Freshman Drew Lock will back up Maty Mauk this Saturday (photo/Mizzou Athletics)
The back-to-back SEC Eastern Division Champions start their quest for a third straight title as the 23rd ranked Mizzou Tigers will kick off its season against in-state rival SEMO at 3 p.m.
Quick Notes:
-Mizzou is one of eight SEC schools to return its top QB and top RB from a season ago and the duo of Maty Mauk and Russell
Hansbrough are the most productive of the eight duos. The two combined for 4,105 total yards and 37 TDs in 2015.
-The linebacking duo of All-SEC Second Teamer Kentrell Brothers and Michael Scherer is the nation’s third-best returning tackling duo and the top tandem in the SEC. The two combined for 236 tackles in 2014.
-Senior K Andrew Baggett enters 2015 just 71 points shy of breaking the school record for points in a career by a Tiger.
-Mizzou’s Evan Boehm and Kentrell Brothers were each tabbed as third team All-SEC honorees in the preseason by the media. The SEC coaches tabbed Mizzou’s Brothers and Mauk second team All-SEC while Boehm and Hansbrough were third team.
-Southeast is 9-15 all-time in season-openers since joining the NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision in 1991. The Redhawks blanked Missouri Baptist, 77-0, in their season-opener a year ago. Southeast has not posted back-to-back season-opening victories since 2008 (vs. Southwest Baptist, 35-28 in OT) and 2009 (vs. Quincy, 72-3). The Redhawks last win in a season-opener on the road came at Austin Peay (38-13) on Sept. 2, 2006.
-One of the big storylines during Southeast’s preseason camp was the quarterback race. Three dual threat quarterbacks, including Tay Bender, Dante Vandeven and Alex Niznak, hooked up in that heated position battle this year. None have been Southeast’s starting QB before and all can pick apart defenses with their ability to run and pass the football. Bender was officially named the Redhawks starter after the team’s practice on Aug. 27. A native of Lincoln, Nebraska, Bender transferred to Southeast from Iowa Western Community College. He finished spring drills at the top of the Redhawks depth chart and did not fall out of that spot throughout preseason camp.
While Maty Mauk leads the Tigers, attention will be paid to freshman back Drew Lock from Lee’s Summit. For more on that, check out our pregame video.
