Southeast Missouri State football team relegated to spoiler role vs. Jacksonville State

~ Jacksonville State still has a chance to win the OVC football title

The stakes aren't as high for this year's meeting between Southeast Missouri State and Jacksonville State.

That doesn't mean Saturday's 1 p.m. game at Houck Stadium carries any less importance for the Redhawks.

"In some ways it's even more important just because of the way we want to finish. We want to finish strong," said Southeast coach Tony Samuel, whose squad is 3-6 overall and tied for seventh in the nine-team Ohio Valley Conference at 2-4. "This is a big one for us. We're trying to have a winning home season."

Southeast, 3-1 at Houck Stadium, faces JSU in the second of three straight home dates to end the campaign.

Last year's matchup in Jacksonville, Ala., was billed as one of the biggest games in Southeast history as the Redhawks chased the program's first OVC title.

JSU scored a touchdown with 11 seconds left to pull out a 29-27 win in Southeast's regular-season finale.

The Redhawks wound up capturing the OVC crown and earning the league's automatic playoff berth anyway when the Gamecocks were upset by Tennessee Tech in their last regular-season game the following week.

"That was a great game last year, and it was a tough, tough loss for our program," Samuel said. "The guys that were part of it last year, I know there's a little more incentive for them."

JSU joined Southeast in the 2010 playoff field as an at-large entry. The Gamecocks have a chance to make it to the postseason this year, but they're in a precarious position after two consecutive home defeats by a combined 11 points.

The Gamecocks (5-4, 4-2), the OVC preseason favorites, fell into a three-way tie for second place after last week's 52-48 loss to Eastern Kentucky.

The Colonels, who lead the OVC, scored 28 points in the final seven minutes to wipe out a 48-24 deficit. JSU had a chance to win at the end but was stopped at the 1-yard line as time expired.

"We're hurting, having to get over a very big disappointment," said JSU coach Jack Crowe, whose squad fell out of both major FCS polls Monday, ending a school-record streak of 40 consecutive weeks in the top 25. "We had two opportunities at home to control our own destiny. We had our chances and didn't finish."

The Gamecocks were dealt a serious blow in this year's opener -- a comeback win over Tennessee-Martin -- when senior quarterback Marques Ivory suffered a fractured right fibula that ended his season.

The Gamecocks had a capable backup in sophomore Coty Blanchard, the hero of last year's upset of Mississippi who led the rally against Tennessee-Martin after Ivory went down.

Blanchard, a two-sport star who is among the OVC's top baseball players, has completed 61.6 percent of his passes (114 of 185) for 1,447 yards with 10 touchdowns and five interceptions. He threw for 300 yards and two touchdowns against Eastern Kentucky.

Blanchard, who leads the league in passing efficiency, also has rushed for 306 yards. That ranks second among OVC quarterbacks behind Southeast senior Matt Scheible's 653 yards. Blanchard also serves as JSU's punter.

JSU has one of the OVC's premier running backs in junior Washaun Ealey, a Georgia transfer whose 999 yards rank second in the conference and 15th nationally. He has scored seven touchdowns and averages 6.1 yards per carry.

Ealey ripped Eastern Kentucky for 217 yards on 17 carries, with touchdown runs of 83 and 61 yards. He later was named OVC newcomer of the week for the fourth time this year.

"He's got good size and great speed. He's a big-play threat," Samuel said.

Junior wide receiver Alan Bonner is Blanchard's favorite target. Bonner, averaging 19.5 yards on 24 receptions, had nine catches for 205 yards and two touchdowns against Eastern Kentucky.

JSU piled up more than 600 yards in the loss, while Eastern Kentucky gained over 500 yards.

The Gamecocks traditionally have been known for their stout defense, but they have struggled in that area this year. JSU ranks in the middle of the OVC pack, allowing averages of 28.7 points and 398.7 yards per game.

"They've got a really good defense. Sometimes the stats can be misleading," Samuel said. "They're a very good football team. They're loaded."

Crowe is wary of Southeast, especially Scheible, who ranks among the top quarterbacks in program history.

"He's a very dynamic player. He can take the team on his back and will them to be successful," Crowe said. "I have great respect for him as a player."