THE LATEST LINE: QB TRANSFER SUKRE TO ADD EXCITEMENT TO SE FOOTBALL

On paper, it's hard to gauge just where Southeast Missouri State University's football team stands entering a critical 1997 season that comes on the heels of last year's 3-8 record.

There is no guarantee, even with a hotshot quarterback transfer from the Division I-A ranks, that the Indians will be considerably better than they were a year ago.

Likewise, who's to say that the Indians wouldn't be a much better team next season even if they were to stand pat at the all-important quarterback position.

But there is no question that the fact former Southern Mississippi standout Heath Graham is coming to Cape Girardeau soon certainly heightens the interest and anticipation for 1997 SEMO football.

Since the NCAA rule was put into place a few years ago allowing immediate eligibility to players transferring to lower divisions, Division I-AA SEMO has been able to land a few players moving down from the I-A ranks.

Some of those players have been key contributors, most notably defensive back Frank Russell from a couple of years ago and current wide receiver Dante Bryant.

But never -- before Graham -- had the Indians been able to land a I-A transfer with any kind of statistics to speak of at his previous school.

Graham, however, breaks that mold. He fits right into the category of big-time I-A quarterbacks who transferred to Ohio Valley Conference schools in recent years, namely Murray State's Mike Cherry (previously of Arkansas) and Eastern Kentucky's John Sacca (Penn State) and Tommy Luginbill (Georgia Tech). All three turned in standout seasons in the OVC.

The strong-armed Graham ranks second on Southern Mississippi's career passing yardage list behind a pretty noted player -- Green Bay Packer standout Brett Favre. Graham threw for 4,052 yards as a Golden Eagle before being benched midway through his junior season. Thus, his decision to transfer.

How Graham -- who is finishing up the semester at Southern Mississippi and plans to move to Cape Girardeau in a few weeks -- will fare as an Indian remains to be seen, but you can be sure of one thing: he'll certainly receive the opportunity to shine.

Publicly, SEMO coach John Mumford is saying that nothing is guaranteed, that any new player coming in will have to beat out returning starter Justin Martini and touted redshirt freshman David Edgerton in order to win the quarterback job.

And that's what Mumford should say publicly, because he wants to keep the morale of his returning QBs -- particularly Martini -- high.

But privately, you can bet that Mumford has already penciled in Graham as the Indians' starting quarterback.

First of all, Graham -- who has just one season of eligibility left -- would surely never transfer to a school where he didn't know absolutely that he would be the man running the show.

And second, anybody who watched SEMO football last season knows just how much of a weak spot quarterback was.

That's not to single out the position, because the Indians struggled in many areas a year ago.

That's just stating a fact.

~Marty Mishow is a sports writer for the Southeast Missourian