No. 19/20 Nicholls Colonels (4-3, 3-2 SLC) vs. UIW Cardinals (4-3, 4-1 SLC)
Thibodaux, Louisiana (Manning Field at John L. Guidry Stadium)
Saturday, Oct. 27 at 3 p.m. CT
Nicholls Game Notes (PDF) | UIW Game Notes (PDF)
Audio: 100.3 FM KLRZ | 105.9 FM KBZE
Stream: Southland Digital Network via 100.3 FM (Link)
Live Stats: Link
Tickets: Order
online or call 985-448-4790
FIRST FIVE
• The Nicholls State University football team returns from its bye week to host the surging UIW Cardinals for Homecoming on Saturday, Oct. 27 at 3 p.m. The Colonels will look to rebound from their loss at Abilene Christian two weeks ago, while UIW aims to stay in first place after drubbing previously undefeated McNeese by 28 points. The game will be streamed on the Southland Digital Network via 100.3 FM, and the radio broadcasts include ESPN Radio New Orleans 100.3 FM and KBZE 105.9 FM.
• Nicholls is coming off a much-needed bye week following its longest bus trip of the season, which concluded a road-heavy start to the 2018 season. Five of the first seven games were on the road, with the Colonels claiming wins at Kansas and Northwestern State. But after a two-day trip to Abilene Christian, Nicholls was ousted by ACU, 28-12. The Wildcats scored three touchdowns in the first half for a 21-3 advantage until
Dai'Jean Dixon hauled in a TD catch before the break. But the Colonels failed to score in the second half for the first time this year and saw their three-game winning streak come to an end.
• UIW heads to Thibodaux tied for first place in the Southland Conference standings with McNeese and Central Arkansas, as all three are 4-1 in league play. The Cardinals won three straight before losing a heartbreaker to Lamar, but UIW sent shock waves through the league by routing McNeese in San Antonio, 45-17. The Cardinals outgained McNeese on offense, 390-222, and had 154 yards on the ground. The matchup with McNeese began a brutal stretch for UIW as the Cardinals will play all four Southland teams that are currently ranked in the Top 25.
• After joining the Southland a few years ago, UIW took the first two matchups against the Colonels with wins in 2014 (38-20) and '15 (20-10). The Colonels avenged the losses with a 35-28 win in Thibodaux in 2016 and a 38-31 victory last season in the Alamo City. In the Colonels' wins, the Red and Gray held 21- and 17-point leads in the fourth quarter before fending off late comebacks by UIW.
• The Southland Conference has four teams in the top 25 of both FCS polls - the AFCA Coaches and STATS FCS. Central Arkansas jumped to the front of the pack with a 14/13 ranking and McNeese, which is tied for first with the Bears and UIW, dropped to 16/14. Nicholls moved up one spot in the coaches poll after the bye week at 19/20, and Sam Houston State slipped to 22/23 following its loss to Lamar. UIW is receiving votes in both polls with 5 and 70.
BY THE NUMBERS
1st - After the bye week,
Evan Veron still leads the FCS in tackles for loss with 16.5. His total is helped by team-high 6.0 sacks, which also ranks 17th in the nation. He's had at least 1.0 TFL in each game and had a career high 3.5 in each of the last two contests.
22.0 - The Colonel defense has recorded 22 sacks through seven games, ranking 11th in the FCS with 3.14 per game.
Evan Veron leads the way with 6.0 and is followed by
Sully Laiche (4.5) and
Kenny Dotson (4.0). Nicholls had 6.0 sacks in the win at Kansas, which were the most for the program in a single game since the 2009 season (9 vs. Duquesne).
110 - Sophomore WR
Dai'Jean Dixon recored his third career 100-yard game in the Colonels' last outing at ACU, totaling 110 receiving yards on seven receptions. Dixon was responsible for the lone touchdown, scoring on a 22-yard catch before halftime. His first 100-yard effort was last season at UIW.
SCOUTING THE CARDINALS
• UIW has been one of the top storylines in the Southland, posting a 4-1 record in league play to tie for first place. The Cardinals, which were projected to finish ninth in the preseason poll, gave McNeese its first loss in conference last weekend.
• UIW rebounded from a devastating loss on a blocked field return against Lamar to hand McNeese a 45-17 drubbing in San Antonio. The Cardinals led 28-3 at halftime and after McNeese cut the deficit to 21 in the fourth, UIW returned an interception for a touchdown.
• UIW is led by first-year head coach Eric Morris. After serving as offensive coordinator for Texas Tech for five seasons prior, Morris took over the program in December of 2017. Following losses to FBS opponents to begin his tenure, he guided the Cardinals to a 3-0 start in conference with wins over Stephen F. Austin, Abilene Christian and Southeastern Louisiana.
• The Cardinals lead the Southland in total offense (476.6 ypg) and feature two of the league's top performers. Freshman QB Jon Copeland is second in the SLC with 297.1 yards passing per game, and running back Ra'Quanne Dickens leads the conference with 106.3 yards rushing and 10 touchdowns.
A WIN OVER UIW WOULD...
... put coach
Tim Rebowe's overall record to .500 (20-21).
... give Coach Rebowe his 19th win in conference (18-14).
... improve Rebowe's record vs. Texas schools to 15-7 (currently 2-1 vs. UIW).
... up the Colonels' record in October under Rebowe to 9-7.
... give Nicholls its third consecutive victory over UIW, improving all-time record to 3-2.
... extend the Colonels' regular-season home winning streak to eight games.
... put Nicholls a game behind in the standings of the winner of Saturday's UCA/McNeese game.
ON THIS DATE IN COLONEL HISTORY ...
• Nicholls is 2-4 on Oct. 27, dropping the last two games on the date by a combined eight points. The last win came in back in 2001 against former Southland member Texas State.
| YEAR |
OPPONENT |
W/L |
SCORE |
H/A |
| 1973 |
Florence St. |
L |
11-27 |
H |
| 1979 |
Northwestern St. |
W |
27-24 |
H |
| 1990 |
Northern Arizona |
L |
34-41 |
A |
| 2001 |
Texas State |
W |
33-14 |
H |
| 2007 |
Central Arkansas |
L |
42-49 |
A |
| 2012 |
Northwestern St. |
L |
26-27 |
A |
LAST MEETING
Oct. 28, 2017
No. 23 Nicholls 38, UIW 31
SAN ANTONIO, Texas – Behind a career-high 358 yards passing from sophomore
Chase Fourcade and 100-yard receiving efforts by
Mason Roberts and
Dai'Jean Dixon, the Nicholls State University football team scored 31 points in the first half and hung on for a 38-31 victory over UIW on Saturday at Benson Stadium. (
RECAP)
LAST OUTING
Oct. 13, 2018
Abilene Christian 28, No. 11 Nicholls 12
ABILENE, Texas – The Nicholls State University football team's first trip to Abilene Christian turned out to be a forgettable one as the Wildcats grabbed an early lead and never looked back, handing the Colonels a 28-12 loss Saturday afternoon at Wildcat Stadium. (
RECAP)
HEAUXME SWEET HEAUXME
The Colonels finished the regular season last year with a perfect 5-0 record at home and are 2-0 this season. Surprisingly, it marked just the third time in program history that the team went undefeated at John L. Guidry Stadium during the regular season. The other two teams to complete the feat were the 1975 and 2005 championship squads.
HOMECOMING
The Colonels are 2-1 in their homecoming games under head coach
Tim Rebowe, winning the last three. Nicholls fell to McNeese in 2015 in Rebowe's first season, but won a double-overtime thriller in '16 against Stephen F. Austin. Last year, Nicholls defeated Northwestern State, 14-10, on the weekend originally scheduled for homecoming, but a tropical storm pushed most of the festivities to the following weekend. The Colonels won that game as well, topping Abilene Christian, 29-20.
THE LONE STAR
Although half of the Southland Conference programs reside in Texas and the border is just a four-hour drive, the Colonels have just one player from the Lone Star state - wide receiver
Mason Roberts. A redshirt in 2014, Roberts came to Nicholls after prepping at Cy-Woods outside of Houston. One of his best games came last season at UIW where he had a 68-yard touchdown catch and finished with 106 yards on just three receptions. Unfortunately, Roberts, who played at slot and served as a holder on field goals, suffered a season-ending injury in the preseason.
NICHOLLS FOOTBALL ON TWITTER
For the latest news and in-game updates, be sure to follow the team on Twitter
@Nicholls_FB.
