THIBODAUX  - The Nicholls State University football team will make the short trip to Hammond, La. on Thursday to take on the Southeastern Louisiana Lions in the River Bell Classic at Strawberry Stadium. Kickoff for the season finale is scheduled for 7 p.m.

For the second straight week, the game will be broadcast live on television. Cox Sports Network will air the annual River Bell Classic, with Lyn Rollins and Rene Nadeau making the call.

Nicholls (1-9, 0-6 SLC) heads into the contest after falling, 34-26, in its home finale against Lamar on Saturday. The Colonels tallied 492 yards of total offense, which was the highest since their 521-yard outing against Assumption College in 2006, but gave up two touchdowns on special teams and lost the turnover battle, 4-1.

Southeastern Louisiana (2-8, 0-6 SLC) will be trying to snap a three-game skid as Stephen F. Austin dropped the Lions, 28-20, last Saturday in Nacogdoches. The Lions will also being looking to capture the River Bell for the first time since 2007, with the Colonels claiming the last three, including a thrilling 27-25 victory to end the 2010 season. Thursday's game will be the 21st meeting between the programs, with Nicholls leading 12-8.

“We're excited about playing on Thursday night,” said Nicholls football head coach Charlie Stubbs. “With the quick turnaround, probably just like SLU, we're a little bumped and bruised. But again, we're excited, it's a rivalry game. Neither one of us was able to achieve what we wanted to this season, so it's one of those pride games, one to see which teams wants to end its season on a positive note.”

While Nicholls quarterback LaQuintin Caston has done most of his damage with his feet, including a career-high 177 yards rushing last Saturday, he also threw for a season-high 212 yards, moving the junior to 7th place on the Nicholls all-time passing list. For his career, he has 2,615 yards passing.

The Lions feature one of the FCS' top passing offenses, coming into the matchup ranked 11th with 294.3 yards per game. Unlike Lamar, who features one primary receiver, the Lions have three of the Top 10 pass-catchers in the Southland. Leading SLU in yards per game is Simmie Yarborough (71.1), followed by Brandon Collins (70.1) and Kory Theodore (68.1). The trio ranks third, fourth and sixth, respectively.

Kickoff for the game is scheduled for 7 p.m. Mike Wagenheim, Seth Thomas and Brandon Rizzuto will cover all the action live on The Colonel Radio Network on 100.3 FM KLRZ, 105.9 FM KBZE and 1600 AM KLEB.

Nicholls vs. Southeastern La. Notes
TV Coverage: Cox Sports Television
Broadcast Team: Lyn Rollins (play-by-play), Rene Nadeau (color) and Erin Cofiell (sideline)
Internet Broadcast: SLC NOW and ESPN3
Radio Coverage: 100.3 FM KLRZ (Larose, La.); 1600 AM KLEB (Golden Meadow, La.); 105.9 FM KBZE (Morgan City, La.)
Broadcast Team: Mike Wagenheim (play-by-play), Seth Thomas (color) and Brandon Rizzuto (sideline)
Colonels on the Internet: www.klrzfm.com; www.kbze.com
Live Stats: www.geauxcolonels.com