Colonel Football hits the road for TCU

The Nicholls State University football team begins its month away from Guidry Stadium with a trip to Texas to take on TCU for the first time in school history. The Horned Frogs are the first of two straight FBS opponents for the Colonels as the Red and Gray will head to Tulane following an upcoming bye week. The first-ever meeting between the schools will air on Big 12 Now on ESPN+ and can be listened to on ESPN Radio New Orleans 100.3 FM.

Nicholls will be looking to snap its current seven-game losing streak against FBS opponents while claiming its fifth FBS win since 2000. The last victory for the Red and Gray came in an overtime win at Big 12 member Kansas to start the ’18 season. The Colonels lost the following year at Kansas State and then went 0-2 in ’21 and ’22, falling to Memphis, Louisiana, South Alabama and ULM. Although Nicholls fell short against the Ragin’ Cajuns in ’21, they took UL down to the wire in a 27-24 loss. The Colonels also had close calls in 2016, dropping a 26-24 game at No. 9 Georgia before their 41-40 overtime loss at South Alabama. The other three victories were against Arkansas State (’01), Rice (’07) and Western Michigan (’13).

The Colonels are coming off a 38-24 home loss to No. 10/8 Sacramento State last Thursday to open the 2023 campaign. The Hornets built a 17-0 advantage before Nicholls made it a 17-10 game in the third quarter. Sac State countered by scoring three straight touchdowns before the Colonels added a pair of late scores to make the final. In his first start as a Colonel, quarterback Pat McQuaide threw for 196 yards which included an 84-yard touchdown to Terry Matthews. Despite finishing with less than 100 yards as a team, both backs had solid outings as Collin Guggenheimtotaled 74 yards rushing and Jaylon Spears had 42 yards and a touchdown. The defense picked up a big turnover in the third quarter as newcomer Kershawn Fisher had an interception and return to the Sac State 12, setting up a rushing TD by McQuaide. But the Hornets went on to outgain Nicholls in total yards, 441-293, for their 20th straight regular season victory.

TCU put together a historic season in 2022 where they reached the championship game of the College Football Playoff after going undefeated in the regular season. The Horned Frogs fell in the Big 12 title game to Kansas State but still landed in the playoffs and defeated Michigan in the opening game. TCU then fell to Georgia in the title match, ending their season with a 13-2 record. The Horned Frogs entered this year with a No. 17 preseason ranking before dropping a shootout in their opening game at home against Colorado. The loss snapped a nine-game home winning streak at Amon G. Carter Stadium.

A WIN OVER TCU WOULD…

… improve head coach Tim Rebowe‘s record in road openers to 3-6 overall and 2-6 vs. FBS (0-47 at ULM ’15, 24-26 at No. 9 Georgia ’16, 26-23 at Kansas ’18, 14-49 at Kansas State ’19, 17-42 at Memphis ’21, 7-48 at South Alabama ’22). The other win came at Northwestern State in the spring ’21 season.
… be the fifth win for Nicholls over an FBS team since 2000. The Colonels have defeated Arkansas State (’01), Rice (’07), Western Michigan (’13) and Kansas (’18).
… give the Colonels a 2-1 record vs. the Big XII under Coach Rebowe. Nicholls defeated Kansas in overtime in 2018, 26-23, before falling at Kansas State a year later, 49-14.
… improve Rebowe’s record vs. Texas schools to 28-15. The Colonels are 0-2 in road FBS games in Texas, falling 24-14 at Texas A&M in ’17 and 24-3 at Texas State in ’19.

BY THE NUMBERS

3 — Nicholls has three Texas natives on the roster – running back John Carrington III (San Antonio), linebacker Quinton Sharkey (Houston) and wide receiver Tyren Montgomery (Spring).

4 — The Colonels have four wins over FBS programs since 2000. Nicholls picked up victories at Arkansas State (’01), Rice (’07), Western Michigan (’13) and Kansas (’18). Since the overtime win at Kansas, Nicholls has dropped the last seven FBS matchups.

69.3 — Receiver Terry Matthews had three touchdown catches in his Colonel career, averaging an impressive 69.3 yards per TD. In the opener against Sacramento State, Matthews scored the final touchdown of the game on an 84-yard yard catch. Last season, his first career TD was for 35 yards at Northwestern State and then added an 89-yarder in the home win over McNeese.

TCU CONNECTIONS

– Colonel wide receiver Quincy Brown began his career in Fort Worth, spending a season-plus with the Horned Frogs. He had 121 yards on 12 receptions as a freshman with one TD, then caught two TDs  in ’22 in a win over Tarleton… The Destrehan product made his debut for the Colonels last weekend, catching three passes for 22 yards. He also drew a pass interference that led to the Colonels’ field goal scoring drive before halftime.

– TCU linebacker Terrance Cooks Jr.’s father played for Nicholls from 1985-88 and still ranks on the Colonels’ all-time tackle list with 323 for his career. Terrance Sr. led the team in ’88 with 122 stops and was named All-Louisiana Second Team.

– Nicholls has three Texas natives on their roster while TCU has eight Louisiana products on theirs.

HISTORY VS. THE BIG 12

With all of the current realignment, the Colonels have had a handful of games against current Big 12 programs and a few former members.
– In the last decade, Nicholls won 26-23 at Kansas in overtime in the 2018 opener and in the ’19 opener, fell at Kansas State, 49-14.
– The Colonels played against former and future league member Colorado in 2015 and were handed a 48-0 loss.
– In ’07, Nicholls fell at former member Nebraska, 56-7.
– Nicholls is 2-2 all-time against UCF with the matchups taking place in ’82, ’83, ’92 and ’99.

COLONEL DEBUTS

Several Colonels had notable debuts in the opener against Sacramento State.
– On offense, QB Pat McQuaide completed 15 of 29 passes for 196 yards with one TD and one interception. He also rushed for a 4-yard TD in the third quarter.
-WRs Tyren Montgomery and Quincy Brown each had three receptions. Montgomery had 40 yards receiving while Brown totaled 22.
– On defense, Kershawn Fisher had an interception and returned it 38 yards to the Sac State 12, leading to a Colonel TD.
– Safety Devonte’ Mathews totaled six tackles and cornerback Kendarius Smith had two stops and a break up.

STAY SOCIAL
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Nicholls Colonels at TCU Horned Frogs
Fort Worth, Texas (Amon G. Coleman Stadium)
Saturday, September 9 at 7 p.m. CT
Nicholls Game Notes (PDF) | TCU Game Notes(PDF)
TV: Big 12 Now on ESPN+ LINK 
Audio: ESPN Radio New Orleans 100.3 FM   |   TuneIn
Live Stats: Link