The Nicholls State offensive seniors will miss the vibe in the locker room.
They will miss the friendships they created through the sweat on the field and the brotherly bond that football forms. For quarterback/wide receiver LaQuintin Caston, running back Jesse Turner, wide receiver Andrew Wynn, offensive lineman Gerald Gruenig, wide receiver Aldaro Russell and wide receiver Chucky Nichols, this has been  life for four years.
“I’m just going to miss coming out of the tunnels on Saturday and being around the guys. Listening to characters on this team and watching guys make plays is what I’ll miss the most,” Wynn said.
The seniors agreed that the highlight of those four years came against Texas State in 2010.
“The favorite memory has to be, hands down, Texas State,” Turner said.
The Colonels topped the Bobcats 47-45 after playing four overtimes. At the time, Caston was quarterback, and he turned in a four-touchdown performance to lead the Colonels to victory.
“That’s probably one of the most memorable games I had at Nicholls,” Caston said.
The winning two-point conversion was a pass to fellow senior Nichols.
“I caught the game-winning touchdown against Texas State, so that’s my favorite memory,” Nichols said.
That was the most memorable game, but most of the seniors agreed that the most memorable play was by Turner.
“I’d have to say it was three years ago against South Alabama. It was a double screen and Jesse (Turner) turned and took it for 95 yards out of the gate,” Russell said.
“I’m going to keep that highlight to show my kids,” Turner said.
Though this group of seniors had their ups, they certainly had their downs as well. The last four years, the Colonels have won nine games and missed the playoffs. Though they faced adversity, head coach Charlie Stubbs said they continued to work hard, and he appreciates them all.
“I know we didn’t win as many games as I wish we would have won, but I know that they don’t have any quit in them,” Stubbs said.
Though they worked hard, Gruenig admitted that practice will not be missed. Gruenig said he loved playing in games and being with the guys, but practice is rough for an offensive lineman, as it should be.
“Practice is practice. I understand practice, but practice sucks,” Gruenig said. “That’s just the way it is. Coach knows that practice isn’t easy for the offensive line, and it isn’t supposed to be. I understand that and don’t complain about it, but I will miss the locker room. All the stories and arguments, I’m going to miss that a lot.”
Along with those stories and arguments come stories that seniors love to tell. Though they like to keep those embaressing stories in the locker room, a few seniors couldn’t help but share a few.
Turner said that the Colonels have a large “N” in the locker room, and every time someone steps on it, they have to kiss it. Turner said that one day Coach Stubbs stepped on the “N,” and not even the head coach could escape without kissing the “N.”
But perhaps the most amusing story came when the Colonels traveled to take on the Air Force and stopped to get something to eat.
“We had the “N” on our travel shirts,” Russell said. “There was a son and a mom there, and the mom goes ‘hey, are you guys Nebraska?’ And the little kid goes, ‘no mom, they’re too small to be Nebraska.'”
Though these Colonels did not win as many games as they would have liked, they all agreed that the bonds they formed in the locker room will be surely missed.