The Nicholls State University Head Football Coach Tim Rebowe focused on recruiting quality players from the program’s area.

Rebowe said it is easy to recruit locally, and that is something he has said before when he was at Nicholls in the 90s.

“You have to recruit locally to get people in the stands. When football games are over, fans come back to support the program and attend more games. It is really easy to do because there are a lot of talented players in the area,” Rebowe said. “So, we started identifying, and we found some good football players that want to be a part of this program.”

The Colonels signed 28 football players, 26 of which are currently high school students. The other two players are transfers from other universities, but are originally from the local area. The transfers are wide receiver Jarrell Rogers from the University of Louisiana Lafayette, and defensive back, Jeff Hall, from the University of Colorado.

Rebowe said, “We had assistance from the area coaches because they want to see our program succeed too. It was an easy task to find football players that we needed for this recruiting season.”

Nicholls went as little as one mile to recruit fullback Darius Charles, a senior at Edward Douglas White High School. He chose to attend Nicholls because of the relationship he has with his family and the excitement Rebowe is introducing.

“They have made sacrifices for me since the time I was little, now and probably will until I’m 30. I’ve lived in Thibodaux all my life, and I can still walk into any store and recognize someone,” Charles said. “With coach Rebowe coming in with excitement and a new staff, I can tell that they are worried about re-routing the future of the football program and changing people’s opinions on Nicholls. Personally, I want to be a part of something special like that.”
Charles earned All-District three times and earned All-Region in 2013. He also won the Jamie Robichaux Award for dedication and hard work on and off the field.

“I want to bring leadership, I know I will be just a freshman going into the next level of playing. I am excited and hungry to get better to improve as a player,” Charles said.

Rebowe said that Charles is the type of guy that any coach would want to be a part of the team.
“He is another guy that is from the area that we want to identify and be a part of our program. We went around the community and talked to coaches. They said that he was the type of guy you wanted,” Rebowe said. “He is a great team player and had a lot of accolades coming out of high school. He is a guy that will be positive and is going to be of help to our football team.”

In addition to Charles, Nicholls signed two quarterbacks, six offensive linemen, five defensive linemen, three receivers, four linebackers and five defensive backs.

The Colonels will spend the rest of February with weight workouts as well as off-season running and conditioning programs. Next year, the Colonel football program wishes to expand their recruiting grounds.

“We will expand a little further next season, and we will probably get in to the Gulf Coast area a little bit more out of the state of Louisiana. On identifying within a two-hour radius, it was very easy to get out there and find talented players, because they are here,” Rebowe said. “Moving forward means getting to know our players. We have got to know them because the coaches have been on the road recruiting. Now we can spend a lot of time with them, academically and athletically.”