No. 19/19 Nicholls Colonels (8-4) vs. RV/24 North Dakota (7-4)
Thibodaux, Louisiana (Manning Field at John L. Guidry Stadium)
Saturday, Nov. 30 at 3:00 p.m. CT
Nicholls Game Notes (PDF) | North Dakota Game Notes
TV: ESPN3 (Link)
Audio: ESPN Radio New Orleans Tunein | 100.3 FM KLRZ | 105.9 FM KBZE
Live Stats: Link
Tickets: Order online or call 985-448-4790
Gameday Information
FIRST FIVE
• The No. 19 Nicholls State University football team will welcome No. 24 North Dakota to Thibodaux for a first-round game in the 2019 FCS playoffs. Like last season, the Colonels head into the postseason on a winning streak, taking their last four including a 28-27 win last Thursday at No. 21 Southeastern Louisiana for the Southland Conference championship. North Dakota earned an at-large berth after winning its last two games. The matchup will kickoff at 3 p.m. central and will air on ESPN3.
• Nicholls will be making its third consecutive appearance in the FCS playoffs after claiming the Southland's automatic qualifier for the second straight year. For only the third time in Southland history, the AQ was determined in the final game as the winner of Nicholls vs. Southeastern would earn a spot to the playoffs. In a wild, dramatic finish, the Colonels came away with a one-point victory to claim the River Bell.
Dai'Jean Dixon capped his career night with a 57-yard touchdown catch with 90 seconds to go, then
Kevin Moore III forced a fumble at the goal line to seal the win for the Colonels.
• Playing as an independent, North Dakota did not have the luxury of an auto bid and had to sweat out the selection show but earned an at-large berth for its second FCS playoff appearance. The Fighting Hawks put together a strong resume, picking a win over national seed Montana State, while also nearly knocking off 3-seed Weber State. North Dakota and the Colonels did have a common opponent with UND defeating Sam Houston at home, 27-23, while Nicholls was handed a 17-0 loss on the road.
• Nicholls has not had much success against the Dakotas - in fact, none at all. While Saturday marks the first meeting against the University of North Dakota, the Colonels did play North Dakota State in back-to-back years (2004-05) for a home-and-home and dropped both matchups. The Colonels also fell to South Dakota State by a touchdown in Thibodaux in '06 and their most recent loss was a 38-31 setback against South Dakota in the opening round of the 2017 FCS playoffs.
• With its third straight appearance in the postseason, Nicholls matched the program's total before Coach
Tim Rebowe's arrival and now has six in school history. Sporting a 2-5 record, Nicholls won its first playoff game in 1986 at Appalachian State, but fell in the next round at Georgia Southern. The next two appearances were at Montana in 1996, when Rebowe was an assistant, and then a loss to Furman in 2005 following the team's first Southland title. Under Rebowe, Nicholls claimed an at-large berth in '17 and lost a heartbreaker to South Dakota after fumbling at the goal line in the final minute. The Colonels won their second playoff game last year, 49-30, over San Diego and went on to fall to national runner up Eastern Washington in the second round.
BY THE NUMBERS
8 - Nicholls landed eight players on the All-Southland First Team, which was the most in school history. Last year, the Colonels had six and trailed only the 2005 championship team's seven.
Sully Laiche (3x) and
Chase Fourcade (2x) were the only repeat first-teamers, while
Dai'Jean Dixon (1x) and
Allen Pittman (3x) elevated from previous second-team selections.
16 - Just a sophomore,
Julien Gums broke the single-season rushing touchdowns record (13) and has found the end zone in five straight games. Gums currently ranks second in the Southland with 81.9 yards per per game and is eighth in the FCS with 16 rushing TDs.
35.5 - Senior defensive lineman
Sully Laiche continues to climb the Southland all-time sacks list and currently sits at fourth with 35.5 sacks. Laiche missed the first two games and has since started in nine, recording at least a sack in all but one. With his two against McNeese, Laiche is now the FCS active leader. He also ranks second in the nation in TFLs per game and is ninth in sacks per game.
110 - The 2019 roster consists of 116 players, and 110 are Louisiana natives. When
Tim Rebowe was hired after the 2014 season, he wanted to put an emphasis on recruiting locally. Not only are the student-athletes from the Pelican State, but the majority are from a 50-mile radius which includes New Orleans, Baton Rouge, and the River Parishes. The Colonels have had the most Louisianans in Division I football by a wide margin over the past few seasons.
122.3 - Junior wideout
Dai'Jean Dixon is averaging 122.3 yards receiving per game after two near 200-yard games since returning from injury. Dixon, who ranks fifth all-time in receiving with 2,098 yards, missed 5.5 games with an injury but left off right where he ended. Before leaving the win against UCA , Dixon had 140 yards receiving before halftime and now has four 100-yard games this year.
SCOUTING THE FIGHTING HAWKS
• North Dakota finished its season with a 7-4 overall record following wins over Northern Colorado and Southern Utah. The Fighting Hawks had a loaded schedule, playing three teams that are currently ranked in the top 25 including No. 1 North Dakota State.
• The Fighting Hawks are led on offense by quarterback Nate Ketteringham and wideout Noah Wanzek. Ketteringham has thrown for 16 touchdowns and 2,343 yards with Wanzek recording 935 and four touchdowns on 67 receptions.
• The UND defense has grounded opponents' air attack this season, allowing just 208.5 yards passing per game. In the win over Sam Houston, the Bearkats had just 118 yards passing.
• UND will be making its second FCS playoff appearance in school history. It's previous was in 2016 as it was upset as the No. 7 seed in the second round against Richmond, 27-24.
• North Dakota is in its final year as an independent team and will play in the Missouri Valley Football Conference starting in 2020. The Fighting Hawks were a member of the Big Sky from 2012-17.
A WIN OVER NORTH DAKOTA WOULD...
... advance Nicholls to the second round in back-to-back years and third time in team history.
... be the ninth win of the season, matching 2018's mark which is second-most in school history.
... give the Colonels a 3-0 record vs. the Top 25 this season - (34-14 vs. No. 10 UCA; 28-27 vs. No. 21 Southeastern).
... push the Colonels' wining streak to five games, matching last year's run into the second round.
... be the 31th victory of the 2019 Senior Class. They became the winningest in team history with the victory over McNeese, surpassing the 28 wins by 1988 Class.
... give Nicholls its first win vs. a Dakota school. The Colonels are 0-2 against North Dakota State, and 0-1 against South Dakota State and South Dakota. (See results on Page 3).
... give the Southland Conference its 45th playoff victory by a team currently in the league. Teams have a combined 44-52 record (.458).
ON THIS DATE IN COLONEL HISTORY ...
• Nicholls has played only one game on Nov. 30 and it was its playoff game in 1996. Current head coach
Tim Rebowe was an assistant on the Colonels, which earned an at-large berth after one of the biggest turnarounds in FCS history. The Red and Gray went 0-11 in '95 before finishing the next season with an 8-3 record to make their second ever playoff appearance.
| YEAR |
OPPONENT |
W/L |
SCORE |
H/A |
| 1996 |
Montana |
L |
48-3 |
A |
LAST OUTING
Nov. 21, 2019
No. 23/23 Nicholls 28, No. 22/21 Southeastern Louisiana 27
HAMMOND, La. - The No. 23/23 Nicholls State University football team won its second consecutive Southland Conference championship after a chaotic, thrilling 28-27 victory over No. 22/21 Southeastern Louisiana in the River Bell Classic Thursday night in front of 10,071 fans at Strawberry Stadium. (
RECAP)
A HAUL OF HARDWARE
The Southland Conference announced its all-league teams and honors Tuesday, and Nicholls had 12 players make the three teams. Headlining the honorees was defensive lineman
Sully Laiche who became the second straight Colonel to be named Southland Player of the Year. Quarterback
Chase Fourcade garnered Southland Offensive Player of the Year, while
P.J. Burkhalter received Offensive Lineman of the Year.
The trio as part of a school record eight first-team selections, and was joined by RB
Julien Gums, WR
Dai'Jean Dixon, and OT
Bradston Burnside, LB
Allen Pittman, and S
Kevin Moore III. For second team, OT
Jair Joseph and LB
Laryon James were honored, and TE
Jordan Talley and S
Khristian Mims landed on third team.
SOUTHLAND STRONG
For the third consecutive year, the Southland Conference will have three teams participating in the FCS playoffs. Nicholls was joined by Sam Houston State and Central Arkansas in 2017, while UIW and Lamar played in the postseason along with the Red and Gray last year. This edition will feature the Colonels, No. 8 seed Central Arkansas, and at-large Southeastern Louisiana. The Lions are hosting Villanova on Saturday.
TICKETS
Fans are encouraged to purchase tickets online to avoid long lines at the gate on the day of the game.
Tickets can be purchased by clicking here.
STAYING SOCIAL
Follow the Colonels all season long on Twitter (
@Nicholls_FB) and Instagram (
@Nicholls_FB).
COLONEL GAMEDAY
For all the information on Colonel Football Gameday, click
here.
