Redhawk report: Fall and Winter sports at Southeast Missouri State
CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo. — A Southeast Missouri State University report on Fall and Winter sports.
Reed, Jr. and Russell Earn OVC Honors
Southeast Missouri shooting guard Eric Reed, Jr. and freshman point guard Phillip Russell
earned Ohio Valley Conference weekly honors on Jan. 3. Reed, Jr. won the OVC Player of the
Week award for the first time in his career and Russell claimed his third Freshman of the Week
accolade this season. A native of Baton Rouge, Louisiana, opened OVC play with a pair of 20-
point performances. He led SEMO with 20 points at Murray State (Dec. 30) and followed that
up with a career-high 34 points two days later in the Redhawks New Year’s Day win over Austin
Peay (Jan. 1). For the week, Reed, Jr. averaged 27 points and five rebounds per game, while
shooting 56.7 percent (17-of-30) from the field, 75 percent (9-of-12) at the free throw line and
55 percent (11-of-20) from 3-point range. Russell, who hails from St. Louis, scored double
figures in two starts a week ago. He averaged 17.5 points, four assists and one steal per
contest. Russell also shot 92.8 percent (13-of-14) at the free throw line and 40 percent (6-of-15)
from downtown. He scored 20 points vs. Austin Peay (Jan. 1) for his fourth game with 20 or
more points this year. Additionally, Russell has scored double figures in seven-straight games
and 13 of 15 starts in 2021-22.
Former Redhawk Kristian Wilkerson Scores Two Touchdowns for New England Patriots
In his first career NFL start after being elevated from the practice squad, former Southeast
Missouri wide receiver Kristian Wilkerson had himself a big day in the New England Patriots 50-
10 rout of the Jacksonville Jaguars on Jan. 2. Wilkerson, who played at SEMO from 2015-19,
finished with four catches for 42 yards and a game-high two receiving touchdowns. He was one
of three Patriots who scored a pair of touchdowns joining Damien Harris and Rhamondre
Stevenson. Wilkerson scored his first career NFL touchdown on a 6-yard pass from Mac Jones
with 4:40 left in the second quarter. His other score came on a 20-yard pass, again from Jones,
at the 11:14 mark in the third quarter.
Norman Named HERO Sports Freshman All-American
Southeast Missouri freshman inside linebacker Bryce Norman was named to the 2021 HERO
Sports Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) Freshman All-America Team. A native of nearby
Jackson, Norman was SEMO’s leading tackler with 66 stops. He posted a team-high three forced
fumbles and ranked second among freshmen in the Ohio Valley Conference in tackles. Norman
added 7.5 tackles for loss and four quarterback hurries. He started the final seven games of the
season and was among finalists for the Stats Perform Jerry Rice Award.
Hess Claims All-America Honors
Running back Geno Hess landed a spot on both the Stats Perform and Associated Press All-
America teams. Hess earned second-team Associated Press accolades and third-team Stats
Perform honors. A native of Peoria, Illinois, secured second-team accolades. He was a First-
Team All-OVC pick who led the conference in rushing yards (1,116), rushing touchdowns (14)
and rushing yards per game (111.6). He ranked seventh in the FCS in each of those categories.
Hess ran for over 100 yards in seven of his 10 starts at tailback. He finished 24th in the overall
voting for this year’s Walter Payton Award.
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