WEEK 7 SCHEDULE
Texas A&M-Commerce at Northwestern State 2 p.m.
Southeastern at HCU 2 p.m.
SFA at #22 Lamar 3 p.m.
Nicholls at #15/15 UIW 6 p.m.
CONFERENCE NOTES
National Game of the Week
No. 15/15 UIW has won 19 of their last 20 contests since 2021 with their one loss coming at the hand of RV/RV Nicholls last season, 45-32, leading the Colonels to the conference title. The two squads will meet again in San Antonio with Stats Perform naming this contest the FCS Game of the Week. It is a battle of the previous two Southland Champions, with UIW sharing the title in 2022 and Nicholls claiming it outright in 2023.
Historic Huskies
In the last two seasons, the HCU Huskies have been all about making school history and that was no different last Saturday night. Behind a big offensive night with 622 yards of total offense including a school-record 414 rushing yards, the Huskies routed No. 22/24 McNeese, 43-22, inside Husky Stadium to earn their first-ever win over a nationaly-ranked opponent. Eli Brickhandler and Calvin Hill each finished with over 100 yards rushing, while three other backs had 40 yards or more.
Fedor Earns National Honors
On top of the incredible performance, HCU senior placekicker Dillon Fedor was named Stats Perform FCS National Special Teams Player of the Week following a standout performance against McNeese. Fedor totaled 19 points with his right foot for the highest-scoring game by an FCS kicker so far this season. He staked HCU to an early 6-0 lead with a pair of field goals, including a season-high 45-yarder. He then connected for another in the third quarter and two more in the fourth.
SFA Claims “The Chief”
The renewed conference rivalry of SFA and Northwestern State returned last Saturday evening to Homer Bryce Stadium as the Lumberjacks rolled past their rivals, 59-17, behind Sam Vidlak’s four touchdown passes to claim the brand new rivalry trophy hailed as “The Chief,” replacing the former and retired “Chief Caddo.” Designed by chainsaw artist Della Meredith, the new trophy has the same 7-foot-6, 320-pound dimensions as the original, commissioned by both universities in 1960, and is topped with a pitchfork on one end and an axe on the other.
2024 SOUTHLAND PLAYERS OF THE WEEK
OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK:
ELI BRICKHANDLER, HCU • QB • R-SO • STOCKTON, CALIFORNIA
• Eli Brickhandler led the Huskies to their 43-22 win over No. 22 McNeese with a career-high 138 yards rushing, the 10th-highest single-game rushing total in program history, while throwing for 159 yards and a touchdown as HCU rolled up 414 yards on the ground. Brickhandler averaged 6.3 yards per carry and 22.7 yards per completion in the Huskies first-ever win over a nationally-ranked opponent.
Other nominees:
DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK:
LAURENCE SULLIVAN JR., NICHOLLS • CB • JR • VICKSBURG, MISSISSIPPI
• Laurence Sullivan Jr. registered two picks in the second quarter as the defense totaled four turnovers in the half. Sullivan ended a drive with a diving interception before returning his second pick 30 yards to set up the final TD of the half for a 38-0 advantage. Although Nicholls has 12 interceptions on the season, Sullivan is the first player with two in the 2024 campaign.
Other nominees:
SPECIAL TEAMS PLAYER OF THE WEEK:
DILLON FEDOR, HCU • K • SR • HENDERSON, NEVADA
• The Huskies got a kick out of Dillon Fedor’s perfection in a 43-22 win over then-No. 22 McNeese – the 11th-year program’s first-ever over a nationally ranked opponent. He was 5 of 5 on field goals, with a long of 45 yards, and 4 of 4 on PATs for 19 points, the 2024 high for an FCS kicker. He also averaged 65.0 yards on 10 kickoffs, including five that went for touchbacks.
Other nominees:
