Former Camdenton quarterback Paxton DeLaurent's persistence has led to his SEMO success.

Of the hundreds of emails Paxton DeLaurent sent to various Division I head coaches and offensive coordinators before his Southeast Missouri State arrival, the self-marketing quarterback generated all of five responses.

This was a familiar feeling.

The former Camdenton star had already felt disregarded at his original recruiting destination, Missouri State, prompting a move to little Central Methodist University in Fayette. After carving up NAIA defenses and leading the Eagles to their highest national ranking, a more developed DeLaurent began reaching out to potential suitors.

At 6-foot-5 and 220 pounds, DeLaurent certainly has the optics of a big-school QB, with accompanying arm talent and mobility − tools that were perhaps overlooked amid a transfer portal scramble that's added a layer of difficulty in the modern recruiting process.

"As an NAIA guy, you're basically in high school again because you can't be in the NCAA's transfer portal," said DeLaurent, who also contacted several major college programs that were loaded at his position. "You have to put yourself out there."

A Mississippi State assistant was among the few respondents. DeLaurent wasn't what the Bulldogs were looking for, the coach said, but saw enough to encourage his Division I pursuit.

DeLaurent had an ardent belief he belonged at a higher level, showcasing his ability in cut-up Central Methodist game film — much of it shot by his mother from the bleachers — that made its way to inboxes.

Southeast Missouri State, a respected member of the NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision's Ohio Valley Conference, also received a handwritten letter.

"I remember getting a typical 'Hey, check me out' type of recruiting email, and he (DeLaurent) looked intriguing, but it was very late in the recruiting process (for the 2022 signing class)," said SEMO offensive coordinator Jeromy McDowell "Then I got a phone call from our head coach (Tom Matukewicz) later that night when I got home, saying he got a letter (from DeLaurent) in the mail. He wanted to know I thought of him."

After combing more of DeLaurent's film and inviting him on a recruiting visit fewer than 48 hours after their initial interaction, DeLaurent signed a letter of intent with the Redhawks. Persistence paid off.

"We really liked him," McDowell said. "Good kid, good family. He was certainly someone we didn't expect to get."

DeLaurent would go on to dethrone SEMO's 2021 starter, CJ Ogbonna, in fall preseason camp and made his first appearance in the rowdy Big 12 Conference confines of Iowa State. A week later, he garnered OVC Player of the Week after throwing for more than 300 yards and four touchdowns in a thrilling win over border rival Southern Illinois.

SEMO went on to win its third OVC title in five seasons with an offense paced by DeLaurent, who totaled more than 3,000 yards and 32 touchdowns despite missing two games due to injury. The season ended in a chilly 34-24 FCS first-round playoff loss at tradition-rich Montana, a rare ESPN 2 appearance for the Redhawks.

When SEMO opens its 2023 season at defending Big 12 champion Kansas State, DeLaurent will be among the several key returners on a Redhawks team ranked as high as No. 9 in FCS national preseason polls.

DeLaurent said he feels fortunate to help shoulder the loftiest preseason expectations in SEMO's Division I era, excitement in Cape Girardeau bolstered by the upcoming debut of its revamped football stadium.

It's been a serendipitous journey for the fourth-year junior.

"It's just perfect timing, really," DeLaurent said. "This is an older team, with good players and coaches. It's a blessing to have all of these pieces."

Taking the long road

It wasn't long after DeLaurent was named Missouri's Class 4 Player of the Year following his senior season in 2019 that Bobby Petrino accepted the head coaching job at Missouri State.

DeLaurent, who threw for 4,034 yards, 54 touchdowns and 11 interceptions in his final year at Camdenton, was intrigued by MSU's hiring of a former Arkansas, Louisville and Atlanta Falcons head coach with offensive acumen. Being close to home was also appealing.

Weeks after his January 2020 hiring, DeLaurent was among Petrino's initial crop of local commitments.

In summer workouts and meetings entering his freshman college season — a season that would get pushed to a truncated spring campaign due to the COVID-19 pandemic — DeLaurent said he never really felt part of the team.

"I think (Petrino) wanted to recruit me, a local guy, for a feel-good story." DeLaurent said. "But when I got there it felt different. I wasn't allowed in our Zoom meetings, and workouts I was snapping the ball to the other quarterbacks."

Feeling uncertain about his collegiate football's future, DeLaurent met with Petrino to discuss the best course of action. He said Petrino, who has since left MSU to be the offensive coordinator at Texas A&M, suggested the freshman take his talent elsewhere.

He heeded Petrino's advice and chose a program where he could make an swifter impact.

Before the start of fall camp, DeLaurent found himself enrolled at Central Methodist, a school with a student body (1,150) similar to Camdenton High School's with a football team that hadn't won a conference title since 1975.

After earning multiple starts as a true freshman in 2020, he flourished in the fall of 2021, passing for 2,499 yards and 25 touchdowns. He also rushed for 553 yards and seven touchdowns, helping CMU ends its conference championship drought and finish with a No. 14 national ranking in the NAIA polls — the highest in program history.

After falling to state juggernaut Webb City in back-to-back quarterfinals in high school, helping CMU end its decades-long drought was his state championship of sorts. Doing it 94 miles from his hometown made it even more special.

"CMU taught me so much about myself outside of football, and it taught me a lot about humility," DeLaurent said. "It connected me with people from all walks of life and different cultures."

DeLaurent still felt the itch to challenge himself at a higher level, a move he said his CMU coaches and teammates fully supported.

"They've been highly supportive. They still check in with me," he said.

And DeLaurent still checks in with figures from his football past.

Last season, his former high school coach, Jeff Shore, said he often doled out advice to last season's Camdenton standout QB coach's kid, Bear Shore.

"Bear and Paxton communicate all the time. He looks up to him, and they were texting before the game," Jeff Shore said after Camdenton's 24-21 win over Kickapoo last season.

Smooth transition

When SEMO brought in DeLaurent, it appeared Ogbonna would start again with the hope of the ex-NAIA arm pushing for the first-string job as he transitioned to the speed of Division I football.

It was much swifter than coaches anticipated.

"You could quickly tell he was ready," McDowell said. "His processor was at a different level; it's not normal. He could pick things up quickly. "

The biggest differences?

"The skills positions at NAIA and (FCS) are similar," DeLaurent said. "But the schemes, the defenses, and offensive and defensive lines are the biggest differences."

Thirty-two players from Missouri are currently on SEMO's 2023 roster, including freshman receiver Jackson Bray (Nixa) and junior linebacker and Neosho product Sam Cook, a transfer from Western Illinois. Ex-Missouri State receiver and co-team captain Damoriea Vick also returns.

"I got great pride in the Show Me State," DeLaurent said. "It's really great that there's talent in this state, great players."

Ryan Collingwood is a reporter for the Springfield News-Leader and a former sportswriter in the Pacific Northwest. He can be reached at rcollingwood@gannett.com or by phone at 417-258-8174.

This article originally appeared on Springfield News-Leader: Paxton DeLaurent's drive leads to Southeast Missouri State success