Lindenwood’s Pops Battle breaks free for a 50-yard touchdown in the Lions’ loss to SEMO on Saturday. (Photo: Thomas Grove)
| NCAA Football | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | Final |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SEMO (3-3, 1-0) | 7 | 14 | 7 | 10 | 38 |
| Lindenwood (1-4, 1-1) | 7 | 7 | 7 | 6 | 27 |
ST. CHARLES, MO — The Lindenwood University football team scored three touchdowns on plays of 40 yards or more and put up 380 yards of total offense, but it wasn’t enough as the Lions fell, 38-27, in the annual “Game Ball Brawl” game against Southeast Missouri State.
The loss was the fourth straight for Lindenwood, which is now 1-4 on the season, while SEMO evened its record at 3-3.
Former Lindenwood player John Anthony, Jr., who transferred to SEMO this past spring, caught three touchdown passes, including the score that proved to be the game-winner to lead the Redhawks. Running back Khyair Spain had a game-high 85 rushing yards and scored a touchdown as well.
Lindenwood quarterback Robert “Pops” Battle threw for 182 yards and had a 50-yard touchdown run to lead the Lions.
SEMO took its first lead late in the first half on a 4-yard run by Spain that made the score 21-14. Lindenwood tied the game midway through the third quarter, when senior safety Brayon Crawford recovered a bad SEMO snap and returned it 86 yards for a Lions touchdown.
Anthony, who had touchdown scores of 19, 29, and 23 yards, caught the third one of SEMO’s next drive to give the Redhawks the lead for good.
Lindenwood’s offense struggled in the second half and couldn’t sustain any drives to generate points that could tie the game. SEMO got a touchdown and a field goal early in the fourth quarter to go up 38-21.
Running backs Steve Hall and Jared Rhodes had productive days for the Lions. Hall finished with 83 rushing yards and a touchdown, and Rhodes had 67 yards, which included a 43-yard score.
Unfortunately, SEMO’s offense was better, as the Redhawks totaled 423 total yards (215 rushing, 208 passing) and 32 first downs on their way to their first road win of the season.
Lindenwood will try to get back on the winning track next Saturday, when it travels to Charleston, Ill., for a matchup against Eastern Illinois (2-4). Kickoff at EIU’s O’Brien Field is set for 2 p.m., and the game will be streamed live on ESPN+.
SCORING SUMMARY
| Qtr | Time | Scoring Play | SEMO | LU |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | 04:15 | LU – TOUCHDOWN – Pops Battle 50 yd run (Will Graham kick), 13 plays, 93 yards, TOP 06:20 | 0 | 7 |
| 1st | 01:12 | SEMO – TOUCHDOWN – John Anthony 19 yd pass from Braylen Ragland (Justin Keller kick) 6 plays, 80 yards, TOP 02:57 | 7 | 7 |
| 2nd | 14:21 | LU – TOUCHDOWN – Jared Rhodes 43 yd run (Will Graham kick), 5 plays, 80 yards, TOP 01:48 | 7 | 14 |
| 2nd | 12:40 | SEMO – TOUCHDOWN – John Anthony 29 yd pass from Braylen Ragland (Justin Keller kick) 4 plays, 75 yards, TOP 01:41 | 14 | 14 |
| 2nd | 00:27 | SEMO – TOUCHDOWN – Khyair Spain 4 yd run (Justin Keller kick), 11 plays, 80 yards, TOP 02:39 | 21 | 14 |
| 3rd | 07:00 | LU – TOUCHDOWN – Brayon Crawford 86 yd fumble recovery (Will Graham kick) | 21 | 21 |
| 3rd | 02:24 | SEMO – TOUCHDOWN – John Anthony 23 yd pass from Braylen Ragland (Justin Keller kick) 10 plays, 75 yards, TOP 04:36 | 28 | 21 |
| 4th | 14:57 | SEMO – TOUCHDOWN – Braylen Ragland 1 yd run (Justin Keller kick), 3 plays, 20 yards, TOP 01:15 | 35 | 21 |
| 4th | 07:56 | SEMO – FIELD GOAL – Justin Keller 45 yd field goal, 7 plays, 33 yards, TOP 04:03 | 38 | 21 |
| 4th | 05:06 | LU – TOUCHDOWN – Steve Hall 5 yd run (2-pt conversion attempt failed), 8 plays, 75 yards, TOP 02:50 | 38 | 27 |
2026 LINDENWOOD LIONS FOOTBALL SCHEDULE
| Date | Time | At | Opponent | Location | TV | Results |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| August 27, 2026 (Thursday) | 6:00 p.m. | Home | Charleston Southern* | Hunter Stadium |  | W, 20-17 (1-0) |
| September 3, 2026 (Thursday) | 6:00 p.m. | Away | Stony Brook | Stony Brook, N.Y. |  | L, 36-32 (1-1) |
| September 12, 2026 (Saturday) | 6:00 p.m. | Away | Missouri State | Springfield, Mo. | | L, 48-14 (1-2) |
| September 26, 2026 (Saturday) | 12:00 p.m. | Away | Eastern Michigan | Ypsilanti, Mich. | | L, 29-3 (1-3) |
| October 10, 2026 (Saturday) | 1:00 p.m. | Home | Southeast Missouri State* | Hunter Stadium | | L, 38-27 (1-4) |
| October 17, 2026 (Saturday) | 2:00 p.m. | Away | Eastern Illinois* | Charleston, Ill. | | |
| October 24, 2026 (Saturday) | 2:00 p.m. | Home | Chicago State | Hunter Stadium | | |
| October 31, 2026 (Saturday) | 1:00 p.m. | Home | Tennessee State* | Hunter Stadium | | |
| November 7, 2026 (Saturday) | 1:30 p.m. (12:30 p.m. central) | Away | Gardner-Webb* | Boiling Springs, N.C. | | |
| November 14, 2026 (Saturday) | 2:00 p.m. | Away | Tennessee-Martin* | Martin, Tenn. | | |
| November 21, 2026 (Saturday) | 2:00 p.m. | Home | Western Illinois* | Hunter Stadium | |
* – denotes Ohio Valley Conference game