OVC play "is to us."

But, added a smiling Billings, "We're just excited to get through it. And now we're where we wanted to be."

Where the Indians wanted to be is 5-2 overall and 2-0 in the OVC for the first time ever after their third straight victory. That sets up Saturday's huge homecoming showdown with defending league champion Eastern Illinois, also 2-0 in the OVC.

Before the Indians could think about the Panthers, however, they had to dispose of the Skyhawks (2-5, 0-2), who entered the game with 37 straight OVC losses, most of them lopsided. But UTM played Southeast tough the last two years and the Indians expected more of the same Saturday.

"We weren't as intense as we needed to be defensively, and they always play us tough. They figure we're the one team they can beat," sophomore defensive end Adam Jones said. "I'm sure we were looking ahead to Eastern Illinois, but the main thing is we won."

The game was a tale of two units for the Indians, who piled up 603 yards for the second-highest total offensive output in school history -- led by quarterback Jack Tomco's record-setting performance -- but allowed the Skyhawks to gain 440 yards.

"I think we played down to Tennessee-Martin's level, to tell you the truth," said sophomore safety Mike Miller, who came up with a key fourth-quarter fumble recovery that helped the Indians take control. "It was ugly, but we're happy to come away with a win."

Tomco completed 29 of 39 passes for 429 yards and five touchdowns. He set Southeast single-game records for touchdown passes, passing yards, total yards (also 429) and completions while tying the school's single-season mark for TD passes with 17.

Redshirt freshman Bill Coleman caught two touchdown passes among his six receptions. Tarik Simpson and Willie Ponder had seven and six receptions, respectively, with each going over 100 yards and scoring a TD. Sophomore Ray Goodson from Jackson High School caught five passes and scored his first college TD.

The Indians also gained 174 yards on the ground, all by Keiki Misipeka and Iven Brown, who had 89 and 85 yards, respectively, as leading rusher Corey Kinsey did not play because of disciplinary reasons. Misipeka and Brown each scored a TD.

"We've got a lot of offensive weapons," Billings said.

But even with all that offense, the Indians could never totally shake UTM, although they trailed just once at 3-0 and took the lead for good early in the second quarter on Brown's 1-yard run.

Later in the second period, Tomco threw TD passes of 11 yards to Coleman and 4 yards to Goodson, but the Indians still led just 21-15 at halftime.

After a surprisingly scoreless third quarter, the Skyhawks continued to hang tough for much of the final period. Tomco threw TD passes of 38 yards to Ponder and 55 yards to Simpson, the latter putting Southeast up 36-22 with 10:42 remaining.

Then Southeast's defense came up with a big play as Miller recovered a fumble -- it was UTM's only turnover -- at the Skyhawks' 45-yard line. The Indians quickly scored on Tomco's 15-yard pass to Coleman, making it 43-22 and opening up some breathing room.

"The offense was carrying us and we felt like the defense had to do something," Miller said.

Misipeka's 13-yard run with under four minutes left made it 50-29 and effectively put the game away.

According to unofficial pressbox statistics, Miller led the defense with 12 tackles and Ryan Roth had 10. Jones and Ricky Farmer came up with sacks while Miller and Farmer each had two tackles for loss.

mmishow@semissourian.com

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