Samuel, Kaverman address 2-6 record

~ Southeast football coach and athletic director remain confident in direction of the program.

Tony Samuel acknowledges that he expected his second season as Southeast Missouri State's football coach to go better than it has so far.

But Samuel said Monday that he is far from discouraged in the relatively early stages of his attempts to build a program that has experienced little success on the Division I-AA level.

And Southeast athletic director Don Kaverman said he has not lost faith in Samuel and his staff, who are in their second season.

The Redhawks fell to 2-6 overall and 0-5 in the Ohio Valley Conference with Saturday's 55-20 loss at Tennessee-Martin. They have three games left, including this week against Austin Peay.

Southeast has suffered five straight defeats and the Redhawks have been outscored by a combined 76 points in their last three games.

"Going into this year, we expected to be better," Samuel said. "I'm not discouraged at all. This is the second year of a rebuild. I think the program is headed in the right direction."

Samuel was hired in December of 2005, after Tim Billings resigned following a 2-9 season.

The Redhawks went 4-7 in Samuel's first season, but Southeast had 26 seniors -- most of them key players -- on that squad, meaning Samuel essentially was starting from scratch this year.

Samuel pointed out Monday that of the 87 players on Southeast's roster, 45 joined the program in January.

"We're playing 23 new players," he said.

Samuel believes injuries and other circumstances have hampered the Redhawks.

At least 10 key players have missed either the entire season or parts of the season, including quarterback Houston Lillard, who missed most of four games with cracked ribs.

Several key defensive players were either out for the Tennessee-Martin game or played hobbled, including senior linebacker Adam Casper, the OVC's leading tackler who did not dress.

In addition, rushing leader Timmy Holloman -- who ranked among the top 10 nationally -- has not played in the last three games after it was announced Oct. 9 that he had been found in violation of NCAA eligibility rules. He will almost certainly miss the rest of the year.

"That's an awful lot to overcome," Samuel said of the injuries and Holloman's absence. "If we stay healthy, who knows? The good thing is most of these guys will be back."

On slide since EIU

Samuel thought the Redhawks were turning the corner when they battled two-time defending OVC champion Eastern Illinois on even terms for much of a Sept. 29 loss.

But the Redhawks had several players banged up in that physical contest and have not recovered since, losing their last three games by 76 points while leading just once, and that was only briefly.

"That took a lot out of us, but that was the blueprint I'm looking for," Samuel said of the Eastern Illinois game. "We've had some highlights ... shown what we're capable of. We haven't been able to sustain it."

Samuel pointed out something that has affected negatively every Southeast football coach since the program moved up to Division I-AA in 1991 -- resources.

Besides facilities that are lacking, Southeast football is not fully funded from a scholarship standpoint. Plus, the money is not there to keep the majority of the players in town over the summer to work out, which Samuel and Kaverman both believe is important.

"A key to winning for us is the ability to have our team here in the summer, to train like the rest of the country," Samuel said.

Kaverman said he mostly agreed with everything Samuel believes is important to get the football program out of a rut that's included 15 losing records in 17 Division I-AA seasons, including this year.

"One, he needs more scholarships. Two, he needs to be able to keep key personnel in town over the summer," Kaverman said.

As for the summer issue, Kaverman said: "It's both a financial issue and an equity issue. If we provide financial support for male athletes to stay in town over the summer, we have to do the same thing for female athletes.

"But it's important and we have to figure a way to get it done."

Kaverman acknowledged that Southeast's football facilities could use a boost.

The UTM model

While improvements have been made to Houck Stadium in recent years, the Redhawks don't have a true locker room facility at that site, instead using an area in the Redhawks Success Center, which is across the street from the stadium.

Kaverman pointed to an e-mail he received this week from Tennessee-Martin athletic director Phil Dane, after the two shared some thoughts Saturday about the challenges of building a football program.

The Skyhawks were among the nation's worst Division I-AA football programs from 1996 through 2004, winning just 11 games in nine years, including only three OVC contests. The Skyhawks finished either last or tied for last in the league all nine of those seasons.

But Tennessee-Martin went 6-5 in 2005, then 9-3 and gained a share of its first OVC title last year. The Skyhawks are only 2-7 this season, but have lost four conference games by a total of 15 points.

In the e-mail, Dane credited Tennessee-Martin's multimillion dollar Bob Carroll Football Building, which opened about five years ago, as the key in the Skyhawks' resurgence.

The 17,000 square-foot facility, located in the south end zone of Tennessee-Martin's stadium, has office space for all football personnel, meeting rooms, locker room, training room, equipment room and multi-purpose room with a glass wall overlooking the field. Funding for the building came primarily from private donations.

Dane wrote in the e-mail to Kaverman: "I know you just need the money, but you can tell your folks that there's no question in our minds that our new building is the difference in our turn-around. With our small budget there's no way we should be competing with EIU [Eastern Illinois] and Jax State [Jacksonville State], but we can because of what the building does for our recruiting."

Kaverman said various efforts have been made over the years to raise funds for a similar building at Houck Stadium, and he said efforts will continue in that area.

"Football is the only program we haven't built a locker room for since I've been here," Kaverman said. "Facilities do count in recruiting, and it's all about getting players that can make a difference, in any sport. Then we have to be able to improve them, and we have the football staff with the experience to do that, but first we need to get them here."

In Samuel's corner

Kaverman said he still has the same confidence in Samuel and his staff that he had when the former Nebraska player and assistant coach was signed to a five-year contract in 2005.

"I have total confidence in him," Kaverman said. "We have to be realistic in the situation. Coach Samuel and his staff have only been here less than two years. He has had really only one recruiting class. His first class, he got here late.

"It takes time to turn a program around. The cupboard was basically bare when he got here. It irritates me that people are already starting to second-guess him. My God, give him a break."

Kaverman said it will take a joint effort between the university and community to come up with the financial resources to give Samuel what he needs to turn the Redhawks into a solid program.

"There are so many big hurdles we have to overcome. That's not to say it can't happen," Kaverman said. "It's a team effort. Everybody has to get behind it. The community has to get behind it, the university has to get behind it or it's not going to happen."

In the meantime, Samuel said the Redhawks -- who feature only nine seniors -- will try to finish the season strong as he and his staff build for the future.

"We just have to continue as a staff to get this thing on the upswing," he said. "We're going to be fine."