• Coming off a win over in-state rival McNeese, the Nicholls State University football team will aim for a third league victory as the Colonels host the HCU Huskies for Homecoming. Nicholls and HCU have two common opponents this season -- EKU and McNeese. Both fell to EKU while Nicholls knocked off McNeese last week, 31-7, and the Huskies were shut out on the road. Kickoff is scheduled for 3 p.m. and the game will air on ESPN+.

• Nicholls put an end to a six-game skid with a dominating 24-point win over McNeese in its first home game in nearly two months. The Colonels racked up a season-high 464 yards of offense and did most of its damage on the ground with 303 rushing yards, led by running back Miequle Brock Jr. who rushed for 104 yards on 17 carries. Making his first career start at quarterback, Ean Rodrigue put Nicholls on top early with a 34-yard touchdown run. Then with a 10-7 lead in the third quarter, Ty Marsh scored on a 45-yard interception return. Nicholls added a TD run by Shane Lee before Rodrigue threw his second career touchdown pass, connecting with Karaaz Johnson for a 69-yard score. Nicholls limited McNeese to 264 yards, 11 first downs and 3 of 10 on third down. Jake Dalmado led the unit with 10 tackles while Marsh had the lone sack to go along with his interception.

• HCU comes to Thibodaux looking for its first road SLC win since 2023. The Huskies defeated Northwestern State, 20-17, for their first Southland victory of the season but have since lost to McNeese and Southeastern. HCU is led by redshirt freshman running back Xai'Shaun Edwards, who was recently named to the Watch List for the Jerry Rice Award, presented annually to the top freshman in the FCS. Edwards leads the Southland with 99.3 yards rushing per game and nine rushing TDs.

• The meeting will be the 11th all-time between the Colonels and Huskies. HCU won the first-ever meeting in 2014 before Nicholls went on to win nine straight. The Huskies ended their drought last year with a 24-21 win, hitting a 50-yard field goal in the final minute. Although Nicholls has had the upperhand in the series, three of the games have been determined by a late field goal including one in double overtime, and the Colonels also won on a touchdown catch as time expired.

A WIN OVER HCU WOULD...

... give the Colonels a 6-0 record at home all-time against the Huskies.
... put Nicholls at 10-2 in the all-time series vs. HCU.
... improve the Colonels' home record this season to 3-1.
... be head coach Tommy Rybacki's third career victory.

BY THE NUMBERS

10 -- Jake Dalmado totaled a team-high 10 tackles in the win over McNeese and now has four straight games with at least 10 tackles. Dalmado ranks third in the SLC and is 31st in the NCAA with 8.8 tackles per game.

34 -- Quarterback Ean Rodrigue started the scoring against McNeese with a 34-yard touchdown run. It was his second career rushing TD and matched his longest rush of 34 yards last season when he ran for a TD against Mississippi Valley State.

104 -- Running back Miequle Brock Jr. registered his third career 100-yard game, rushing for 104 yards on 17 carries in the win over McNeese. It was his first this season and second against the Cowboys.

303 -- The Colonels rushed for a season-high 303 yards in the victory against McNeese. It was the most rushing yards for Nicholls in SLC play since its 2023 home finale' when they racked up 349 against Lamar.

LAST MEETING
Nov. 9, 2024
HCU -- 24
Nicholls -- 21

HOUSTON - A 50-yard field goal with a minute remaining gave HCU its first lead of the day and Nicholls was unable to tie it back up after its own attempts as the Colonels suffered a 24-21 loss on Saturday afternoon at Husky Field. (FULL RECAP)

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