Off to the best start in five years with a 3-1 record, the Colonels are looking to make a statement in their first conference game of the season against the Northwestern State University Demons on Saturday in John L. Guidry Stadium. Nicholls (3-1, 0-0 SLC) had a bye date last Saturday while Northwestern State (2-2, 1-0 SLC) lost to Texas Tech 75-7 in Lubbock.
“Coach Stoker has a very talented football team and we know that they are going to be a very tough and well prepared team,” head coach Jay Thomas said.
In the last five seasons, the Colonels are 4-1 when coming off a bye week and 3-2 against Northwestern State.
The Colonels started out the 2007 season strong with a 16-14 upset win over Rice University.
Following the win over the Owls, the Colonels defeated Southern Arkansas 31-13 in their home opener.
The team then took on the road to face the Nevada Wolfpack and after blowing an early 10-point lead, Nicholls lost 52-17.
The Colonels rebounded from the loss in the following week with a 30-28 home win over Azusa Pacific.
In the game against Azusa Pacific, Colonel fans saw junior safety Ladarius Webb share time with sophomore quarterback Zach Chauvin as quarterback.
In his first game starting as a collegiate quarterback, Webb was named SLC Offensive Player of Week after rushing for 120 yards on seven carries with one touchdown.
In week one Webb had three interceptions, one of which was returned for a touchdown. He was named SLC Defensive Player of the Week following the performance. He is the only player in SLC history to win both awards in the same season.
Webb leads the conference in interceptions with three, kick returns with a 28.2-yard average and in punt returns with 12.7-yard mark. He is also ranked second in all-purpose yards with 507.
Senior fullback Broderick Cole has also been solid this season and currently stands in eighth place on the all-time rushing list with 1,690 yards.
Cole needs 66 yards to pass Corey Thomas for seventh place. The fullback is ranked eighth on the all-time scoring list with a total of 150 points.
The Colonels’ offensive coordinator H.T. Kinney said the bye week was beneficial for the team.
“The bye week has helped us get more repetitions and practice at the quarterback position, which we really needed,” Kinney said. “It has also given some of our players the time to heal from some injuries.”
Nicholls has struggled thus far in the red zone. Out of 14 trips beyond the opponents’ 20-yard line, the Colonels have scored only six touchdowns and two field goals to rank last in the SLC.
The Colonels pass defense is unmatched with seven interceptions and allowing only 51% of passes completed.
A probable factor in the Colonels’ success is improvement in the turnover margin. In 2006, the Colonels ranked dead last in the SLC with a turnover margin of -13. In the first four games of this season, Nicholls is ranked third with a +3 margin.
The Colonels are ranked No. 17 in the Sports Network Poll this week moving up from No. 23 following their off week.
Other ranked Southland Conference schools include McNeese State at sixth and Sam Houston State at 19th.
The Demons come into the contest unranked, but are currently on top the conference standings after beating Central Arkansas (1-3, 0-1) 31-28 in week two.
After the Northwestern State game, the Colonels will have two home games remaining on the schedule. Nicholls will play McNeese on Oct. 20 and host Texas State on Nov. 10.
The game against Northwestern State will be televised by Cox sports. There has not been a televised game since Oct. 29, 2005 when Nicholls defeated Texas State 32-29 in overtime.
Kickoff is slated for 2 p.m. in John L. Guidry Stadium.
