McNeese Cowboys at Nicholls Colonels
Thibodaux, Louisiana (Manning Field at John L. Guidry Stadium)
Saturday, Oct. 22 at 3 p.m. CT
TV: ESPN+ LINK
Audio: ESPN Radio New Orleans 100.3 FM | TuneIn
Live Stats: Link
Promotion: Pink Game
Tickets: Link
• Despite having six losses on the year, the Nicholls State University football team will look to stay in contention for a third league title in the last four fall seasons as the Colonels play host to longtime rival McNeese. Nicholls is seeking a first home victory while McNeese aims for its first league win. The game will air at 3 p.m. on ESPN+ and can be listened to on ESPN Radio New Orleans 100.3 FM.
• The Colonels are coming off another lopsided home loss in a 49-14 showing against Top 10 UIW. The Cardinals jumped out to a 21-0 lead before Nicholls went into the locker room down just two touchdowns. But UIW, led by former Colonel quarterback Lindsey Scott Jr., scored three unanswered third-quarter touchdowns to put the game well out of reach. Each Colonel quarterback scored a touchdown including Leonard Kelly with the first of his career, scoring on a sneak early in the fourth. Although Nicholls suffered its second 30-point setback at Guidry Stadium this season, the game did not count in the Southland Conference standings.
• Much like the Colonels, McNeese is off to a slow start under first-year head coach Gary Goff. The Cowboys started the Goff Era with a loss at nationally-ranked Montana before falling to FBS Rice. Alcorn spoiled the home debut for the Cowboys in a 30-19 victory, but McNeese bounced back with a 32-17 triumph against Division II Mississippi College. They then dropped both league contests to UIW and newcomer Texas A&M-Commerce, which along with Northwestern State are the two unbeaten teams in conference.
• Nicholls and McNeese will be meeting for the 47th time in schools' history with the Cowboys holding a 32-14 advantage in the series. While McNeese has had the upper hand since the start of the rivalry, the Colonels have split the last six including winning the previous two matchups at Guidry Stadium. After starting 0-2 against McNeese under head coach Tim Rebowe, Nicholls won 37-35 on a last-second field goal to begin the 2017 campaign. The Colonels notched a victory in 2019 at home, 34-20, then earned a road win last fall for their first in Lake Charles since 2008.
BY THE NUMBERS
#1 - Despite the slow start to the 2022 season, Nicholls ranks No. 1 in the FCS in fewest penalty yards per game at 28.4. The Colonels have been flagged just 25 times this season, ranking second at 3.6 per contest. Nicholls has had three outings this year where it had only two penalties for the game.
4 - As the program's all-time leading rusher, running back Julien Gums will be looking to become the first 3,000-yard rusher in school history as he enters this weekend only four yards shy at 2,996 for his career. After totaling a combined 90 yards in the first three games, Gums has rushed for at least 70 in the last four including a season-high 104 yards at Northwestern State.
5.9 - Coming off an All-Southland First Team campaign, running back Collin Guggenheim has put together another strong season and is currently averaging 5.9 yards per carry. Guggenheim exploded last season by ending the year with five straight 100-yard games, and notched the first of this season with 119 yards against Jacksonville State. Guggenheim set the school record with 103.3 yards rushing per game last season while averaging 6.4 yards per carry.
35 - Running back Julien Gums is approaching the career mark for rushing touchdowns (35), which is held by former quarterback Chase Fourcade. Gums found the end zone early in the fourth at South Alabama for his 33rd career rushing TD and added his 34th in the league opener against NSU. He is also just one TD from tying the career touchdown scored mark (36) set by receiver Dai'Jean Dixon last season.
SOUTHLAND STANDINGS
Nicholls enters the weekend with a 1-1 record in league play which places them tied for fourth in the standings.
- The Colonels dropped their opener at Northwestern State after the Demons' miraculous comeback in the final minutes, then won on a last-second field goal at Houston Christian.
- The Demons are in first at 3-0 but still have preseason favorites UIW and Southeastern on the slate.
- Newcomer Texas A&M-Commerce is the other undefeated team at 2-0. The Lions opened with road wins at Southeastern and McNeese. Commerce and SLU will make the trip to Thibodaux later this season.
KAIDEN JONES NAMED TO RICE WATCH LIST
True freshman linebacker Kaiden Jones was named to the 2022 Stats Perform Jerry Rice Award Watch List, which honors to the top freshman in the FCS. A total of 25 freshmen were named to the list on Oct. 20.
- A graduate of St. Charles Catholic, Jones has started at linebacker in his first season with the Colonels and is third on the team in tackles at 37. He also has 3.5 tackles for loss.
- The Rice Award, now in its 12th season, is named after legendary Hall of Fame wide receiver Jerry Rice. Past recipients include Los Angeles Rams wide receiver Cooper Kupp (Eastern Washington), Miami Dolphins running back Chase Edmonds (Fordham) and San Francisco 49ers quarterback Trey Lance (North Dakota State).
- RB Collin Guggenheim finished 9th in the voting for the Rice Award last season, while former Colonels QB Chase Fourcade and DL Sully Laiche were Top 10 finalists in 2016.
