Nicholls Colonels at McNeese Cowboys
Lake Charles, Louisiana (Cowboy Stadium)
Saturday, September 23 at 6 p.m. CT 
Nicholls Game Notes  | McNeese Game Notes
TV: ESPN+ LINK 
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Live Stats: Link

• The Nicholls State University football team opens its Southland Conference schedule with a trip to rival McNeese. Both squads are not only looking to start 1-0 in league play, but the Colonels and Cowboys are both searching for win No. 1 on the season. The 48th meeting between the programs is scheduled for 7 p.m. and will be broadcast on ESPN+ and can be listened to on ESPN Radio New Orleans 100.3 FM.

• Nicholls wrapped up a brutal nonconference stretch with a 36-7 loss at FBS Tulane. Turnovers and miscues proved to be costly as the Green Wave took advantage of short fields following three interceptions for three of its touchdowns and scored on a early special teams mishap. The Colonels fell behind 24-0 in the second quarter before scoring their lone points of the game. Nicholls put together a drive on offense and it was capped on a 13-yard touchdown catch by Neno Lemay from Pat McQuaide. In the second half, Tulane scored on a field goal and took advantage of another Colonel turnover deep in Nicholls territory for the final 10 points. 

• Nicholls and McNeese will be meeting for the 48th time in schools' history with the Cowboys holding a 32-15 advantage in the series. While McNeese has had the upperhand since the start of the rivalry, the Colonels have brought home a victory in four of the last six matchups. In the 2022 edition, Nicholls scored four touchdowns in the second half to hang on for a 40-35 victory. The Colonels will be going for consecutive wins in Lake Charles for the first time since 1996 and '98 and also looking for their first three-game winning streak in the series since the late 80s.

• The Southland Conference schedule officially got underway last weekend with an upset in regards to the preseason poll as projected last-place HCU won on the road at favorite Southeastern, 34-19. McNeese received the third most points with 65 and Nicholls (62) was close behind for fourth place. The rest of the poll was Northwestern State (52), Texas A&M-Commerce (33), Lamar (28), and HCU (24). Southeastern (93) edged out fellow co-champion UIW (91) with nine first-place votes to the Cardinals' seven. The Southland struggled out of the gates as a league with only UIW winning nonconference games against FCS programs in the first month of play.

A WIN OVER McNEESE WOULD...

... be the first time since the late 1980s that Nicholls has won three straight games against McNeese. The Colonels won four in a row in the series from 1985-88.
... improve Nicholls' all-time record to 16-32 against McNeese and 9-17 at Cowboy Stadium.
... prevent consecutive 0-4 starts and the third 0-4 start in Coach Rebowe's nine-year tenure. The Colonels started his first season by dropping the first five games, including a lose to McNeese.
... give Nicholls a 6-3 record in Southland openers under Rebowe.
... be the second victory for the Colonels in their SLC road opening game under Rebowe.
... give the Colonels just their third road win in the series since 2000 (2-10).
... be the first time since the '96 and '98 victories that Nicholls has won back-to-back games at Cowboy Stadium.

BY THE NUMBERS

1 -- Three games into the season, Nicholls has had the toughest schedule in the FCS according to the Massey Rating. The Colonels opened up against nationally ranked Sacramento State before hitting the road for FBS games at TCU and Tulane. League member Texas A&M-Commerce has had the second ranked strength-of-schedule after two ranked FCS opponents, including Sac State, and one FBS foe.

2 -- Cornerback Markeyvrick Eddie intercepted a pair of passes in the matchup at Tulane with both coming in the end zone. Eddie also had a pass breakup in the opening drive after nearly recording what would have been a third pick of the game. Eddie was named National Defensive POW honorable mention as he was the first Colonel to have two interceptions in a game since 2021.

6 -- WR Neno Lemay boasts a league best six receptions per game while ranking second in the SLC with 68.0 yards per contest. After a slow start against Sac State, the sophomore recorded his first career 100-yard game in the loss at TCU. He followed up with 75 yards at Tulane and notched his first TD catch of the season.


LAST MEETING
Oct. 22, 2022
@Nicholls -- 40
McNeese -- 35

THIBODAUX, La. - In a game that featured a pair of 20-point quarters for each team, the Nicholls State University Colonels scored the final touchdown of the day early in the fourth quarter before the defense stuffed McNeese late on a fourth-down try to preserve a 40-35 victory over the Cowboys Saturday evening on Manning Field at John L. Guidry Stadium. (FULL RECAP)

SLC OPENERS VS MCNEESE

Nicholls and McNeese have opened Southland play against each other just twice with both squads earning a win and both meetings were in the last 10 years. 
- In 2017, Nicholls hosted McNeese on a Thursday night for not only the league opener, but a season opener. The Colonels edged the Cowboys, 37-35, on a last second field goal for a 37-35 victory.
- The Colonels then headed to Lake Charles for their league opener in 2018 and fell 20-10 to No. 15 McNeese.
- Despite splitting the games, Nicholls went on to make the FCS Playoffs in both of the seasons. The Colonels earned an at-large berth in '17 with a 8-3 record while they claimed the auto bid in '18 with their first of two consecutive championships.

EDDIE RECEIVES NATIONAL RECOGNITION

Cornerback Markeyvrick Eddie had two interceptions in the end zone at Tulane and went on to receive national recognition.
- Although he did not garner Southland Defensive Player of the Week, Eddie was named FedEx Ground FCS National Defensive Player of the Week honorable mention.
- Eddie has two of the Colonels' four picks this season and the defense is just one shy of matching last year's total.

BERNARD NAMED CAMPBELL SEMIFINALIST
The National Football Foundation (NFF) announced its 2023 Semifinalists for the William V. Campbell Trophy and Colonel defensive lineman Zack Bernard was included on that list.
- Celebrating its 34th year, the Campbell Trophy® recognizes an individual as the absolute best football scholar-athlete in the nation for his combined academic success, football performance and exemplary leadership.
- Nominees must have at least 3.2 GPA out of a 4.0 scale.
- Bernard has a 3.64 GPA as an allied health major.

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