McNeese Turning Focus to Weber State Loss at ULL

Lake Charles, Louisiana (KNGT-FM) - After proving they can at least hang with the bigger competitors, Matt Viator is looking to turn the page and put Saturday's game in the rearview mirror.

Outside of a few minutes to end each half, McNeese proved that they could hang, even with less talent, with the likes of the bigger competitors.

READ MORE: See Full 2025 McNeese Football Schedule

McNeese Head Coach Matt Viator says his team showed effort and toughness in Saturday’s loss at UL, but admits there’s plenty to clean up before the Cowboys hit the road again this weekend.

“We didn’t run the ball well enough. They ran it better than we did, and they stopped the run better than we did,” Viator said. “We also hurt ourselves with penalties and field position. That first kickoff return we gave up, and then the botched play before the half, those were two critical moments.”

Despite the miscues, Viator praised the Cowboys’ energy and conditioning. “I thought our effort was great, our competitive spirit was really good, and we overcame some adversity,” he said. “Our conditioning was also better than I expected. We handled 60 minutes pretty well.”

McNeese trailed by just seven heading into the fourth quarter, but the Cajuns were able to pull away late.

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Now the Cowboys turn their focus to Weber State. The Wildcats are 0-2 after opening at James Madison and Arizona.

“They’re a typical Big Sky team—big, physical, a lot of size up front,” Viator said. Defensively, they return seven starters and have some talented defensive ends. On offense, they’ve got fewer returning starters but a quarterback I really like, Jackson Gilkey, a Texas kid we looked at in the portal.”

McNeese will take on the Wildcats on Saturday Night inside Navarre Stadium. The game is slated for a 7:00 p.m. kickoff and can be seen on ESPN+ or heard on the McNeese Sports Network, featuring Tom Hoefer and Mark Young on 92.9 The Lake.