Southeast Missouri State football team snaps 10-game road losing streak at Austin Peay

CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. -- Southeast Missouri State was in dire need of a victory after suffering three straight Ohio Valley Conference losses during which the Redhawks were competitive.

Winless Austin Peay proved to be what the doctor ordered for the Redhawks, although they had to survive a furious late rally by the Govs that made things too close for comfort.

"It's OVC football. What else is new," Southeast coach Tony Samuel said. "That's the way this conference is."

Redshirt freshman quarterback Scott Lathrop piled up 179 of Southeast's season-high 399 rushing yards, and senior tailback Levi Terrell added 137 yards to help the Redhawks ruin Austin Peay's homecoming with a 48-27 victory Saturday.

"It's good to come out here and get the win," Lathrop said. "The first half was the best we've executed all year. We were running, blocking."

Southeast Missouri State fullback Ron Coleman is stopped by Austin Peay cornerback Buddy Mitchell, right, during Saturday’s OVC contest in Clarksville, Tenn. Robert SmithThe Leaf-Chronicle

The Redhawks led 31-7 at halftime, 38-7 midway through the third quarter and 41-14 early in the final period before the Govs made things interesting with two touchdowns to pull within 41-27.

Austin Peay looked like it would slice the deficit to a touchdown when it had a first-and-goal at the Southeast 2-yard line with under four minutes remaining.

But Reco Williams, Austin Peay's 250-pound redshirt freshman battering ram tailback, fumbled after being hit by Southeast senior defensive tackle Joe Malolo.

Southeast senior safety Branden Spann scooped up the ball and raced 98 yards for a touchdown with 3:05 left to put the Redhawks up 48-27 and seal the win. It was the longest fumble return in school history.

"Joe forced the fumble and the ball just squirted out," Spann said. "I just picked it up and went the distance. We really needed that."

Southeast (3-5, 2-3 Ohio Valley Conference) broke a 10-game road losing streak, its previous road victory also coming at Austin Peay during the 2010 season. The Redhawks scored their most points this year.

"It feels great to snap that road losing streak," said senior defensive tackle Taylor Ramsey, who had both Southeast quarterback sacks.

The Govs (0-8, 0-6) entered Saturday's matchup having been beaten by at least 20 points in every game this season and being outscored by 34 points on average.

Southeast added to Austin Peay's misery in the first half by scoring on all five of its possessions to lead 31-7 at the intermission. The Govs' only touchdown came on a double-reverse pass early in the second quarter that made it 14-7.

"We had a very good first half," Samuel said. "We executed on offense and we tackled well."

Lathrop sparked Southeast's first-half onslaught. He rushed for 159 yards on 15 carries and scored two touchdowns.

Lathrop's final total of 179 yards came on 20 attempts. The 179 yards are the second-most by a quarterback in Southeast history, trailing only Matt Scheible's 209 last year.

Lathrop's other 100-yard rushing performance for Southeast came Oct. 13 when he had 145 yards against Tennessee State.

"It feels good, but it's all on my offensive line," Lathrop said. "They were opening huge holes for everyone."

Much of Lathrop's ground damage came not on the Redhawks' patented option but on scrambles when he eluded the pass rush and broke into the open field.

Lathrop's career-high 67-yard touchown run late in the second quarter, which put Southeast up 14-0, came on just such a play as he was flushed out of the pocket but found all kinds of running room.

"I was dropping back, they were playing a lot of man [coverage] and they gave me a lot of running lanes to take off," Lathrop said. "On that one [67-yarder], I saw all kinds of green space."

Lathrop also had a 1-yard touchdown run with just 15 seconds left in the first half to put Southeast up 31-7. He fumbled the snap but picked the ball up and spun into the end zone.

Terrell's damage came on 26 carries. He also scored two touchdowns, a 3-yarder on the game's opening drive and a 19-yarder midway through the third quarter that made it 38-7.

"The offense was rolling in the first half, and Scotty was having a heck of a game," Terrell said. "I think we got a little too comfortable. We went a few series without scoring and they started scoring. Props to them. They kept fighting."

Terrell had his fifth straight 100-yard rushing performance and sixth this year. The nation's 11th-leading rusher needs just 19 more yards to reach 1,000 yards for the season.

Southeast's other touchdown came by sophomore fullback Ron Coleman on a 2-yard run in the second quarter that made it 21-7.

The Redhawks also got two field goals from senior Drew Geldbach, a season-long 49-yarder in the second quarter that made it 24-7 and a 29-yarder in the opening minute of the final period that put Southeast up 41-14.

Austin Peay then staged its big rally before Southeast's defense made the final big play.

"I was trying to remember when we had this kind of lead at halftime," Samuel said. "But human nature. ... You let your guard down for a minute. ... Momentum was definitely in their favor."