Southeast fans, don't despair: OVC pollsters are often off target

After two publications picked the Southeast Missouri State football team to finish seventh in the Ohio Valley Conference, the league's official preseason poll has the Redhawks tabbed for eighth out of 10 squads.

The announcement came Tuesday during the OVC's annual media day in Nashville, Tenn. The OVC's football coaches and sports information directors voted on the preseason poll.

In Tony Samuel's first season as coach a year ago, Southeast was picked dead last but wound up finishing seventh in what was then a nine-team league.

Samuel acted like he couldn't care less about where the Redhawks were predicted to finish -- and really, why should he, considering that it has absolutely no bearing on what will actually happen on the field.

As proof, consider that the last time the official OVC preseason favorite actually won the league was in 2002.

I get the feeling that Samuel genuinely likes the talent he and his staff have assembled in their two recruiting classes so far, and he seems confident the Redhawks will improve significantly on last year's records of 4-7 overall and 2-6 in the OVC.

Who knows whether that will happen, but for Southeast fans looking for a glimmer of hope, I recommend you join Samuel by not putting too much stock in the preseason polls.

Generally, the way these things work, the teams that did well the year before get picked toward the top of the league, while the squads that struggled the year before are slotted toward the bottom.

Remember when Southeast went 8-4 in 2002 for the program's last winning season and most victories since 1969?

That group was picked next-to-last in the OVC preseason poll but proved the so-called experts wrong by tying for third.

I'm sure not predicting that type of turnaround for the 2007 Redhawks. I recently wrote that I don't expect a whole lot out of them, mainly because I don't know all that much about the majority of their players, most of whom are inexperienced at this level.

I'm sticking to that belief -- but it's not like I would be stunned if the Redhawks prove me wrong, because I didn't see it coming in 2002 either.

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We won't have to wait all that long to start finding out how the current Redhawks stack up because Southeast begins practice Friday and opens the season Aug. 30 at Cincinnati.

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It was great to see Eastern Illinois' Bob Spoo at Tuesday's media day.

Spoo, the classy dean of OVC football coaches who is in his 20th season with the Panthers, missed all of last year because of serious health problems.

The 69-year-old Spoo said he has been given the go-ahead by his doctors to return to the sidelines, where the preseason favorite Panthers will chase their third consecutive OVC title, after sharing the crown last year with Tennessee-Martin.

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Speaking of Tennessee-Martin, what the Skyhawks have done has to at least give Southeast fans hope.

The Skyhawks were one of the nation's worst programs for years, finishing last in the OVC for nine straight seasons from 1996 to 2004.

They ended that futility in 2005 by going 6-5 overall -- their first winning record since 1993 -- and tying for fourth in the OVC at 4-4.

Then came last year's breakthrough season, when they were 9-3 and tied with Eastern Illinois for their first OVC championship.

Tennessee-Martin is again expected to be strong this year, making the Skyhawks favored to post what would be a third straight winning record.

That was unthinkable just a few years ago.

If it can happen at Tennessee-Martin, then why not at Southeast?

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It will probably take some getting used to, but Division I-AA is no longer the proper term for the level of football at which OVC schools participate.

It is now the Football Championship Subdivision, or FCS.

Also, the division formerly known as I-A was changed to Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS).

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NFL training camps have opened in the past few days and several of them are again featuring former Southeast players who are attempting to either continue or begin their professional careers.

Offensive lineman Eugene Amano, taken in the seventh round of the 2004 draft, will be in his fourth season with the Tennessee Titans. He has primarily been a backup, but has made three starts.

Offensive lineman Dan Connolly, who was not drafted, is entering his third year with the Jacksonville Jaguars. He was a backup as a rookie but missed all of last season with an injury.

Willie Ponder, a four-year NFL veteran -- the 2003 sixth-round pick has primarily been a kick returner, although he has also seen some action as a backup wide receiver -- is still apparently searching for a team after he played last season with the St. Louis Rams.

My attempts to reach Ponder have been unsuccessful, and he is not listed on any NFL squad's current roster, but you've got to think somebody will give the former NFL kick return champion another shot.

Two Southeast products who completed their eligibility last year are trying to make it as rookie free agents.

Defensive end/linebacker Edgar Jones is with the Baltimore Ravens, while tight end Kyle Hunt -- who played defensive end at Southeast -- is with the Philadelphia Eagles.

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One more ex-Southeast football player is also in an NFL training camp: Dimitri Patterson, a cornerback with the Kansas City Chiefs.

Patterson played at Southeast from 2001 through 2003, before transferring and completing his final season at Division II Tuskegee.

He was not drafted, but made the Washington Redskins roster in 2005. He spent part of last season on the Minnesota Vikings' practice squad.

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Because they were seeded based on last year's 13th-place showing, the Plaza Tire Capahas got to bypass the opening round of the National Baseball Congress World Series, which could aid their quest for an even better finish.

The Capahas will see their first action in this year's tournament in Wichita, Kan., at 7:30 p.m. Thursday against an opponent that has not yet been determined.

Also, don't forget that the Capahas have added two more games to their schedule as they will host the St. Louis Kings today in a 1 p.m. doubleheader at Capaha Field.

The Kings are supposed to be a solid team, so it should be a good tuneup for the Capahas before they head out to Wichita.

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By the way, it's a shame that Capahas manager Jess Bolen did not get elected to the NBC Hall of Fame, after being one of the 2007 nominees.

Bolen has now been nominated twice without making the cut.

Here's hoping he eventually gets in to recognize his more than 40 years of contributions to amateur baseball.

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What an unbelievable tragedy that was last Sunday, when Mike Coolbaugh died after being hit in the head by a line drive while coaching first base during a minor league game.

People always worry about players -- especially pitchers -- being hit in the head by batted balls, but not much thought is generally given to base coaches getting drilled.

That will all now surely change as the issue of coaches wearing helmets -- a hot topic in baseball since Coolbaugh was struck -- will certainly continue to intensify.

Marty Mishow is a sports writer for the Southeast Missourian