THIBODAUX, La. - After allowing 10 points in the opening quarter, the defense for the Nicholls State University football team pitched a shutout the rest of the game and then scored the winning safety in the fourth as the Colonels picked up a hard fought 12-10 victory over Texas A&M-Commerce in their first Southland Conference meeting Saturday evening on Manning Field at John L. Guidry Stadium.
Nicholls (3-7, 3-2 SLC) cut into the deficit with a second-quarter field goal and tied it up in the third on a
Al'Dontre Davis touchdown catch. The defense then gave the Colonels a 12-10 lead thanks to an
Eli Ennis pressure that forced Lion quarterback Jaiave Magalei to step out of the back of the end zone with eight minutes remaining. Texas A&M-Commerce (5-5, 3-3 SLC) was short on a field goal before a Hail Mary fell to the turf as time expired.
The defensive unit surrendered just 246 yards in the victory, which was the lowest output for a Colonel opponent in 15 games.
Brandon Lairy led with a team-high 14 tackles, highlighted by 3.5 for loss with one sack and he also forced a fumble.
Kylin White added 10 tackles and Ennis finished with eight, one sack and totaled four quarterback hurries.
Running back Jullen Gums paced the offense with his fourth 100-yard game of the season, rushing for 124 yards on 21 carries. As a team, Nicholls finished with 191 yards on the ground with
Collin Guggenheim adding 43 yards on 10 carries.
Texas A&M-Commerce's early 10-0 lead was thanks to great starting field position. The Lions took over at midfield following a short punt and went up after Emmanuel Adagbon's 32-yard field goal. Then Nicholls gave up the ball at its own 47 after failing on a fourth-down try, and that resulted in a 5-yard TD run by Reggie Branch.
Nicholls then answered the field goal with a 32-yarder of its own as
Gavin Lasseigne made it 10-3 heading into halftime.
In the third, another defensive play helped spark the comeback.
Chase Brown picked off a pass deep in Colonel territory and the offense turned it into a touchdown for a 10-10 game. The Lions were in the neutral zone that resulted in a free play, so
Kohen Granier tossed a pass into the end zone to
Al'Dontre Davis. With two defenders draped on him, Davis came down with the ball for his fourth TD grab of the season.
The game-winning safety came after a
Kylan Dupre punt put the Lion offense at its own 4. On third-and-11, Ennis darted through a gap and Magalei ran out of real estate in the back of the end zone for a safety.
With just over three minutes remaining, Adagbon tried a 47-yard field goal but the ball died down into the wind. The Lions allowed a first down but got the ball back after a 58-yard punt by Dupre; however, a last-second heave on offense was incomplete.
UP NEXT
Nicholls will close out the regular season in the River Bell Classic, hosting Southeastern this Thursday (Nov. 17). Kickoff is scheduled for 6 p.m.
