Redhawks gave 'great effort' despite loss, coach says

MARTIN, Tenn. -- Southeast Missouri State suffered its third straight loss Saturday and fell to 0-2 in Ohio Valley Conference play.

But Southeast coach Tony Samuel couldn't help but rave about the gritty effort his players displayed after falling behind 21-6 at halftime. Tennessee-Martin held on for a 29-22 victory.

"It was a great effort," said Samuel, whose squad was within 21-15 until the final five minutes. "That third quarter was the best quarter since I've been here as far as the team gritting their teeth.

"They came out and got after it. That was as proud a quarter as I've had. They came out and got after it. There was some hitting."

Said sophomore quarterback Matt Scheible: "We gave a great fight. Everybody put in a great effort. We just came up short."

Added senior cornerback Eddie Calvin, who intercepted a pass in the end zone that thwarted a UTM scoring chance: "Nobody likes this feeling. But we're getting close. We have a good team. We just have to keep building."

Leads ground game

Junior tailback Mike Jones led a strong Southeast rushing attack that piled up 244 yards and averaged a healthy seven yards per attempt.

Jones got the bulk of Southeast's carries after halftime and finished with 101 yards on 15 attempts, including a 13-yard touchdown. Jones had 17 yards on three first-half carries.

"He played well," Samuel said. "He ran hard."

Southeast hurt UTM early on several option plays that included some nice runs by senior wide receiver Walter Peoples, who picked up 51 yards on three carries after taking pitches from Scheible.

"We saw something there that we could take advantage of," Samuel said.

Scheible ripped off an early 34-yard option run and finished with 49 yards on nine attempts, including a 1-yard touchdown sneak.

Scheible also completed 24 of 38 passes for 199 yards and a touchdown.

Junior wide receiver Miles Edwards caught seven passes for 76 yards, including a 15-yard touchdown.

Sophomore Chantae Ahamefule caught seven passes for 59 yards.

Southeast finished with 443 yards on offense compared to 447 for UTM, which was led by Miguel Barnes' 105 rushing yards, Cade Thompson's 246 yards passing and Dexter Anoka's nine catches for 113 yards.

Defensively, Southeast junior safety Bryan Blanfort was credited with 14 tackles. Junior linebacker Justin Woodlief had 10 tackles, while Calvin added nine.

Penalties galore

The teams combined for 26 penalties in the physical game, including several for personal fouls and unsportsmanlike conduct.

Southeast was whistled 14 times for 170 yards, while UTM was penalized 12 times for 121 yards.

Another road test

Saturday's game started a stretch that finds Southeast playing four of five OVC contests on the road.

The Redhawks travel to Tennessee State next Saturday.

Following the Oct. 10 homecoming game against Austin Peay, Southeast has an open date before visiting Tennessee Tech on Oct. 24 and Eastern Kentucky on Oct. 31.