Redhawks gear up for rivalry showdown against Salukis after bye week

After a much-needed bye week, the Southeast Missouri State Redhawks are rested and ready to travel to Carbondale, Ill., and take on the rival Salukis of Southern Illinois on Saturday, Sept. 21.

SEMO head coach Tom Matukewicz is bringing the entire team on the bus so that even the redshirt freshmen can experience the rivalry atmosphere.

He's encouraging the SEMO supporters to also make the trip to SIU.

"I know they're going to have a big crowd and it matters to see a little bit of red in there," Matukewicz said.

Both the No. 21 Redhawks and No. 7 Salukies are ranked in the FCS Poll entering this contest.

"I think this is one of the best teams Nick Hill's had since he's been there," Matukewicz said.

SIU will be without their starting quarterback DJ Williams for the foreseeable future after having surgery on his injured hand. Williams, who previously spent four years at Murray and was a former teammate of SEMO defensive back Justus Johnson, threw for 555 yards and four touchdowns in three games.

He will be replaced by junior Hunter Simmons, who has thrown a career total of 46 passes through three seasons. After winning the first game of the season with a backup quarterback, Matukewicz knows better than to take Simmons lightly.

"It's a pretty similar thing," Matukewicz said. "Nick Hill has a philosophy on an offense, and whoever the quarterback is, is going to run that philosophy very similarly. Both are mobile, dual-threat quarterbacks."

After a 2-1 early start to the season, the Redhawks were fortunate to have a bye week before the all-important rivalry game.

"I think we just spent a lot of our emotional collateral," Matukewicz said. "Just three great games and we were pretty depleted so I'm glad we got the bye week, both emotionally and physically."

During that bye week, Matukewicz tried to solve the riddle that had been the ground game. After a strong showing in Week 0 against North Alabama, SEMO has rushed for a total of 222 yards over three games, while the opponents have gained a combined 603 on the ground.

"I talked about the three biggest threats to our mission," Matukewicz said. "Stopping the run and running the ball would be the number one because really defensively, we haven't stopped the run that great either. So we've really emphasized it."

Much of the running game turning around stems from the strength of the protection.

"Ultimately, if there's a guy unblocked right there, it doesn't matter how good you are," Matukewicz said. "You got to get in that second and third level. Then that's when the good players go to work."

What the Redhawks lacked in ground game, they made up in the air. Led by senior quarterback Paxton DeLaurent, SEMO threw for 867 yards (289 per game) and eight touchdowns, which is virtually double that of their opponents.

"I think we have the talent to really throw the football," Matukewicz said. "We got to continue to make great decisions, don't do turnovers and stuff like that. We have to continue to protect upfront because that's how you score points. You run to win, but you throw it to score."

Dorian Anderson (313) leads the Big South-OVC in receiving yards and Cam Pedro (238) is at No. 3. But with one game, tight end-turned-receiver Mitchell Sellers added an extra dimension to the passing game with three touchdown catches against UT Martin.

"Normally that's not the case," Matukewicz said. "He's had some injuries, and we're just trying to align his best skill sets to what he does well, and he's really quick, and he's great with contested catches. So a lot of times that's third down, that's red zone, those are those types of plays you saw what he was able to do last Saturday."

That comeback against UT Martin may not have happened a year ago. DeLaurent made great strides to improve mentally while recovering physically over the offseason, and it paid off in a game where he threw a career-high 63 pass attempts and six touchdowns. It was a performance that made him one of the 10 Walter Payton Award candidates to watch according to NCAA.com.

"The fourth quarter of that UT Martin game, I think emotionally, I was a great leader," DeLaurent said. "I was staying positive, keeping guys up, and I think that just leads to everything I worked in the offseason with just helping my mental health, helping my spiritual relationship with God. I was praying in the fourth quarter. I prayed before the game, to just be a good leader. So I think those things are coming to fruition."