No. 18 Nicholls Colonels (1-2, 0-1 SLC) vs. No. 11 Sam Houston State (1-1, 0-0 SLC)
Thibodaux, Louisiana (Manning Field at John L. Guidry Stadium)
Saturday, Sept. 22 at 3:05 p.m. CT 
Nicholls Game Notes | Sam Houston Game Notes
Audio: 100.3 FM KLRZ |   105.9 FM KBZE
Stream: ESPN  ($4.99 per month, 7-day free trial)
Live Stats
Tickets: Order online or call 985-448-4790

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FIRST FIVE
• Following three weeks on the road to begin the season, the Nicholls State University football team will make its 2018 debut at Manning Field at John L. Guidry Stadium with another top 25 matchup against No. 11 Sam Houston State on Saturday, Sept. 22. Kickoff against the Bearkats is slated for 3 p.m. and will stream live on ESPN . The radio broadcasts include ESPN Radio New Orleans 100.3 FM and KBZE 105.9 FM.

• Nicholls will be looking to rebound from a disappointing 20-10 loss at McNeese last weekend. The start was delayed over an hour due to lightning and heavy rain in the area, and most of the first half was played with half of the lights out. The Cowboys took advantage of a fumble deep in Colonel territory on the opening kickoff to score one of its two touchdowns for the game. In a defensive struggle, Nicholls misfired on a pair of early field goals and was held out of the end zone until the final seconds of the contest.

• Sam Houston State heads to Thibodaux with the same mindset, hoping to erase a heartbreaking 24-23 loss to North Dakota. The Bearkats held a 23-17 lead late in the fourth quarter before allowing a touchdown pass with less than five minutes remaining in the game. Sam Houston failed on a fourth-and-short on its next possession, and North Dakota picked up one first down before being able to run out the clock. The loss snapped the Bearkats' 21-game home winning streak, dating back to 2015.

• Nicholls trails the all-time series against Sam Houston State, 21-10-1, thanks to the 'Kats current 11-game winning streak. The Colonels last defeated Sam Houston in 2005 during their championship season, which knotted the series at 10 wins apiece. But since then, the Bearkats have not only won every game, but have done so in convincing fashion. Only one game was decided by single digits, and Sam Houston has outscored Nicholls during the streak, 448-161 for an average margin of victory of 26 points.

• The Southland continues to have a strong presence in the FCS Top 25, with four teams currently ranked in both polls - AFCA Coaches Poll and STATS FCS. Nicholls slid down to No. 18 in both, while the voters were impressed with McNeese's win as they jumped seven spots to No. 9 in the media poll. Sam Houston dipped down to No. 11 following a one-point loss to North Dakota, and Central Arkansas came in at No. 13/14.


BY THE NUMBERS
11 - The Colonels last defeated a ranked team in 2008, and both of the opponents were No. 11. Nicholls spoiled McNeese's homecoming in Lake Charles, 38-35, and the following week, knocked off Central Arkansas, 20-17, in Thibodaux.

14 - The Colonels led the Southland Conference with a total of 14 players named Preseason All-Southland, and had the most first-teamers with 10. Ten of the selections were automatic from being named All-SLC.

49 - The 2017 matchup against the Bearkats was a forgettable one. Although it was the first game as a ranked team for the Colonels in 10 years, Sam Houston handed Nicholls a 49-point loss. The deficit was the fourth largest all-time for the Colonels in Southland Conference play. 

105 - With 114 players listed on the official 2018 roster, the Colonels eclipsed the century mark with Louisiana natives this season with a 105. Last year, Nicholls had a Division I-best 97 players from the state.

4725 - The last win over Sam Houston State came 4,725 days prior to this Saturday's matchup as the Colonels defeated the Bearkats, 37-17, on Oct. 15, 2005. The  win sparked a five-game winning streak to close out the regular season, giving Nicholls its first and only Southland Conference title. 


SCOUTING THE BEARKATS
• Sam Houston State heads into its Southland Conference opener as the No. 11 team in the nation following a one-point loss to North Dakota. The Bearkats began the season in Week 2 with a 41-32 win over Prairie View A&M. 

• The Bearkats are directed by head coach KC Keeler, who is in his fifth season. After winning a national title at Delaware in 2003, Keeler has led SHSU to the FCS Playoffs in all four of his seasons with the Bearkats.

• Mike Dare took over at QB, replacing two-time All-American Jeremiah Briscoe. In his first two games, he threw for 370 yards and two TDs.

• Sam Houston State features two of the top receivers in the nation - Davion Davis and Nathan Stewart. Davis was selected as the 2017 Southland Offensive Player of the Year as he racked up 1,206 yards and 17 touchdowns. Stewart was a first-team All-American selection last season after totaling 1,648 yards and 14 touchdowns - both ranking in the top 5 of the FCS.  

• The Bearkats have been the elite of the Southland Conference over the past decade, winning league titles in 2011, '12, '14, and 16. In the postseason since 2011, Sam Houston has a 16-7 record with five semifinal appearances and was runners-up in '11 and '12.


A WIN OVER SAM HOUSTON STATE WOULD...
... give Nicholls its first win over a ranked opponent since 2008.
... snap an 11-game losing streak in the series, dating back to 2005.
... improve Coach Rebowe's overall record to 18-20. He started his career 0-5.
... be the Colonels' 11th victory in the all-time series (10-21-1), which was tied in '05.
... improve Coach Rebowe's record vs. Texas schools 13-6 (0-3 vs. Sam Houston).
... put the Colonels' record in SLC home openers at 13-15 and overall home openers at 26-21.
... give Coach Rebowe his 16th win in conference (15-13).


ON THIS DATE IN COLONEL HISTORY ...

• Nicholls is 4-3 on 9/22, including a forfeited win by SFA in '90. All three losses are against former SLC member Troy. In the last game on the date, Nicholls set program single-game records in total offense (751) and first downs (36) in a win over NAIA Evangel.
 

YEAR	OPPONENT	W/L	SCORE	H/A
1973	Troy	L	42-7	A
1979	Troy	L	35-15	A
1984	Austin Peay	W	31-6	H
1990	Stephen F. Austin	W*	23-41	H
2001	Troy	L	26-0	A
2007	Azusa Pacific	W	30-28	H
2012	Evangel	W	73-17	H

LAST MEETING
Sept. 23, 2017
No. 3 Sam Houston State 66, No. 23 Nicholls 17

HUNTSVILLE, Texas  – Playing as a ranked team for the first time in 10 years, the Nicholls State University football team struggled against top-5 Sam Houston State as the Colonels were handed a 66-17 setback Saturday night at Bowers Stadium. (RECAP)


LAST OUTING
Sept. 15, 2018
No. 15/16 McNeese 20, No. 12/13 Nicholls 10

LAKE CHARLES, La.  – The No. 12/13 Nicholls State University football team had opportunities to score against the stingy McNeese defense, but the Colonels were limited to just a field goal and a late touchdown in a 20-10 setback Saturday night at Cowboy Stadium. (RECAP)


NOTES FROM LAST GAME
- Hour-plus lightning/weather delay before kickoff
- Colonels have lost 5 straight in Lake Charles (2008)
- Nicholls has not beat a ranked team since 2008
- Jeanpiere had 100 yd rec. on 4 catches. In 4 career games vs. MCN, has 16 rec. for 451 yds (28.2 ypc)
- Laiche recorded 2nd career double figure tackles (10)


SULLY'DIFYING THE PASS RUSH
Junior defensive lineman Sully Laiche continues to be quarterbacks' nightmare as he ranks 20th in the FCS with 3.5 sacks on the year. He's 3-for-3 so far this year, recording 2 sacks at Kansas, 0.5 at Tulane, and 1 at McNeese. In just 25 career games, Laiche has 20.5 sacks with six games of two or more. In the win against Kansas, he had 2.0 sacks and his 4.0 TFLs set a new career high for the Lutcher graduate. 


COWBOY KRYPTONITE
Year after year, McNeese features one of the FCS' top defenses; however, the Cowboys struggled to cover senior wide receiver Damion Jeanpiere throughout his career. In four games against McNeese, Jeanpiere totaled 451 yards receiving and three touchdowns on just 16 receptions (28.2 ypc). He had his breakout game as a freshman with 112 yards (5 rec.), followed up with 94 yards (4) in 2016 and torched the secondary with 145 (3) last season. He also had four catches over 50 yards, including TD grabs of 62 and 77 last year. Saturday in Lake Charles, he recorded his third 100-yard game, reaching exactly 100 on four grabs.


CHASE'ING RECORDS
QB Chase Fourcade continues to rewrite the Colonel record book each week. At Tulane, he became just the third quarterback in program history to throw for 5,000 yards for their career, and he heads into Saturday's contest needing 180 yards passing to match Brad Zeller's 5,616 for No. 2 on the all-time passing list. With his late touchdown pass at McNeese, he also moved into second with 34 career TD passes. In addition, he is just the sixth Colonel to record 2,000 passing yards in a single season. The feat has been accomplished eight times and Fourcade's 2,482 yards  as a freshman was the third most in a single season. With two more 2,000-yard seasons, Fourcade would leave Nicholls as the all-time leader in passing yards.

1. 3,627 - Doug Hudson (1986)
2. 2,491 - Bobby McDonald (1987)
3. 2,482 - Chase Fourcade (2016)
4. 2,374 - Brad Zeller (1998)
5. 2,356 - Gordon Falgoust (1981)
6. 2,348 - Doug Hudson (1985)
7. 2,316 - Chase Fourcade (2017)
8. 2,049 - Landry Klann (2012)


SACK MASTERS
Despite opening the season against two FBS programs, the Colonels rank No. 8 in the FCS with 12.0 sacks after three games. Nicholls had 6.0 sacks in the opener at Kansas, its most since 2009, and followed up with 3.0 at Tulane and 3.0 at McNeese. Sully Laiche leads the squad and ranks 20th in the FCS with 3.5, and is followed closely behind by Evan Veron (3.0). Joining the party so far this season have been Kenny Dotson (2.0) , Laryon James (1.5), Kevin Johnson (1.0), and Tyler Johnson (1.0)


STREAK BUSTING
Along with ending the program's longest losing skid, the Colonels have recently put to rest several other lengthy streaks. A win at Lamar in 2015 ended a 17-game road winless streak and the Colonels have since added seven road wins. In 2016, Nicholls defeated Stephen F. Austin in double OT to snap an 8-game drought in the series, and then went on to road the next season to knock off the Lumberjacks for just the fourth time in 18 trips to Nacogdoches. In last year's season opener, a last-second field put an end to an 8-game streak against McNeese. Despite the several exercised demons, Sam Houston State still holds an 11-game winning streak in the series and Central Arkansas has won the last eight. 


HEAUXME SWEET HEAUXME
The Colonels finished the regular season last year with a perfect 5-0 record at home. 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. 


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