Box Score CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo. – The EKU football team trailed 13-0 at halftime, but scored 22 points in the third quarter and hung on to defeat No. 15 Southeast Missouri, 28-23 on Saturday afternoon. The win gave EKU (5-3, 1-1 ASUN) its third consecutive season with a victory over a ranked opponent and its highest-ranked win since beating No. 11 Central Arkansas, 31-28 in 2020. 

The Colonel defense kept the game close in the first half, holding SEMO (6-2, 2-0 OVC) to a pair of red-zone field goals and turning the Redhawks away on a fourth-down attempt inside the EKU 10-yard line. EKU cut into the deficit on its first drive of the second half. The Colonels marched 65 yards in eight plays as Parker McKinney lobbed a 13-yard touchdown pass to Jayden Higgins to make the score 13-7 with 10:38 left in the third quarter. 

EKU's defense came up with a huge momentum swing on Southeast Missouri's ensuing possession as TK McLendon Jr. stripped the Redhawk quarterback and fell on the loose ball at the SEMO 34-yard line. Three plays later, McKinney scrambled up the middle for an eight-yard touchdown to give EKU its first lead of the day, 14-13, at the 8:35 mark of the third quarter. SEMO regained the lead with a field goal on its next drive, but the Colonels responded as McKinney scored on a three-yard run on the final play of the third quarter to put EKU up 22-16. 

Matthew Ballentine nabbed his second interception of the season on the Redhawks' first drive of the fourth quarter and the Colonels converted the turnover into a 26-yard field goal from Patrick Nations with 8:04 to play. SEMO pulled within two with a touchdown run at the 5:17 mark, but the Colonels drove back into field-goal range and Nations hit from 21 yards to give EKU a 28-23 lead with 1:23 to play. 

Southeast Missouri drove to the EKU 29-yard line, but the Redhawks' pass to the end zone was intercepted by Deonta Bembry with 23 seconds to go, giving EKU its 26 win in 31 meetings against SEMO. 

McKinney went 35-of-42 through the air for a career-high 398 yards and one touchdown, while rushing for two scores. Higgins caught a game-high eight passes for 76 yards and Braedon Sloan finished with six catches for a career-high 97 yards. Jaylen Herrud finished with seven tackles and 1.5 tackles for loss, while Elijah Ford and Jett Hendrix each chipped in seven stops. 

EKU returns home on Saturday, Nov. 5, to host Central Arkansas at CG Bank Field at Roy Kidd Stadium. Kickoff is slated for 5:00 p.m.