Southeast football team falls to EKU 33-21

RICHMOND, Ky. -- Southeast Missouri State football coach Tom Matukewicz said the reason for his team's defeat on Saturday was simple.

"The difference in the football game was that they were a little bit better football team than us," Matukewicz said.

Even though there were multiple moments that could've changed the outcome of their 33-21 loss to No. 18 Eastern Kentucky at Roy Kidd Stadium on Saturday, Matukewicz didn't want his players to spend time second-guessing.

Southeast faced a 12-point deficit in the fourth quarter, but cut it to 26-21 when quarterback Kyle Snyder found Ron Coleman in the middle of the end zone for a 3-yard pass with 10 minutes, 31 seconds remaining.

The Redhawks defense forced the Colonels to punt on the next drive and gave the offense a chance to take the lead for the first time in the game.

Snyder and running back DeMichael Jackson rushed for 2 and 3 yards to set up third-and-5 from the Southeast 20, but Jackson came up short on third and Southeast punted the ball back to EKU.

"We were still in it," Jackson said. "We've just got to finish. We competed hard. We played our hearts out. I said we were going to be a different team than last week (and we were). We came out and fought hard."

The Colonels returned it to midfield with 6:20 left in the game. After a couple of 2-yard runs, EKU faced third-and-6 from the Redhawks 46. Colonels quarterback Jared McClain completed a 19-yard pass to Deno Montgomery to keep the drive alive.

EKU went up 33-21 five plays later on a 13-yard run by Dy'Shawn Mobley with 2:21 to go.

"It was all about getting off the field," cornerback Tim Hamm-Bey said. "We were put in a great situation. They got in the red zone, but we've shown before that we're comfortable in the red zone. They gutted one on us, and I don't really know how it happened."

The Redhawks moved the ball 60 yards to the EKU 17 in the final two minutes of the game. Receiver Peter Lloyd caught 26 and 21-yard passes on back-to-back plays and Darrius Darden-Box had a 6-yard catch before a rush of no gain and an incomplete pass turned the ball over to the Colonels with 1:29 remaining.

Matukewicz was proud of the resilience of his coaching staff and players in the game, noting two key moments that could've turned into meltdowns for the Redhawks.

Southeast's second punt of the game was blocked and recovered by EKU's Jeff Glover, who returned it 22 yards for a touchdown midway through the first quarter.

The Redhawks answered with a 75-yard drive that was capped with a 3-yard touchdown run by Snyder with 2:55 remaining in the quarter.

"Again, most teams do what?" Matukewicz said. "[They] just implode after that. Coaches did a good job on the sidelines just keeping people in it. Players went out and executed, got a drive back in. When it's 20-7 a lot of teams give up, and they stick one in there and get a one-score game. We were in the game the whole time."

EKU scored with 32 seconds left in the first on a 1-yard run by Mobley to make it 14-7. The Redhawks were stopped on fourth-and-1 on their own 49 on their first drive of the second quarter, and the Colonels scored two minutes later on a 9-yard run by Mobley.

"My philosophy is if we're moving the ball, we can get a yard," Matukewicz said of decision to go for it on fourth down. "We didn't, and that was a significant part in the game just like all the rest of the plays, but I know that you're not going to come in here and beat a Top 20 team by punting it on fourth-and-1 either."

Southeast also had two penalties -- a 15-yard personal foul and a 10-yard face mask -- that led up to Mobley's second touchdown of the game.

"We're all about progress," linebacker Terrance Hill said. "Based off of last week we played a lot better. We didn't play our best, but we played better. That's all you can do."

Snyder ran it in 4 yards for a score on the Redhawks next drive to pull the Redhawks back within a touchdown with 4:39 remaining before halftime. He finished with 116 yards rushing and two touchdowns on 19 carries. Jackson had 99 yards rushing on 22 carries.

"I feel like I'm getting healthier, so that helps, but some things opened up," Snyder said. "The line did good up front, and I was able to get through the hole a couple times."

Snyder also completed 23 of 34 passes for 245 yards and a score. Lloyd had nine catches for 104 yards.

Snyder was intercepted twice -- one that was tipped and picked off in the end zone 8 minutes into the second half and another on the Redhawks next drive. The Colonels scored with 3:05 left in the quarter after the first interception after an 80-yard drive. Devin Borders snagged a 27-yard pass from McClain over a Southeast defender to make it 26-14.

"He undercut the route -- it's open, and normally you tell a kid never to do that. He does and he ends up barely deflecting it, otherwise it's a touchdown," Matukewicz said of the first interception. "The one ball was a bad ball. It floated on him a little bit, and that's the world he lives in."

The Redhawks are 4-5 and 2-3 in the OVC and have a bye week. Their next game is Nov. 8 at Tennessee Tech.

"Coach Tuke couldn't have said it any better," Snyder said of the post game message. "He told us he was proud of us and that we've just got to go into this week with a good attitude, keep fighting and finish strong."