Luckily for the Eastern football team, wins and losses are not a beauty contest.

Because if they were, Saturday’s 23-14 victory over Southeast Missouri would be anything but a win.

It seemed, as if anytime the Panthers moved into Redhawks territory, disaster would soon follow.

Time and time again the ball would be coughed up, four in all, of which three came in the red zone, and of which two came at the one-yard line.

You’re not supposed to win football games where you score on only 25 percent of your red zone opportunities.

Not when your star running back has five rushing yards in the first half.

Conversely, when you reel off 523 yards of total offense and convert 10-of-13 on third-down conversions, you should win going away.

You shouldn’t need a second half comeback to put an opponent away.

But as the old adage goes: That’s why you play the game.

It was not your typical football game Saturday night in Cape Girardeau, Mo.

Nor were the post game comments anything one would expect.

Last week, the Eastern coaching staff voiced displeasure with certain aspects of the team’s performance.

That came after a 31-0 thrashing of Indiana State in Terre Haute, Ind.

This week, after the mistakes, turnovers, and finally survival against the Redhawks, the mood was quite a bit different.

“I think the guys really stepped up,” said Eastern defensive coordinator Roc Bellantoni, whose unit allowed just 103 yards and held the Redhawks scoreless in the second half.

“We won a game we probably shouldn’t have won today. I’m really proud of the way they dug their cleats in the ground and kept some points off the board on a couple of those drives.”

As ugly as the game was, it could be a turning point for the season.

If the Panthers go on to produce great things, a playoff appearance, an Ohio Valley Conference title, or something even bigger, they will be able to look back at this victory as a stepping-stone.

A win that put the team’s collective head on straight, helped right the ship, and any other motivational cliché you can think of.

Sure, it was a win over a team predicted to finish at the bottom of the Ohio Valley Conference, but any road victory in conference play is noteworthy, and if they can ride this momentum into Clarksville, Tenn. next week and be 2-0 in the conference coming home, it will go a long way toward achieving conference glory.

Just don’t expect anything to happen the way you expect it.

Collin Whitchurch can be reached at 581-7944 or cfwhitchurch@eiu.edu