WEEK 11 SCHEDULE
Northwestern State at Southeastern 12 p.m.
Nicholls at HCU 2 p.m.
Lamar at #8/8 UIW 2 p.m.
Stephen F AAustin at East Texas A&M 3:30 p.m
All Times Central
THE OPENING DRIVE
Do The Walt
One of the best wide receivers in all of FCS made a national impact in the most interesting way as Jalen Walthall’s touchdown celebration, “The Walt” made waves across the football landscape. After scoring again HCU, Walthall hit a perfectly straight headstand while slowly falling forward, a celebration that took the internet by storm. So much to the point that NFL wide receivers Drake London of the Atlanta Falcons and AmonRa St. Brown of the Detroit Lions hit their own iteration last Sunday. Walthall also made an appearance on Sportscenter on Wednesday afternoon.
East Texas Showdown
A true East Texas rivalry makes it return to the gridiron on Saturday afternoon as SFA travel to the former Texas A&M-Commerce, now remained East Texas A&M as of Thursday, November 7. The Lumberjacks and Lions met every season since 1926, with exception to World War II, through 1983, when the rivalry halted as SFA moved to the Southland Conference. The two squads met for the first time as Division I opponents last season, with SFA winning 56-27, and will meet as conference opponents this Saturday, though it will count as a non-conference contest in the standings.
The Word Continues to Climb
UIW continues to make its case for a Top 8 seed as they climbed to No. 8 in both the Stats Perform and AFCA Polls, after checking in at No. 9 a week ago in the Selection Committee’s only mid-season poll. The Word will actually conclude its home season this weekend against a tough Lamar squad before closing the season on the road at SFA and East Texas A&M. The Cardinals could clinch the conference’s title and AQ next weekend in Nacogdoches, provided Southeastern defeats Northwestern State.
Playoff Resumes
As the season dwindles, both SFA and Southeastern continue to make claims for potential At Large bids to the FCS playoffs. The Lumberjackers enter at 6-3 with only two FCS losses, while the Lions are 5-5 with a 5-3 mark in FCS play and one of the toughest schedules in the nation. Along with UIW, all three Southland schools will look to pad their resume and punch their ticket to the postseason come late November.
2024 SOUTHLAND PLAYERS OF THE WEEK
OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK:
ROY ALEXANDER, UIW • WR • GR • FORT MYERS, FLORIDA
• Roy Alexander tallied a career-high three touchdowns against HCU. Alexander hauled in a pair of touchdowns in the 2nd quarter, opening it with a 26-yard score and closing the second with a nine-yard score as UIW posted 21 points in the quarter alone. He added his third score of the day in the 3rd quarter as UIW pulled away for the win. He finished the day with seven catches for 89 yards
Other nominees:
DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK:
CORYELL PIERCE, SOUTHEASTERN • DB • SR • NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA
Coryell Pierce returned an interception 50 yards for a touchdown while also finishing with five tackles in Southeastern’s 30-27 overtime victory over Lamar. The pick came in the second quarter with the Lions trailing 7-0 as Pierce baited and stepped in front of the would-be pass and scampered untouched for six. It was his second of the season and the New Orleans native is fourth on the team with 54 tackles.
Other nominees:
SPECIAL TEAMS PLAYER OF THE WEEK:
CALLUM EDDINGS, SFA • P • JR • IVANHOE EAST, VICTORIA, AUSTRALIA
• In the Lumberjacks’ 28-12 win over Nicholls in Thibodaux, the junior from Australia totaled six punts for 301 yards for a 50.2 yard average, including two punts inside the 20-yard line. He had a career-high 64-yard punt to the Colonels 21-yard line in the third quarter. He seems to enjoy punting in Louisiana, averaging 52.0 yards per punt at Southeastern and 50.2 at Nicholls.
