Sept. 7, 2007

THIBODAUX, La. - The Colonels are set to face Southern Arkansas in their 2007 home opener on Saturday September 8 at 6 p.m. in John L. Guidry Stadium on the brand new Manning Field Built by AstroTurf.

"It is not only great to come home and play in front of our own fans, but playing on our new field is a big deal for us as well. The new field is great, and even though we have practiced on it, we are very anxious to play on it," said head coach Jay Thomas.

The Colonels (1-0) return home to face the Mulriders (1-0) after pulling off one of the biggest wins in school history with their 16-14 victory over Rice last weekend. In the game, junior safety Ladarius Webb intercepted a school tying three interceptions and took one the distance for a touchdown.

Southern Arkansas comes into the game after winning its season opener versus Arkansas-Monticello last Saturday by the score of 38-21. The Muleriders trailed 21-7 after the first quarter in the game and scored 31 unanswered points to get the victory. Southern Arkansas successful ran their option offense for a total of 424 yards that included 296 on the ground.

Nicholls and the Muleriders are no strangers to one another having played each other last year with the Colonels winning the contest 35-0. Over the past four seasons, Nicholls has outscored their opponents 196-14 in home openers in John L. Guidry Stadium, which includes three shutouts.

The Colonels have not lost a home opener under Thomas and have not lost a home opener in John L. Guidry Stadium since 1998. In that season's home opener, the Colonels lost 21-20 to Jacksonville State.

In last years contest against the Southern Arkansas, the Colonels finished with 261 total yards on 51 plays, 229 of which came from the ground attack, while the Muleriders totaled 200 yards on 67 plays. Senior Jermaine Boggan intercepted two passes in the win while also recovering a fumble in the end zone for a touchdown. Boggan was named SLC Player of the Week for his role in the victory.

Kick-off is at 6 p.m. and Ken Berthelot will bring you the play-by-play action along with color analysts Seth Thomas and field reporter Brennan Matherne starting with pre-game at 5:30 p.m. on the flagship station at 105.9 FM KBZE. Other stations that are in the Colonels radio network that will carry the game include 100.3 FM KLRZ, 106.3 FM KXOR, 640 AM KTIB, and 1600 AM KLEB. The game can also be heard on the internet at www.kbze.com.

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