Redhawks rush for 230 yards with Holloman out of lineup

~ Jones rushed for a game-high 64 yards on 15 carries.

RICHMOND, Ky. -- Southeast Missouri State was able to muster an effective running game Saturday despite being without leading rusher Timmy Holloman,

Holloman, the Redhawks' top offensive threat who ranked No. 2 in the Ohio Valley Conference and No. 8 nationally in rushing, was declared ineligible Tuesday after being found in violation of unspecified NCAA regulations.

Holloman, who had rushed for 655 yards in the Redhawks' first five games and scored six of their nine touchdowns, all from at least 20 yards out, missed Saturday's contest at Eastern Kentucky and is out indefinitely.

Even without Holloman, the Redhawks rushed for 230 yards during a 44-17 loss. They entered the contest leading the OVC in rushing with an average of 217.4 yards per game.

"We have some great backs, they run hard and I think the line blocked pretty well," senior offensive tackle Francisco Perez said. "Even without [Holloman], I think we can run the ball."

True freshman Mike Jones started in place of Holloman, while senior Elton Peterson and true freshman Alfred Reese also received their share of carries.

Jones rushed for a game-high 64 yards on 15 carries, including a long of 14 yards.

Prior to Saturday, Jones had carried once for minus-2 yards as the Paducah, Ky., product battled injuries.

"It was nice [to play], but I just tried to take it one play at a time," Jones said.

Said Southeast coach Tony Samuel of Jones: "He's a young kid. I think he's got a bright future."

Peterson ripped off a 30-yard run, by far his longest of the year. He finished with 50 yards on six carries, after entering the game with 23 yards all season.

Reese, who had been Holloman's top backup with 91 yards through five games, added 37 yards on nine attempts against EKU, with a long of 15 yards.

Reese scored his first collegiate touchdown on a 2-yard run late in the game.

Junior quarterback Victor Anderson had the Redhawks' longest run, a season-high 37-yarder that barely eclipsed the 36-yarder he had in the season opener at Cincinnati.

Anderson, Southeast's No. 2 rusher behind Holloman, ended with 47 yards on 11 carries. He has 309 yards this season.

Anderson also scored his first Southeast TD, a 2-yarder early in the contest as the Redhawks went ahead 7-0.

Anderson at QB

After Southeast had used two quarterbacks -- by design -- for significant action in every game, Anderson went most of the way Saturday.

Anderson went 8-of-18 for 55 yards with an interception.

Anderson, who had completed just 34 percent of his passes entering the game, threw two of his best deep balls of the season, but both were dropped by open receivers.

"He's got an arm," Samuel said of Anderson.

Redshirt freshman Steve Callanan came on for mop-up duty in the final five minutes after the game was out of reach.

Callanan was 1-of-3 for 11 yards with an interception.

Spada adds duties

Kicker/punter Doug Spada continued his impressive season for the Redhawks.

Spada connected on a 28-yard field goal, making him 10-of-11 this year. He also punted seven times for a 40-yard average.

And Spada, a sophomore, added to his job description Saturday as he turned into a ball-carrier.

Midway through the first quarter, with the score tied 7-7, Spada prepared to punt as Southeast faced fourth-and-4 from its own 33-yard line.

But the fake was on and EKU did not expect it. Spada easily picked up the first down and wound up gaining 24 yards before being knocked out of bounds at the Colonels 43-yard line.

In his exuberance, however, Spada spiked the ball and was hit with a 15-yard penalty for unsportsmanlike conduct.

After Southeast picked up one more first down, Spada came back on to punt.

"That was exciting. It's the first time I've ever done that, even in high school," Spada said of the fake.

Of the spike and resulting penalty, Spada said: "I got too over-excited. It wasn't smart."

Perez has TD taken away

Perez appeared to score his first collegiate touchdown.

Perez reached the end zone after catching a 6-yard pass from Anderson during what was supposed to be a tackle-eligible play in the third quarter.

But officials whistled Perez for illegal touching and the Redhawks were penalized 5 yards. They ended up kicking a field goal.

Samuel said the officials explained that Perez was not behind the quarterback when he caught the pass, which the college rule for tackle-eligible plays mandates.

"That would have been exciting," Perez said. "We worked on it during the week and they [coaches] told me to be deep enough because it has to be a backward pass.

"I thought I was pretty deep, but they [officials] said I wasn't back far enough."

Noteworthy

• Vincent Anderson, Southeast's leading receiver with 12 catches this season, also spent time at safety Saturday.

Anderson did not catch a pass, but the junior returned a punt 28 yards that set up the Redhawks' final touchdown late in the fourth quarter. On defense, he was credited with two tackles.

"He can help back there [in the secondary]," Samuel said. "We're just trying to get our team better."

• Junior wide out Mike Williamson and senior tight end Joseph Tuineau each caught three passes to lead the Redhawks.
• Senior linebacker Adam Casper led Southeast in tackles with nine.