https://semo.edu/
Southeast Missouri State University, usually shortened to either Southeast Missouri or the abbreviation "SEMO" is the next on our list. Like many public schools of our (WIU, EIU, SEMO, etc.) approximate size, they started out as a Normal School/Teacher's College. Founded in 1873 as the Southeast Missouri State Normal School, SEMO is located in Cape Girardeau, Missouri. Like Western, SEMO has two campuses...the main campus and their "River Campus" on the banks of the Mississippi River, although in their case, the two campuses are only about 1 mile apart.
SEMO currently has just slightly under 10k students, and the "metro area" that Cape Girardeau is in has about 97.5k population. To drive there from WIU takes just over 4 1/2 hours and covers 279 miles.
The school progressed through what seems to be the standard name changes for former "normal schools", from Southeast Missouri State Normal School (1873-1881) to Missouri State Normal School - Third District (1881-1919), Southeast Missouri State Teachers College (1919-1946), Southeast Missouri State College (1946-1973), and finally Southeast Missouri State University (1973-present). Cape Girardeau and the campus that would become SEMO are mentioned in the memoir "Live on the Mississippi" by Mark Twain...
Again, like Western, SEMO experienced a great deal of growth from the 1950's through the '70s, going from 10 buildings on campus in 1956 to 22 in 1975. The aquisition and redevelopment of the River Center building/campus, which houses their School of Visual and Performing Arts has started to shift the university's focus more towards art, music, theater, and dance.Cape Girardeau is situated on a hillside, and makes a handsome appearance.
...
There was another college higher up on an airy summit--a bright new edifice, picturesquely and peculiarly towered and pinnacled--a sort of gigantic casters, with the cruets all complete...
Famous non-athlete alumni include James T Conway (34th Commandant of the USMC), NASA astronaut Linda Godwin, Cedric Kyles (Cedric the Entertainer), and Neal Boyd (opera singer and 2008 winner of America's Got Talent).
Athletics
The Southeast Missouri State Redhawks were a charter member of the DII MIAA from 1912 until they moved to DI and joined the OVC in 1991. They were previously known as "Indians" (men's teams) and "Otahkians" (women's teams) until 2005, when they retired the native american-derived names for the new "Redhawks" nickname. They have won 1 NCAA national championship; men's cross country at the DII level in 1984.
The sports that they currently sponsor are:
Men - Baseball, Basketball, Cross Country, Football, Track
Women - Basketball, Cross Country, Gymnastics, Soccer, Softball, Tennis, Track, Volleyball
Football
SEMO has a non-conference rivalry with MVFC member Southern Illinois (War for the Wheel), which has been played 89 times starting in 1909, with SEMO holding a 39-42-8 record. Our Leathernecks have only played SEMO once before, a 46-0 steamrolling by SEMO in 1944.
SEMO has been fairly successful on the football field the last few years, going 5-0 in the OVC and 9-3 overall last year, but losing in the first round of the playoffs to Montana. 2021 was rough (4-7), and in the crazy 2020 season they went 4-4, but in both 2018 and 2019, they went 9-4 overall. Both seasons they made the playoffs, going 1-1 in 2018, and 0-1 in 2019.
Their current HC Tom Matukewicz is heading into his 10th season at SEMO and has a 50-52 overall record. Prior to that, he spent time at Southern Illinois, Northern Illinois, and Toledo coaching mostly Linebackers or as a DC. He was interim HC at Northern Illinois for their Humanitarian Bowl game against Fresno State in 2010 after HC Jerry Kill had left for Minnesota.
The Redhawks play at Houck Field, which was built in 1930. I'm not sure what the official capacity will be by the time we play there. It was listed at 10k seats, but the main stands on the south side had to be demolished due to structural problems (similar to ours, but worse). They are in the process of building new stands there, which is scheduled to be completed by this fall's football season: https://www.kfvs12.com/2022/09/06/south ... d-project/
Notable football alumni include: LB Zach Smith (2018 Buck Buchanan Award Winner), OT Dan Connolly (10 seasons with the Jaguars and Patriots, including winning Super Bowl SLIX), CB Michael Ford (6 seasons so far with Lions, Broncos, Falcons, and currently the Browns), Guard Drew Forbes (3 seasons with the Lions and currently the Browns), C/G Eugene Amano (9 years with the Titans, 124 games played), Ken Iman (14 years with the Packers and Rams in the 60s and 70s), WR Kristian Wilkerson (4 years with Patriots, Colts, and currently the Raiders), and CB Dimitri Patterson (7 years with the Chiefs, Eagles, Browns, and Dolphins).
Basketball
In 2023, the men's team went 19-17 overall, 10-8 in the OVC, but won the OVC tournament. They lost to Texas A&M-CC in the "First Four" round. They also made the NCAA tournament in 2000, when they lost in the first round to LSU. The Leathernecks men's team has played SEMO five times, with SEMO holding a 4-1 series record. The last matchup was a H&H series in 2016 and 2018 where the away team won each game (SEMO in 16, WIU in 18). Current HC is Brad Korn who will be in 4th season as HC and has a 44-51 overall record. He's originally from the Plano, IL area and played at Southern Illinois from 99-04.
The women went 16-15 and 10-8 in the OVC. SEMO and WIU have matched up 14 times with the series at a 7-7 tie. The last matchups were a H&H series in 2019 and 2020, which were each won by the home team (WIU in 19, SEMO in 20). We actually played SEMO in women's basketball every year from 2012 to 2020. Their HC is Rekha Patterson, who is heading into her 9th season as the HC. The Redhawks have made the DI NCAA tournament once, in 2007 when they lost in the first round to Oklahoma. In their DII days, they had quite a bit of success through much of the 80s and into the early '90s, making the DII tournament in '83, '84, and every year from '86-'91, including making it to the championship game in '91, losing to eventual Summit League team North Dakota State.
Basketball is played at the 7,000 seat "Show Me Center": https://semoredhawks.com/facilities/show-me-center/10
Other Sports
Last season, here's how the various teams finished:
Women's Soccer - 8-6-3 overall, 4-2-2 in the OVC
Volleyball - 17-16 overall, 10-8 in the OVC
Women's Tennis - 16-3 overall, 5-0 in the OVC
Baseball - 26-26 overall, 14-7 in the OVC
Softball - 29-14 overall, 20-2 in the OVC
Scott Lawson - Board Admin