COMMERCE, Texas – The Southeastern Louisiana University football team dropped a 10-7 Southland Conference decision to East Texas A&M Saturday evening at Memorial Stadium.
In a defensive struggle, Southeastern (4-5, 2-4 SLC) outgained the host Lions (2-6, 3-3 SLC), 299-236, but could not overcome four turnovers in the loss.
The SLU defense finished with a season-high 10 tackles for loss, led by
Jake Dalmado's three tackles for loss. Dalmado also led the visiting Lions with 13 tackles, while
Khalid Moore and
Trace Carter chipped in with 10 stops apiece. Moore had two of Southeastern's four sacks, while Dalmado and
Kenneth Ford Jr. each were credited with one.
Dalmado, Carter, Ford and Dayshawn Magee were all credited with forced fumbles for SLU, while Magee and
Mike Mitchell each recovered fumbles.
Carter Hanberry also recorded his first interception of the season for Southeastern.
Dkhai Joseph was the most productive SLU player Saturday, finishing with 11 catches for 139 yards, while also returning his school-record third punt for a touchdown this fall.
Calvin Smith Jr. led Southeastern with 78 yards on five carries.
EJ Oakman led East Texas A&M with 22 carries for 98 yards, while Jamari Mosley was one of three ETAMU defenders with seven tackles and recorded an interception.
After a three-and-out to open the game by East Texas A&M, Joseph housed the ensuing punt, bringing it back 58 yards for a touchdown and a 7-0 SLU lead with 13:01 left in the first quarter.
The two teams traded punts on ensuing possessions, before Dalmado forced a Major McBride fumble that Mitchell pounced on at midfield. SLU moved into ETAMU territory on the ensuing drive, but were turned over on downs at the end of the first quarter.
On the first drive of the second quarter, Quay Middlebrooks capped a seven-play, 66-yard scoring drive for the host Lions with a 35-yard scoring run to tie the score at 7-7 with 13:26 left in the first half.
On the next drive, a 54-yard pass from
Kyle Lowe to Joseph set SLU up in the red zone, but the Lions fumbled on a misplayed exchange inside the 10-yard line to end its scoring threat and keeping the game tied at 7-7. The two teams traded empty possessions for the remainder of the half to send the game into the break deadlocked.
In a third quarter that saw both teams trade punts throughout, Southeastern mounted the biggest threat, driving all the way down to the East Texas A&M 11-yard line, before
Issac Mooring III was intercepted by Mosley to keep the score tied at 7-7.
Southeastern generated another turnover when Hanberry intercepted Mooney early in the fourth quarter. SLU moved into East Texas A&M territory, but
Drew Talley's 53-yard field goal fell short.
East Texas A&M moved into Southeastern territory on the next drive, but Ford Jr. forced a fumble that Magee recovered to give SLU the ball back at its own 39-yard line with seven minutes remaining.
SLU turned the ball back over to East Texas A&M at its own 44-yard line. The host Lions moved into Southeastern territory and Ozlo Rigby's 49-yard field goal gave East Texas A&M a 10-7 lead with 1:55 remaining.
Southeastern had one last chance, as Lowe connected on consecutive passes of 21 and 19 yards to set up Talley's 52-yard attempt that sailed wide left to allow East Texas A&M to earn the win.
Southeastern will be playing its next two games at home, starting with a 6 p.m. contest versus UIW next Saturday in Strawberry Stadium. The SLU-UIW contest is the Military Appreciation game and a White Out, as fans are encouraged to wear white to support the Lions.
The contest, which is sponsored by Champagne Beverage, will be televised on ESPN+ and can be heard on Kajun 107.1 FM, The Highway 104.7 FM and The Boss 97.7 FM/WFPR 1400 AM.
SLU – 7 0 0 0 – 7 (4-5, 2-4 SLC)
ET – 0 7 0 3 – 10 (3-6, 3-3 SLC)
1
st Quarter
SLU – Joseph 58 yard punt return (Talley kick), 13:01
2
nd Quarter
ET – Middlebrooks 35 run (Rigby kick), 13:26
3
rd Quarter
4
th Quarter
ET – Rigby 49 FG, 1:55
SLU ET
FIRST DOWNS 12 14
RUSHES-YARDS (NET) 27-111 40-147
PASSING YDS (NET) 188 89
Passes Comp-Att-Int 21-35-2 16-27-1
TOTAL OFFENSE PLAYS-YARDS 62-299 67-236
Fumble Returns-Yards 1-2 1-18
Kickoff Returns-Yards 2-34 1-13
Punt Returns-Yards 2-60 2-15
Interception Returns-Yards 1-3 2-23
Punts (Number-Avg) 6-43.3 9-34.7
Fumbles-Lost 4-2 4-2
Penalties-Yards 9-75 5-49
Possession Time. 29:05 30:55
Third-Down Conversions 2-for-14 6-for-18
Fourth-Down Conversions 2-for-3 0-for-0
Red Zone Scores-Chances 0-for-2 1-for-1
RUSHING: SLU – C. Smith Jr. 5-78, Elzy 7-23, Lowe 11-19, Jackson 2-2, Team 1-(-1), Joseph 1-(-10). Totals – 27-111. ET – Oakman 22-98, Middlebrooks 4-42, Simpson 1-13, McBride 3-9, Team 1-(-5), Mooney 9-(-10). Totals – 40-147.
PASSING: SLU – Lowe 18-29-1-173-0, Mooring III 3-5-1-15-0. Totals – 21-35-2-188-0. ET – Mooney 16-27-1-89-0. Totals – 16-27-1-89-0.
RECEIVING: SLU – Joseph 11-139, Goodly 3-19, Jackson 2-0, Elzy 1-9, Wilkinson 1-9, Smith Jr. 1-8, Dixon 1-2, B. Smith 1-2. Totals – 21-188. ET – Simpson 7-43, Taylor 3-8, Lewis 2-19, Oakman 2-18, Stewart 1-4, Middlebrooks 1-(-3). Totals – 16-89.
A – 1,731.
TICKETS
For ticket information, contact the Southeastern Athletics Ticket Office at (985) 549-5466 or visit
www.LionSports.net. Southeastern will continue offering mobile ticketing as the primary source for securing tickets. All tickets will be available via e-mail or text message in a PDF format for fans to download on their phone or print at home. Tickets can also be downloaded to Apple Wallet.
SOCIAL MEDIA
For more information on Southeastern Football, follow @LionUpFootball and @Coach_Scelfo on X, like /SLUathletics on Facebook and follow @lionupfootball on Instagram.
TOUCHDOWN CLUB/S CLUB
Fans interested in becoming active supporters of the football program are encouraged to join the Touchdown Club. Lion football alums are encouraged to join the exclusive S Club, which is restricted to Southeastern athletic letter winners.
All membership fees and donations to both the Touchdown Club and S Club (football) are available for the exclusive use of the Southeastern football program. Membership information is available by contacting the Lion Athletics Association at laa@southeastern.edu or (985) 549-5091 or visiting
www.LionUp.com.
CLEAR BAG POLICY
Southeastern Athletics observes a clear bag policy for all ticketed events. For more information on the clear bag policy, visit
www.LionSports.net/clear.
