It may be the last game of the season, but the message for the Lincoln football team remains the same as it was for the season opener.
"I want to see success, a win," Lincoln coach Steven Smith said.
The Blue Tigers wrap up the 2017 season today on the road against the Southwest Baptist Bearcats. Kickoff is at noon.
Southwest Baptist (4-5), which shared the Great Lakes Valley Conference championship last season with Truman State, enters today's game on a two-game losing skid. The Bearcats lost 28-12 last weekend in a nonconference rematch against the Bulldogs.
Lincoln (1-8), meanwhile, is looking to avoid its third straight winless season in conference play. The Blue Tigers are coming off a 13-3 loss last Saturday at home against William Jewell.
Smith continued to harp turnovers cost Lincoln against William Jewell. The Blue Tigers threw two interceptions: one in the end zone on what could have been a scoring drive, the other that led to a William Jewell touchdown two plays later."We can't turn the ball over," Smith said. "That hurt us, put us in a bad situation. It gave them an opportunity to capitalize on something that we did."
For the fourth time in nine games, Lincoln was held without a touchdown. The Blue Tigers rank 165th out of 168 NCAA Division II team with a scoring average of 12.0 points per game.
Smith said the offensive line play has to continue to improve after Lincoln managed just 132 total yards of offense in last week's loss, with Drake Davidson making his fifth straight start at quarterback.
"(Davidson) was taking his eyes off his receivers and started worrying about the rush up front," Smith said of last week's performance. "If you do that, you're not going to have a high completion percentage. When he pays attention to his receivers and trusts the guys up front, he does a great job."
Southwest Baptist's offense is led by junior quarterback TJ Edwards, who is second in the GLVC with 2,392 passing yards.
Edwards has been quite efficient, completing 62.4 percent of his passes (199-of-319) with 18 touchdowns and just five interceptions. He also leads the Bearcats with four rushing touchdowns.
"He's a big part of what they do offensively, whether he's running the ball or whether he's throwing the ball," Smith said of Edwards. "We have to make sure we put a plan in place to stop him."
The Blue Tigers saw a similar-style quarterback last weekend with William Jewell's Brad Strauss, who passed for 215 yards and rushed 14 times.
Smith said Edwards has had the ability to scramble quite a bit this season with his team-high 107 carries.
"I'm sure a couple of them are designed runs that they run with him on the quarterback draw, power read, stuff like that," he said.
Senior wide receiver Kendrick Payne has been Edwards' top target, catching 59 passes for 728 yards and eight touchdowns. Payne has four games with 100 or more yards receiving, hauling in 12 catches for 123 yards last weekend.
Southwest Baptist is averaging 28.3 points per game while allowing an average of 25.1 points.
Redshirt-junior linebacker Tyler Curts leads the Southwest Baptist defense with 94 tackles, which ranks third in the GLVC. He also has nine tackles for loss and three takeaways.
"They're fast up front defensively," Smith said. "They're sound. Both sides of the ball are very disciplined."
Sophomore defensive end De'shawn Tone leads the team with 14 tackles for loss, while senior defensive back Quinlan Gaines has 60 tackles.
Junior cornerback Cory Hanger (South Callaway High School) leads the Bearcats with three interceptions and two blocked kicks.
Smith said Southwest Baptist typically operates out of a four-man front.
"They're fast up front, their linebackers run to the ball," he said. "Their defensive backs cover well. They play very, very disciplined."
As Lincoln wraps up the season, Smith said there hasn't been an extra emphasis placed on the team to get a win and snap a seven-game losing streak.
The extra emphasis has been on limiting turnovers, which has been a common theme during the losing skid.
"We can't have drive-stoppers, whether it's turnovers or penalties, in crucial situations," Smith said. "We can't give up big plays.
"It's the same things, we have to be consistent in what we're saying so they can be consistent in what we want them to do."
III
Southwest Baptist holds the all-time lead in the series, winning eight of its nine matchups against Lincoln. The Bearcats won 50-12 last season in Jefferson City. The last time Lincoln won its regular-season finale was 2013, when the Blue Tigers topped Southwest Baptist 51-28. That was also the last time Lincoln defeated an in-state school.
Related media:
Lincoln Blue Tigers Football Podcast [Southwest Baptist preview, Nov. 11, 2017]