Southeast Missouri State University student publication

Freshman Dante Vandeven named starting quarterback

Monday, September 28, 2015
Dante Vandeven after a play versus Shorter University on Sept. 28.

Freshman Dante Vandeven made his first career start at quarterback for the Southeast Missouri State football team on Saturday against Shorter University at Houck Stadium.

Southeast lost the game 26-21 against the Division II opponent where Vandeven was only able to find the end zone on the ground on the team's first drive of the game.

Vandeven threw the ball 17 times out of Southeast's 55 offensive plays and made 13 connections out of his attempts for 107 yards, no passing touchdowns and one interception late in the second quarter.

Former starting quarterback, junior Tay Bender, came into the game in two of Southeast's series but had no passing attempts.

"If you've given the guy the keys to the car, you've got to let him go drive it," offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach Sherard Poteete said. "When we named Tay the starter, we didn't go pull him in game one, we didn't pull him in game two and things just sort of evolved in game three, so I think you've got to allow him to go out and play and let the game come to him."

Both Poteete and Southeast coach Tom Matukewicz decided it was time for Vandeven to start after his performance against Indiana State.

"Coach Tuke pulled him in and talked to him, and he's earned it," Poteete said. "You reward him for the way he performed and the way he led our team in the second half. And it just wasn't that he came in and performed, he performed at a high level in crucial situations."

Vandeven was put in the game during the third quarter on the team's second drive of the half against Indiana State to provide a spark that Poteete thought the offense was lacking.

On his first drive as a Redhawk, Vandeven completed his first two passes with the second going for a first down, but his third attempt wouldn't be as successful when he threw an interception to end the drive.

Indiana State scored a touchdown off of the turnover to end the third quarter that increased its lead to 21-7.

"At first it was a little nerve-racking, after that minute was over though I felt fine after the first play -- it went smooth sailing after then," Vandeven said. "It felt pretty comfortable."

The third drive in the second half for Southeast proved much better for Vandeven when he completed all five of his passes and rushed for 17 yards.

Vandeven threw the first touchdown of his career to Southeast's leading receiver, senior wide receiver Paul McRoberts, for a 26-yard play after Indiana State went up 29-22.

"It's nice being able to throw to an NFL prospect, it really is," Vandeven said. "It's nice knowing that I have him on the same sideline as me. So the connection we have is pretty good."

Southeast went for two after the hookup for six but failed to convert with Vandeven throwing an incomplete pass to end the game.

Poteete said Vandeven is still on a learning curve for certain game situations and that he has had to remind him that players in college are possibly much faster than players he faced in high school.

"'Hey, you're not in Jackson High School anymore and some of those safeties and linebackers move a little faster than some of the guys you played against in high school,'" Poteete said. "So he's just got to speed the game up a little bit, but he's done that already. ... A lot of freshmen don't start at the quarterback position and I think that over the last three weeks, now is the time that he's kind of picked things [up], he's gradually gotten better and I think he'll be fine."

Now that Vandeven is Southeast's starting quarterback, he said he's been working on being more of a leader since that is what is expected from the quarterback position.

Giving cadences on the field is part of Vandeven's job as quarterback, but he's also making sure every player on the offense is on the same page so a rhythm can be established.

"It's going to take a lot," Vandeven said. "I'm going to have to do more than the average freshman, the average junior, senior, sophomore -- whatever it is, I'm going to have to go beyond and learn a lot and get the playbook, getting in film. A lot of mental reps and just be a leader. Quarterback is the leading spot and has got to be the model, it's vocally and it's mentally. If people look at me and I'm doing something they should know that we're all right."

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