SE Cruises to 62-14 Homecoming Win over OBU

DURANT, Okla. – Southeastern piled up 591 yards and scored the first 55 points of the contest on its way to a record-setting 62-14 homecoming victory over Oklahoma Baptist on Saturday afternoon at Paul Laird Field, setting a Division-II era record for points in a game for the Savage Storm.
 
The win lifts SE to 5-3 overall on the year heading into a road contest next weekend versus Arkansas-Monticello in Monticello, Ark.
 
"Marquis Gray," said head coach Tyler Fenwick, "All he does is catch touchdowns. We ran the ball well, we mixed it up. We gave them some different looks and kept them off balance. We played the wind when the wind was a factor. We ran the ball well. In the second quarter we were able to throw it and took advantage of it. I thought it was well executed. I thought our defense played really well."
 
It was just the second time since joining DII that Southeastern hit the 60-point mark, with he last coming in a 63-60, four-overtime loss to Harding in 2015.
 
Saturday's contest was the polar opposite of that one.
 
The Storm racked up 591 yards of total offense, collecting 362 yards through the air and adding a season-best 229 yards on the ground.
 
Meanwhile, the defense would hold the Bison off the board for three quarters, forcing a missed field goal on the opening drive, followed by seven-straight drives that ended in punts and one that ended in a turnover on downs.
 
Daulton Hatley put together a ridiculously efficient effort, hitting 17-of-21 passes, including his first eight in-a-row, and finishing with 332 yards and five touchdowns across from one pick.
 
Weston Conaway would handle a pair of drive in the fourth quarter and would finish the game 1-of-1 passing with a 30-yard touchdown strike as his only completion.
 
His top target was Marquis Gray who was once again electric as he racked up 125 yards on just three catches, with all three of them going for touchdowns, taking his season total for receiving yards to 1,000 even. His effort marks the first 1,000-yard receiving season since Anthony Foster in 2013, and just the fifth in school history.
 
His three receiving touchdowns brings his season total to 13 which also ties him with Romar Crenshaw's 2001 effort for the most receiving scores.
 
Braxton Kincade hauled in a team-leading six catches and finished with 87 yards and a touchdown.
 
Duce Pittman added two grabs for 28 yards and a score, while Gyasi Smith picked up n48 yards on two catches.
 
Kobie Jennings had one catch going for 30 yards and a score.
 
On the ground, Deundre Wheeler turned in his fourth 100-yard rushing effort of the season and finished with 106 yards on 18 carries with a pair of touchdowns.
 
Jason Ngwu added 59 yards on 13 totes with a score, while Ryan Hirt added 41 yards on five carries.
 
Cameron Tate led the defense with eight stops, while Micah Rogers was right behind with six.
 
Tate, Kaleb Tobias, and Tyveon Williams each had a pass breakup, while Jared Bell, Alex Reeder, and Braeden Winters each logged sacks.
 
For the second straight week SE was held scoreless on its opening drive, but this week would keep the game that way as OBU missed a 50-yard field goal try on its ensuing drive.
 
Southeastern would then respond with a 67-yard drive that covered eight plays and spanned 4:29 with Hatley hitting Gray for a 27-yard touchdown with 6:41 to go in the first quarter for a 7-0 lead.
 
The Storm would force a punt and Wheeler would put the team on his back and pick up 49 of the 83 yards SE covered on its next drive, including the last four into the endzone for the 14-0 lead with 13:36 to play in the first half.
 
The Storm would move in chunks on its next drive, with Hatley hitting Kincade for a 30-yard pickup across midfield, and one play later would find him again, this time for a 376-yard touchdown and a 21-0 lead with 8:11 to go in the second quarter.
 
After forcing a three-and-out, SE would take over on OBU's 49 yard line and need just one play as Hatley hit Gray for a 49 yard strike and a 28-0 lead.
 
After another three and out the Storm would again hit the ground running on offense, picking up 32 yards on a connection to Hunter Hawthorne before ending the drive three plays later on a 19-yard Hatley to Pittman TD toss to stretch the lead to 35-0.
 
Southeastern would take over one last time with 50 seconds to play in the half and needed just 33 of them as Hatley would again find Gray for a 49-yard touchdown strike to take a 42-0 halftime lead, and cap a 35-point second quarter scoring burst.
 
SE would force the Biso0n to a three-and-out to open the second half and then march 65 yards on 10 plays with Wheeler scoring from three yards out to make the advantage 49-0 at the 8:37 mark of the quarter.
 
Neither team would find paydirt the remainder of the third quarter, but the Storm would not have to wait long to add to their lead as Ngwu would score form a yard out on the second play of the fourth quarter to cap an eight-play, 66 yard drive and push the lead to 55-0.
 
OBU would answer with an 89-yard drive that covered 16 plays before EJ Moore scored from four yards out to put OBU on the board and the Bison would add to that on their next offensive drive as Seth Streeter found Chase Whitebear for an eight-yard touchdown, making the score 55-14.
 
Southeastern would mount one last drive with Hirt picking up 26 yards to push the ball into OBU territory and Conaway finding Jennings for a 30-yard touchdown toss to push the lead to 62-14 which would be the finals score. Trey Keatts would connect on the final PAT, his eighth of the day which ties the school record for PATs made in a single contest.