After facing bad weather conditions and losing on the road to Sam Houston State University and at home to Northwestern State University, the Colonels will travel to Beaumont, Texas to take on Lamar University.

The Colonels held the Bearkats and Demons below 100 yards passing in two straight games. As a result of the weather in those games, the opposition was forced to rely on their rushing attacks. Head coach Tim Rebowe said the change in weather affected his game plan against the Demons at home as well.

“I can’t be a weatherman, I’ll tell you that,” Rebowe said. “After the team talk at half time, I checked the radar and it said the rain was moving north of us. As soon as we looked out and saw those black clouds, I knew we were in trouble.”

The Demons brought in their backup quarterback after starter Stephen Rivers was intercepted by Colonel defensive back Chris Major on the first drive of the game. However, Demon running back De’Mard Llorens rushed for 166 yards and four touchdowns to keep the game out of reach. Rebowe said the interception had an unintended effect on the Demon game plan.

“When they brought in the backup quarterback, he changed the game significantly,” Rebowe said. “He opened up that run game, and we had to make a few adjustments before it came back to Rivers. If you knock the starting quarterback out of the game and the backup comes in, you have to be prepared for it.”

The Colonels are first in the Southland Conference in passing defense, with 190 yards allowed per game. While the weather in the last two games had an effect on their ranking, they have been top four all year in that category. Rebowe said the whole team needs to be involved in stopping the run game as well.

“Our defensive backs and safeties know they have to be involved in stopping the run as well,” Rebowe said. “On one of their biggest plays of the game, our defensive back missed a tackle and it ended up being a big touchdown run. You can’t have those situations happen and expect to win the game.”

Colonel runningback Michael Henry rushed for a career high 154 yards and scored both a receiving and rushing touchdown against the Demons. The Colonels have scored all 10 rushing touchdowns in the last four weeks. Rebowe praised the senior running back for his performance.

“He’s a little banged up, but he won’t take a play off,” Rebowe said. “What a tremendous leader we have in him.”

Lamar features the top rushing offense in the Southland Conference, headlined by all-conference candidate Kade Harrington. The Colonels will play the Cardinals on the road at 6 p.m. on Saturday. Rebowe said they need to control the clock to win the game.

“They have one of the best runningbacks in the country,” Rebowe said. “We will see if the weather plays a factor, and we need to control the ball and keep them off the field.”

The Colonels have reached over 350 yards of total offense in each of their last three games. Rebowe said they are focusing on the current season and will keep trying to improve every game.

“We still have three games to go, and we want to win each three,” Rebowe said. “We will take a step back once this season ends and see how far we have come.”