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For the first time this season there are four Conference games on tap for the same weekend. League-leading Southeast Missouri hosts Gardner-Webb, Western Illinois travels to Charleston Southern in a matchup of 4-4 teams, Tennessee State is at Lindenwood and UT Martin hosts Eastern Illinois.
Saturday, October 31
*Western Illinois at Charleston Southern, 1:00 p.m. (ESPN+)
*Tennessee State at Lindenwood, 1:00 p.m. (ESPN+)
*Gardner-Webb at Southeast Missouri, 1:00 p.m. (ESPN+)
*Eastern Illinois at UT Martin, 2:00 p.m. (ESPN+)
Western Illinois Leathernecks (4-4, 2-1 OVC) at Charleston Southern Buccaneers (4-4, 1-2 OVC)
Saturday, October 31 • 1:00 p.m. CT
Buccaneer Field (4,000) • Charleston, S.C.
Video (ESPN+): https://bit.ly/4i6lhGH
Live Stats: https://bit.ly/4yj3OjM
Series Record: Series tied 1-1
Last Meeting: Charleston Southern won 29-24 (10/18/25)
Noteworthy: The third all-time matchup between Charleston Southern and Western Illinois takes place in Charleston on Saturday. The visiting team has won each of the first two matchups in the series … Western Illinois scored 55 points in a win over UT Martin. It marked the third time this season the Leathernecks have scored 50 or more points in a game; the team ranks 18th nationally in scoring offense (34.5 ppg) … QB Kennedy McGill was named the National Offensive Player of the Week after netting 349 yards of total offense and four touchdowns against UTM. He ranks seventh nationally in total offense (315.0 yards/game) … CSU picked up its first OVC victory of the season, limiting TSU to just seven points and 136 yards of offense. The Bucs forced three turnovers in the win and share the OVC lead with 14 takeaways this season … QB Jared Echols was efficient, completing 19-of-27 passes for 19 yards and a touchdown.
Tennessee State Tigers (2-6, 0-3 OVC) at Lindenwood Lions (3-4, 2-1 OVC)
Saturday, October 31 • 1:00 p.m. CT
Hunter Stadium (6,000) • St. Charles, Mo.
Video (ESPN+): https://bit.ly/4yELzox
Live Stats: https://bit.ly/3BtZfYV
Series Record: Tennessee State leads 2-1
Last Meeting: Lindenwood won 35-13 (11/1/25)
Noteworthy: Tennessee State will travel to Lindenwood for a Saturday matchup, the fourth all-time between the schools. The visiting team has won the last two in the series … TSU's offense struggled in a loss last week, tallying only 136 yards of total offense against Charleston Southern. The Tigers were unable to overcome three turnovers in falling to 0-3 in OVC play. The program has lost 11-straight OVC contests … Sammy Taylor had nine tackles and a forced fumble last week against CSU. He has 30 tackles in eighth total games this year … Lindenwood stepped out of Conference play last week, topping Chicago State 44-9 for its second-straight win. The 44 points were a season-high and most against a FCS opponent since October 26, 2024 (49 vs. WIU) … A win by Lindenwood this week would give the team its first three-game winning streak since 2022 (when they won four in a row).
Gardner-Webb Runnin' Bulldogs (2-6, 1-2 OVC) at Southeast Missouri State Redhawks (5-3, 3-0 OVC)
Saturday, October 31 • 1:00 p.m. CT
Houck Field (8,000) • Cape Girardeau, Mo.
Video (ESPN+): https://bit.ly/4zZqTsu
Live Stats: https://bit.ly/4zWhXE5
Series Record: Series tied 1-1
Last Meeting: Gardner-Webb won 27-24 (11/8/25)
Noteworthy: Coming off an open date, Gardner-Webb travels to Southeast Missouri for the third all-time meeting between the teams. The first two games in the series have been determined by a combined nine points … Having played back-to-back games without its starting quarterback Cole Pennington, GWU has struggled offensively, scoring seven points against EIU and six points against UTM prior to the bye week … Two weeks ago Joshua George had an 86-yard kickoff return for a touchdown against UT Martin … SEMO has found its rushing game in Conference play, netting 200-plus yards in each of its last three games (215, 238, 219). In last week's win at Eastern Illinois, Tyrell Reed Jr. ran for 109 yards on 18 carries (6.1 ypc), his second-straight 100-yard rushing output … The Redhawks are 3-0 to begin OVC play, the fourth time in five years (2022, 2023, 2024) they have achieved that feat. Twice (2022, 2024) the team would go on to win the OVC Championship.
Eastern Illinois Panthers (2-6, 1-2 OVC) at UT Martin Skyhawks (3-5, 2-1 OVC)
Saturday, October 31 • 2:00 p.m. CT
Hardy M. Graham Stadium (7,500) • Martin, Tenn.
Video (ESPN+): https://bit.ly/4zU7bhx
Live Stats: https://bit.ly/4ipsbWx
Series Record: UT Martin leads 16-15
Last Meeting: UT Martin won 27-20 in OT (11/1/25)
Noteworthy: The 32nd all-time meeting between Eastern Illinois and UT Martin takes place on Halloween. After winning the past seven matchups, UT Martin now leads the all-time series 16-15. Two of the last three games (both taking place in Charleston) have been decided in overtime … Eastern Illinois is 2-3 in road games this season. The Panthers last won in Martin during the 2015 season … EIU forced a turnover for the 11th-straight game last week when Jerry Addo-Boateng made his second interception of the season. The Panthers rank sixth nationally in turnover margin (+1.0/game) … UTM suffered its first OVC loss of the season last week, falling at Western Illinois. The Skyhawks gave up 55 points, the most against a FCS opponent since 2018 (56 vs. SEMO) … Redshirt freshman QB Tate Surber passed for a career-high 266 yards last week and has 1,183 passing yards on the season. He was named to the Jerry Rice Award Watch List last week.