Week 11 McNeese Football Game Notes vs East Texas A&M

(KHLA - Lake Charles, Louisiana) - The Pokes are looking to make it two-in-a-row tomorrow as they face off against another conference foe, the East Texas A&M Lions.

The Cowboys will be heading to Commerce, Texas this weekend looking to put together their first back-to-back win this season.

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Week 11 McNeese Football Game Notes vs East Texas A&M

VIATOR COLLECTS CAREER WIN NO. 100
• McNeese head coach Matt Viator recorded his 100th career victory last Saturday in the Cowboys’ 50-3 win over Northwestern State.
• To date, Viator has compiled a 100-78 overall record which includes an 81-39 mark in his 11 seasons at McNeese.
• His 81 wins are the most in school history and the third-most of any coach in Southland Conference history (99 by Ron Randleman, Sam Houston State, 1987-2004; 83 by Sam Goodwin, Northwestern State, 1987-99).
• Viator has won a league-record 56 Southland Conference only games and has compiled a 56-21 overall mark in league games.

GAME OVERVIEW
• McNeese hits the road for the second time in three weeks when it visits East Texas A&M on Saturday at 4 p.m. on ESPN+.
• The Cowboys are looking to win their second-straight game for the first time this season after defeating Northwestern State 50-3 last Saturday.
• McNeese is 0-4 away from home this year, getting outscored by a 147-41 margin, although two of those losses were to FBS schools (34-10 at ULL, 48-7 at Utah State).
• The Cowboys’ last win on the road was Nov. 16, 2024 in a 35-3 win at Northwestern State
• In last Saturday’s win, McNeese rushed for a season-high 313 yards on 46 carries, marking the second time this season to surpass 300 yards rushing in a game (305 vs. Louisiana Christian in the season opener).
• It was also the fourth time to run for 250 yards or more this year.

McNEESE vs. EAST TEXAS - The Series
• Saturday’s game will be the 6th meeting in the series with East Texas A&M leading by a 3-2 margin.
• McNeese has yet to win in Commerce, going 0-2 in the previous meetings but has only played at the Lions’ home stadium once as Southland Conference opponents, that coming in 2023 when ETAM won by a 41-10 score.
• The series began back in 1970 when East Texas A&M was known as East Texas State.
• McNeese defeated East Texas A&M 31-3 last season in Lake Charles.

PHILLIP BRADFORD GARNERS SLC DEFENSE WEEKLY HONORS
• Junior defensive lineman Phillip Garner made his first career start a memorable one as he was named the SLC Defensive Player of the Week along with STATS national defensive POW honorable mention honors after recording 2 sacks, 4.5 tackles for a loss and a team-high 6 total tackles.
• Bradford currently leads the Southland Conference with 1.22 tackles for a loss per game which also ranks him 21st in the FCS.
• For the season, Bradford has accumulated 11 tackles for a loss and four sacks, both team highs... 10 of those TFLs are solo tackles.

READ MORE: Details on the new I-10 Bridge Project

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COWBOY SLC PLAYERS OF THE WEEK

QUICK HITS
• Did not get penalized one time against NSU last time out.
• Ran for a season-high 313 yards against the Demons, averaging 6.8 yards per carry.
• Had five players rush for 40 yards or more in the game.
• Five different players scored at least one rushing TD.
• McNeese’s passing defense is ranked 16th in the FCS with allowing just 175 yards per game.
• Punt return defense is 9th in the FCS with allowing only 3.0 yards per return.
• 30th in FCS in red-zone defense at 77%.
• 20 sacks on the season is the 4th-most in the league this year and with three games remaining, matches the total number for all of last season.
• 182.0 ypg rushing ranks No. 2 in the SLC and 33rd in FCS.
• Ranked No. 1 in the SLC and 17th nationally with 4.22 tackles for loss allowed per game.
• No. 1 in SLC and 6th in FCS in net punting with a 41.3 average.
• McNeese is 26 for 26 on PATs this season.
• Punter Fabrizio Pinton is 2nd in the Southland and is ranked No. 26 in the FCS with a 43.1 average... Pinton has downed 11 punts inside the 20 this season and has booted five going for 50 yards or more with a long of 69 (vs. HCU).
• McNeese is No. 1 in the SLC and 19th in FCS in 4th-down conversions (14 for 22 for 64 percent).
• McNeese is the only team in the Southland with four players ranked in the top 20 in rushing: Coleby Hamm is 6th with 46.9, Tre’Vonte Citizen is 8th with a 45.1 average, Bryce Strong is 13th with 38.9 ypg, and QB Jake Strong is 17th at 33.7.
• Quarterback Jake Strong has scored 6 rushing TDs, 3rd-most in the league and ranked 61st in the FCS.
• J. Strong is 3rd in the league and 58th in the FCS in total offense with a 207.2 average.
• WR Jonathan Harris has made 5 TD catches this year ranking as the 3rd-most in the SLC among all receivers.
• Safety Shoes Brinkley leads the team with three double-digit tackle games this season.
• RB Tre’Vonte Citizen ran for a career-high 117 yards against Weber State and scored on a 79-yard jaunt, the 10th-longest rushing TD in school history.
• Harris recorded career highs against WSU with 7 catches for 114 yards and 2 TDs.

How To Listen To The McNeese State Football Game On The Radio

92.9 The Lake is the official radio home of McNeese Football. Join Tom Hoefer this season for pregame coverage, all the bone-crushing action on the field, and postgame analysis. Tune in your radio every gameday to 92.9 FM, listen on our free mobile app, or stream the Pokes online on our website.

Pregame: 3:00pm   Kickoff: 4:00pm