THIBODAUX, La. – Playing in front of its home crowd for the first time this season, the Nicholls State University football team was handed a 37-7 loss by nationally-ranked McNeese State on Homecoming on Saturday at John L. Guidry Stadium.
 
With the loss, Nicholls fell to 0-4 overall and 0-2 in Southland play. McNeese remained undefeated, improving its record to 4-0 on the year while picking up its third conference victory of the season.
 
After leading 7-0 through the first quarter, McNeese scored three touchdowns in the second period to go up 27-0. Right before the break, the Colonels scored their second touchdown of the year as quarterback Tuskani Figaro found Damion Jeanpiere for a 52-yard touchdown. But the long touchdown would be all McNeese would allow the rest of the way and the Cowboy defense/special teams accounted for the second-half scoring en route to the 30-point victory.
 
McNeese headed into the matchup with one of the top defenses in the FCS and the Cowboys held true to the ranking. Nicholls was limited to 239 yards of offense, 12 first downs and just 35 yards rushing. The Colonels also turned the ball over three times, with second coming on a sack/fumble in the end zone, which was recovered by McNeese for a touchdown. For the game, McNeese got to the Nicholls quarterbacks six times for a loss of 32 yards.
 
Colonel quarterback Tuskani Figaro completed 14 of 20 passes for 177 yards and a score, with his main target being Jeanpiere. The freshman from Metairie had a breakout performance, hauling in five catches for 112 yards and a touchdown to become the first 100-yard receiver for the Red and Gray this season. Along with his long touchdown, Jeanpiere helped the offense get things rolling on the first possession of the game.
 
Nicholls received the ball to start the contest and was able to pick up a pair of first downs to drive into McNeese territory. A large chuck of yards came on a 39-yard catch by Jeanpiere, and Terry Lucas Jr. moved the chains with a 15-yard grab. Facing a fourth-and-2 at the McNeese 35, quarterback Landry Klann ran the ball on a keeper and was stopped short.
 
The Cowboys then went 66 yards, scoring on a 34-yard pass from Daniel Sams to Tavarious Battiste. Sams had a solid all-around game for McNeese, accounting for two touchdowns with 140 yards passing and 89 yards on the ground.
 
In the second quarter, a short punt gave McNeese great field position and they went on to capitalize as Ryan Ross ran the ball in for a score from six yards out. A missed extra-point kick kept the score at 13-0.
 
On McNeese's next possession, the visitors put together a 14-play, 90-yard drive which led to a 20-0 advantage. Sams fueled the drive with a 19-yard run before capping it off with a 4-yard score.
 
The Cowboys then got the ball right back as Darius Knight fumbled the kick return at midfield. On the next play, Sams threw a lateral pass back to receiver David Bush, who then bombed it down the field to a wide open Kent Shelby for a 49-yard touchdown. A Jean Breaux extra-point made the score 27-0 with 1:31 until the intermission.
 
But Nicholls answered with its own lengthy play, cutting the score to 27-7 right before the break. On second-and-7 from midfield, Figaro found a streaking Jeanpiere up the left sideline for a 52-yard touchdown with 27 seconds remaining in the half. Francisco Condado tacked on the extra point as the Colonels headed to the locker room with a little momentum.
 
After the break, Nicholls' defense forced a pair of punts before the Cowboy defense was able to put points on the board. Midway through the quarter, a holding penalty pushed Nicholls back to its own 10 and on second-and-long, Figaro was sacked in the end zone, lost the ball, and it was recovered by Anthony Yruegas for a Cowboy touchdown.
 
Neither offense would find the end zone the rest of the way as the Cowboys added a field goal in the fourth to make the final.

McNeese tallied 480 yards on offense, led by 268 yards on the ground. The Cowboys averaged 4.8 yards a carry and held Nicholls to a 1.1 average. 
 
For the Colonels, three players – Geoffrey Hebert, Hezekiah White and B.T. Sanders - finished with eight tackles including one for loss. Sanders was credited with a sack after jarring the ball loose from Sams in the third quarter, but it ended up being one of several missed opportunities for a turnover as McNeese was able to recover it.
 
On offense, Michael Henry rushed 13 times for 39 yards, Tobias Lofton had six carries for 24 yards and C.J. Bates added two catches for 31 yards.
 
Nicholls will hit the road for its next game, taking on Stephen F. Austin on Saturday, Oct. 10, at 3 p.m.