Lillard impressive at QB

~ Southeast's second quarterback engineered two scoring drives.

Houston Lillard might have seemed like something of a forgotten man at times in Southeast Missouri State's quarterback derby.

But Lillard made himself clearly visible Saturday, giving the Redhawks a true passing threat for the first time this season and helping them beat Indiana State 13-10.

"I got in a rhythm and felt good," Lillard said after the Redhawks improved to 2-1.

Lillard had seen action in Southeast's first two games, but fellow junior college transfer Victor Anderson had received the majority of the playing time.

That changed Saturday, when Anderson -- who again started -- and Lillard basically split the offensive possessions throughout the contest.

With the way Lillard was performing, it would have been hard not to give him opportunities.

Lillard led two of Southeast's most impressive offensive drives of the season.

First came a 70-yard, 15-play march that chewed up 8 minutes, 19 seconds and resulted in a second-quarter field goal.

Then came a 67-yard, seven-play drive that took just 1:14 and resulted in a 22-yard touchdown pass to Miles Edwards with 7.1 seconds left before halftime, putting Southeast up 13-3.

Lillard wound up completing 13-of-18 passes for 159 yards.

In Southeast's first two games, Lillard was 6-of-9 for 58 yards. Overall, the two quarterbacks were 18-of-33 for just 171 yards in the opening two games.

"He's accurate, and he seemed to settle down more in this game," Southeast coach Tony Samuel said of Lillard.

Lillard said he had not necessarily felt left out in the first two contests, but he did yearn for more playing time.

"I was hoping for more of an opportunity," he said. "But once I got an opportunity, I had to take advantage."

Lillard was quick to credit his offensive line, which prevented he and Anderson -- who did not complete a pass in four attempts, but rushed for 25 yards on four carries -- from being sacked.

Southeast quarterbacks had been sacked 10 times before Saturday.

"The line was really blocking," Lillard said.

The line also helped Timmy Holloman rush for 141 yards on 33 carries. He gained 113 yards on 28 attempts in the final half.

"We tried to run the clock down," said center Paul McGuire, and it worked as Southeast had a 36:18 to 23:42 edge in time of possession.

Peterson returns

Perhaps nobody was more excited Saturday than Southeast senior tailback Elton Peterson, who saw his first action of the season.

Peterson was granted a fifth year of eligibility by the NCAA as a redshirt dating back to his freshman season in 2003, when he saw only brief action in two games. He had to sit out two games this year as part of the redshirt.

Peterson rushed for 23 yards on five carries against the Sycamores.

"It felt real good to be out there," Peterson said. "It felt like Christmas all week."

Noteworthy

• Vince Anderson, Victor's twin brother, led Southeast receivers with six catches for 75 yards.
• Defensively, sophomore linebacker Jared Goodson led the Redhawks in tackles for the second straight week, with 14. Senior linebacker Adam Casper had 13 tackles.