THIBODAUX - The Nicholls State University football team will head to Kalamazoo for the second consecutive season to take on Western Michigan University on Saturday, Sept. 10 at Waldo Stadium. Kickoff is scheduled for 6 p.m. CST.

The Colonels (1-0) opened their 40th season with a 42-0 victory over Evangel University, and will be looking to use that momentum to capture their third win in program history against a Football Bowl Series (FBS) opponent. However, Western Michigan (0-1) will be aiming to bounce back from their weather-shortened 34-10 defeat against the University of Michigan on Saturday.

Western Michigan, of the Mid-American Conference, and Nicholls squared off for the first time last season with WMU rolling to a 49-14 victory. The Colonels went into the half down 21-14 before the Broncos broke open the game with 28 unanswered points.

In the 2011 season-opening win over Evangel, the Colonel offense racked up 326 yards rushing, which currently ranks fifth in the Football Championship Series (FCS). Junior quarterback LaQuintin Caston paced the offense, rushing for 137 yards on 16 carries with two scores. The Baton Rouge native has accumulated 410 rushing yards and eight touchdowns in the Colonels' last three contests.

As impressive as the running game was for Nicholls, the defense was just as dominating as the Colonels held the Crusaders to seven first downs and 147 yards total offense to earn their first shutout since 2006. The defense had a collective team effort, led by junior linebacker Brandon Sanders with seven tackles, followed by senior Pa'a Kamauoha with six. Nicholls also took advantage of two forced fumbles in the opening quarter which led to 14 points.

Turnovers also played a role in Western Michigan's season opener as Michigan forced three miscues that included two returned for touchdowns. With the game knotted at seven-all in the second, WMU put together a long drive into UM territory; however, Michigan returned its first of two turnovers for touchdowns to stall the drive. The Wolverines held WMU to only a field goal the rest of the way as they went on to win, 34-10, before the game was called in the third quarter due to lightning.

Wide receiver Jordan White led the team on offense with 12 receptions – nine in the first half – and 119 yards. Safety Doug Wiggins was the leading tackler with nine.

Kickoff for Saturday night's game at Waldo Stadium is scheduled for 6 p.m. Mike Wagenheim and Seth Thomas will cover all the action live on The Colonel Radio Network on 100.3 FM KLRZ, 105.9 FM KBZE and 1600 AM KLEB.  

Game Notes
TV Coverage: None
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) and Seth Thomas (color analyst)
Colonels on the internet: www.klrzfm.com; www.kbze.com
Live Stats: www.geauxcolonels.com