Sunday season's-end news

Hard to believe it's already here, but here's the last round of regular-season post-game news:

Austin Peay State gave Western Kentucky more game than most had imagined possible, according to the (Clarksville, Tenn.) Leaf Chronicle, trailing by just 3 at halftime. But the Govs' typical second-half slowdown cost them, with the Hilltoppers taking the 27-14 victory. APSU finishes 3-8, and will rejoin the OVC next year.

Eastern Kentucky piled up 391 yards of total offense, holding Tennessee State to 95 yards rushing, to secure the Colonels' 29th consecutive winning season. The Richmond (Ky.) Register reports the EKU locker room was hip-deep in emotion after the game. Senior defensive tackle Mark Cristiani tells the paper: “I just thank all the coaches that brought me here. If I have a son, he is going to be an Eastern Kentucky Colonel. I promise you that. I’ll be a Colonel for the rest of my life.”

The Anniston (Ala.) Star (sorry, subscribers only) says Jacksonville State came out flat in the second half, and let their 21-7 lead over Eastern Illnois slip away. The team's seniors, while losing this one, finish as the winningest class in JSU's Division I history. Eastern Illinois defensive end Donovan Johnson, meanwhile, says he'd rather be playing football next Saturday than nibbling on leftover turkey back in Anniston. He'll find out if that's the case today when the playoff field is announced.

The Southeast Missourian expresses a bit of the amazement I imagine SEMO feels, after Tennessee Tech came back from a 29-6 deficit to win the game 39-29. Tech quarterback Lee Sweeney was 32-of-57 for 437 yards. That was most of the Eagles' 562 yards of offense in the game. "Not even Arkansas gained more yards against the Redhawks," the paper notes.

Antonio Heffner and Mike Mason were back for Tennessee State, but apparently forgot to bring their skills with them. The (Nashville) Tennessean says TSU's offense was non-existant in the 20-3 loss to EKU. Putting a positive spin on the loss, the paper notes that it made the conference title picture much clearer than a Tigers' victory would have.

UT-Martin made history yesterday, according to the Jackson (Tenn.) Sun, winning the school's first conference championship. Ever. In doing so, they beat the team coached by the man who showed them the way, besting Matt Griffin's Murray State Racers 42-14. There's more uncharted territory ahead, as the Skyhawks get the leauge's automatic bid to the Division I Championship Playoffs. Stay tuned to find out where the next chapter will be written.

The (Cookeville, Tenn.) Herald-Citizen says Tennessee Tech's players and staff feel as good after winning the SEMO game as they might have if they'd won a conference title (here's a link to the HC sports section). While there might be a bit of uncertainty surrounding the program, with acting coach Doug Malone unsure of his status, QB Sweeney isn't letting that cloud his vision of the future. He tells the paper: "You never know what's going to happen. If it is the coaches' last game, they are going to go out with a win. If not, it's something to build on. We are going to come back next year and work even harder and win an OVC championship."

And there you have it, your first official prediction for the 2007 OVC championship. For now, It's Eastern Illinois' - and especially UT-Martin's - turn to celebrate.

Check back later today, as we blog about the OVC's hopes in the Division I Championship Playoffs, following the announcement of the brackets at 12:30 on ESPNews.