After receiving an unexpected open date due to Northwestern State canceling the remainder of its football season, McNeese finally returns to action this Saturday when it travels to Hammond for a Southland Conference clash.
The McNeese Cowboys (1-7, 1-3) will be looking to get its first on-the-field victory when it takes on Frank Scelfo’s Southeastern Louisiana Lions (1-7, 1-3), with the game serving as the 50th meeting on the gridiron between the two programs. McNeese earned its win due to a forfeit by NSU while SLU earned its win on the field, defeating NSU 37-20 back on October 19th.
Kickoff inside Strawberry Stadium is set for 3 p.m.
EXPECT A CLOSE GAME
Before the season, Southeastern Louisiana had emerged as one of the better programs in the SLC, winning conference titles and being nationally ranked in the FCS polls. McNeese meanwhile has struggled to bounce back from the hurricanes that devasted the program. Yet, that hasn’t kept the series from producing five straight close contests. The last five games have been decided by a total of 16 points, with three of them being decided by three points or less. The Lions were victorious in four of those five contests, including the last four in a row.
PROGRAM SWAP
McNeese head coach Gary Goff is very familiar with Southeastern Louisiana. Goff served on Hal Mumme’s staff as Lions’ wide receivers coach in 2003-04, which included a 51-6 victory over the Cowboys during the 2004 season. That’s not the only connection between the two programs. SLU starting tight end Jacob Logan played for McNeese from 2017-19 and appeared in 28 games during that stretch. This season for the Lions, Logan has nine receptions for 117 yards and three touchdowns.
STRAWBERRY STRUGGLES
McNeese has long struggled to win a game inside Strawberry Stadium. The Cowboys enter Saturday’s clash having lost six straight in Hammond. The last victory for McNeese inside Strawberry Stadium was 2010 when the Cowboys won a dramatic 13-10 contest in which kicker Josh Lewis booted a 52-yard field goal as time expired. That victory in 2010 snapped a six-game losing streak in Hammond.
SERIES RECORD: McNeese leads series 25-24
Last Five:
2022: SOUTHEASTERN LOUISIANA 28 – MCNEESE 27
2021: SOUTHEASTERN LOUISIANA 23 – MCNEESE 20
2021: SOUTHEASTERN LOUISIANA 38 – MCNEESE 35
2020: SOUTHEASTERN LOUISIANA 25 – MCNEESE 20
2019: MCNEESE 38 – SOUTHEASTERN LOUISIANA 34
STAT LEADERS
McNeese
Nate Glantz: 71-of-144, 861 yards, 3 TD, 5 INT
D’Angelo Durham: 76 carries, 382 yards, 2 TD
Jon McCall: 23 receptions, 383 yards, 5 TD
Micah Davey: 96 tackles (53 solo), 2 TFL, 1 Sack
Garrison Smith: 6-of-8, Long of 50
Southeastern Louisiana
Eli Sawyer: 106-of-171, 1,368 yards, 6 TD, 5 INT
Zachary Clement: 56 carries, 260 yards, 3 TD
Darius Lewis: 38 receptions, 485 yards, 3 TD
Ian Goodly: 87 tackles (43 solo), 5 TFL
Riley Callaghan: 5-of-8, Long of 31