McNeese at LSU
7 p.m. • Tiger Stadium • Baton Rouge, La.
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BATON ROUGE – McNeese and LSU will butt heads on Saturday night in Tiger Stadium in a match-up that has been circled for Cowboys quarterback Cody Orgeron's calendar since it was announced on March 21, 2017.
 
At that time, a young Cody was a redshirt freshman on the McNeese squad and running as the third-string quarterback while his father, LSU head coach Ed Orgeron, was in his first full season at the helm of the Tigers program.
 
Fast-forward three years, five months and 21 days (1,269 total days), and for just the second time anyone can remember in recent college football history, a father and son will face-off against each other on the gridiron. The last time it happened was when Jack Elway (head coach of San Jose State) played his son, John Elway (Stanford) back in the 1982 season.
 
"I've always dreamed about playing in Death Valley," said Cody. "Obviously it's a very unique situation playing against my dad, but at the same time, it's just another football game. It's 11-on-11 going out there to fight and compete and, you know, let the best man win. But obviously going out there in an atmosphere like that Death Valley and with it being their first home game of the season with an expected full capacity, I couldn't be more excited."
 
It's not just a father-son affair. Cody's twin brother and former Cowboy receiver, Parker, and step-brother, Tyler, are members of the LSU coaching staff.
 
McNEESE FANS GOING TO THE GAME NEED-TO-KNOW
• LSU had a clear bag policy and does not allow any outside food or drinks. Other prohibited items include backpacks, any kind of containers, video cameras, selfie sticks, tripods, artificial noisemakers including cowbells, umbrellas, weapons, animals except for service, flags, signs, banners, smoking or vaping, illegal drugs.
• Fans must provide proof of Covid-19 vaccination or proof of a negative PCR test to enter the stadium.
• Fans are encouraged to arrive several hours early as the game is expected to draw over 100,000 fans.
• McNeese's will call and ticket pick-up gate will be located at Gate 31 on the south end zone of Tiger Stadium.
 
McNEESE-LSU CONNECTIONS
• Saturday's game will not only pit the Cowboys vs. the Tigers, but also family vs. family and friends vs. friends.
• McNeese QB Cody Orgeron is the son of LSU head coach Ed Orgeron.
• Head coach Frank Wilson was an assistant coach at LSU from 2010-15 and recruited, evaluated, coached and developed players such as Odell Beckham, Jr., Alfred Blue, Leonard Fournette, Benjarvis Green-Ellis, Derrius Guice, Jeremy Hill, Kenny Hilliard, Jarvis Landry, Tyrann Mathieu, Spencer Ware, and Jarveon Williams, just to name a few.
• OL coach Chris Truax was a starting offensive lineman at LSU from 1988-91; his father, Billy Truax, was an All-SEC tight end for the Tigers in the early 60s.
• WR coach Blaine Gauthier worked for LSU coach Ed Orgeron as an offensive analyst from 2015-19 and was a member of the 2019 national championship coaching staff.
• WR Josh Mathews is the son of former LSU and NFL defensive lineman Roshaun Mathews. Josh's younger brother, Jordan (DB), is being recruited by LSU for the Class of 2023.
• TE Jamal Pettigrew played three years for Ed Orgeron at LSU from 2016-19.
• LB Micah Davey is the son of former LSU quarterback Rohan Davey.
• WR Chris Raymond is the son of Corey Raymond, the DB coach at LSU and former Tiger cornerback from 1987-91.
• LB Jake LaFleur is the son of former LSU/NFL tight end David LaFleur.
• DB Tyler Toliver is a relative of former LSU star Kevin Toliver.
• DL Accord Green is a relative of former LSU great Jarvis Green.
• McNeese SID, Matthew Bonnette, is the younger brother of LSU SID Michael Bonnette. Their father is Hall of Fame SID Louis Bonnette who spent 46 years as the SID at McNeese before retiring in 2012. The field at McNeese's Cowboy Stadium is named Louis Bonnette Field, making it the only one in the country named after a SID.
 
SERIES VS. LSU
• Saturday will officially be the second meeting between McNeese and LSU, but the third scheduled matchup in the school's history.
• LSU leads the all-time series 1-0 (32-10 win on Oct. 16, 2010).
• A scheduled game on Sept. 2, 2015, was halted due to severe weather following a 3 hour, 57 minute delay.
• Each team put together an offensive series before the delay began with LSU running six plays and had one first down while the Cowboys went 3-and-out in their series.
 
POKES VS. THE FBS
• McNeese has had some success against teams from the FBS level.
• Overall, the Cowboys have posted an 14-30-2 record against the upper division teams but is 2-3 in the last five outings, including a near shocker over Nebraska in 2014 when the Cornhuskers scored in the final minute to pull out a 31-24 win.
• The Cowboys do have a win over a major conference team when in 2013, routed South Florida 53-21 in Tampa. At the time, South Florida was a BCS conference member. That win was the largest by an FCS opponent over a BCS team in college football history.
• Three of the games came in Independence Bowl matchups - 1976 (beat Tulsa 20-16 in very first Independence Bowl game; lost 31-7 to Syracuse in 1979 game; lost 16-14 to Southern Mississippi in 1980 game.
 
COWBOYS VS. THE SEC
• Saturday's game against LSU will mark the second meeting between the two schools and the fourth against a member of the SEC.
• The Cowboys fell 32-10 to the Tigers in 2010. Also that year, McNeese dropped a 50-6 game at Missouri, who was a member of the Big 12 Conference at the time.
• In 2001, the Cowboys put a scare into Texas A&M before falling 38-24. The Aggies were also a member of the Big 12 Conference when they met to open up the season.
• In upcoming schedules, the Cowboys are scheduled to play at the Florida Gators (Sept. 9, 2023) and at Texas A&M (Sept. 7, 2024).