Southeast Missouri State Holds Off Central Arkansas 27-9
Southeast Missouri State scored a touchdown before it ran a single offensive play, and Central Arkansas never scored one at all.
Khylen Harris-Norman returned the opening kickoff 99 yards for a touchdown (the clock read 14:47 in the first quarter), 7-0. Central Arkansas kicker Caleb Jones answered with field goals of 37 and 46 yards, and the Redhawks led 7-6 at the break. Justin Keller kicked a 31-yarder in the third to make it 10-6 going to the fourth, which was as close as this game got to a coin flip.
The fourth quarter was all Southeast Missouri State, 17 points to 3. Payton Brown ran in from 5 yards out at 14:55 for 17-6. Jones hit a 37-yard field goal to make it 17-9, Keller answered with a 42-yarder, and Brown scored again from 8 yards with 4:10 left for the 27-9 final.
Central Arkansas had three field goals and two interceptions from Donovyn Omolo, who threw for 98 yards on 12 of 27. Southeast Missouri State had 293 total yards to 266, no turnovers and three sacks. The yardage tells you it was closer than the score, and the turnovers tell you why it was not.
Central Arkansas had a 99-yard kickoff return go the other way and never really recovered from it. Flip that one return and this is a 20-9 game, a long way from a blowout, but the Bears could not find the end zone to pull it back.
Southeast Missouri State is 2-1, Central Arkansas 1-2. Brown, with two touchdowns, was the top fantasy scorer, and not a single quarterback touchdown pass was thrown all day.