THIBODAUX, La. – In a game that featured five lead changes and two ties, the Nicholls State University football team fell short in its final drive as SEMO escaped with a 35-31 victory Saturday afternoon on Manning Field at John L. Guidry Stadium.
 
Nicholls (3-4) had a chance to push its winning streak to four games after SEMO (4-4) missed a field goal with 2:30 remaining in the game. But facing a third-and-10 at the Redhawk 13 with less than a minute to go, the Colonels tried a trick play and SEMO's Steven Lewis picked off a screen pass by running back Collin Guggenheim to seal the win.
 
The loss not only prevented a four-game winning streak, but it was also a rare occasion that Nicholls let go of a halftime advantage. Under head coach Tim Rebowe, the Colonels had a 35-9 record with leading at the break, including all three wins this season.
 
Pat McQuaide threw for a career-high 345 yards passing, completing 26 of 53 with two touchdowns and an interception. Four Colonels had at least five receptions, highlighted by running back Jaylon Spears with his first 100-yard game (5 rec., 116). David Robinson Jr. added 92 yards on six grabs while Neno Lemay and Quincy Brown had 62 yards each. 
 
SEMO struck first by moving the ball all the way down to the 1, but the Colonel defense stood its ground and allowed just a field goal. Nicholls answered on its next possession when McQuaid found a diving Brown for a 17-yard touchdown – the first for Brown as a Colonel. 
 
In the second quarter, SEMO went back on top on a Ryan Flournoy reverse from the 3-yard line. But the Colonels closed out the half with a pair of Spears touchdowns for a 21-10 lead at the intermission. The first was set up by a Kylan Dupre punt inside the 10, helped by a third-down Joe Mason sack. Nicholls started the drive at midfield before Spears went untouched for a 17-yard touchdown run. 
 
Nicholls then received a huge play by Spears on a swing pass for another score. On the first pass of the drive, McQuaide dumped it off to Spears in the flat and he turned the corner and raced down the sideline for an 88-yard touchdown. 
 
SEMO added a field goal to make the halftime score, 21-13.
 
The Redhawks wasted no time in tying up the game in the third, scoring on a Flournoy catch-and-run for 26 yards. SEMO tacked on a 2-point conversion to make it 21-all.
 
The special teams got involved for the next points as SEMO's Dalyn McDonald returned a punt for a 65-yard touchdown and a 28-21 advantage. 
 
Later in the third, Guggenheim, who had 16 carries for 68 yards, muscled up the middle from 5 yards out to knot the game once again. However, the tie quickly evaporated when Geno Hess broke away for a 64-yard touchdown for the Redhawks. Hess finished the game with 128 yards rushing on 18 carries.
 
Nicholls looked to tie it up for a third time, but settled for a short Gavin Lasseigne field goal with just under eight minutes remaining.
 
The Colonel defense followed up with a stop on fourth down as SEMO tried to put the game on ice, but Kershawn Fisher hurried an errant throw that fell incomplete. However, Nicholls gave the ball back after a high snap on 4th-and-1 resulted in a 28-yard loss.
 
But once again, the defense came up in the clutch. The SEMO offense lost two yards before DC Pippen's field goal sailed far right, giving Nicholls one more chance at a victory.
 
The final drive was helped by a pass interference on fourth down, and Robinson made an outstanding catch for 39 yards to put Nicholls in the redzone. But on the game-ending play, McQuaide tossed the ball to Guggenheim out in the flat and McQuaide got behind the offensive line to wait for a return pass. Lewis maneuvered around a blocker and stepped in front of the throw, caught it, and ran 36 yards before McQuaide tackled him. SEMO would kneel the ball to secure the victory. 
 
Although the defense surrendered double figures for the first time this month, several players had outstanding performances. Fisher led the way with 2.5 tackles for loss while Hayden Shaheen tallied 2.0 sacks. Mason totaled 1.5 tackles for loss and Kendarius Smith had a busy day in the pass game with three breakups. 
 
Kylan Dupre added three more punts downed inside the 10, averaging just under 40 yards per punt on the day. 
 
UP NEXT
Nicholls will head to San Antonio next weekend (Nov. 4) for a matchup of the undefeated Southland teams. UIW remained perfect in league play after knocking off previously undefeated Lamar, 17-7. Kickoff is scheduled for 2 p.m.