SEMO, SIU to square off in War for the Wheel in battle of top 15 teams

CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo. (KBSI) – Southeast Missouri State and Southern Illinois University will play for the War for the Wheel trophy at Houck Field Saturday Sept. 16 at 6pm.

SEMO quarterback Paxton DeLaurent said we can expect a similar tough, physical battle to last year’s War for the Wheel, which was DeLaurent’s first. 

“It was fast, intense, and loud. That’s how I’d describe it,” he said. “It was all those things, and we got after it, and each play, you had to be ready to get you some.” 

 This’s year’s edition of the SEMO-SIU rivalry may be the most hyped one yet, as both teams find themselves ranked in the top 15 in FCS. 

But both DeLaurent and SEMO head coach Tom Matukewicz said getting lost in that hype can be a detriment. 

“Everyone’s locked in, high energy, but everyone’s focused, as well, there’s not a lot of side conversations, which is always great to see,” DeLaurent said.

“Talking and doing kind of compete for the same energy, so let’s make sure there’s a lot of doing instead of a lot of talking,” he said.

But Matukewicz said as intense as this rivalry can be, he wants to take time to really enjoy it.

“I want to make sure I am having fun and enjoying it,” he said. “Sometimes as competitors, we get so tight, and we want to be so successful that it robs us of our joy.” 

And for SIU, head coach Nick Hill said embracing every chance you get to step on that field is a necessary mindset. 

“You just don’t get that many opportunities in life to do what we do, and so I think that love for the game just has to come out no matter who we’re playing,” he said.

Hill was a quarterback for SIU when Matukewicz was an assistant coach there, so the two know each other well, and Matukewicz admitted a bit of jealousy of Hill more than just on the football field. 

“I think he’s a better dad, I think he’s a better husband, and if I’m being honest with myself, I think he can out-fish me, and that really bothers me.”