McNeese (1-1) vs. ^#4/5 Tarleton State (2-0)
Saturday, September 12, 2026 • 6 p.m.
Louis Bonnette Field at Navarre Stadium • Lake Charles, La.
Salute To Service Game
 
Broadcast Information:
TV: ESPN+ (LINK) - Chaston Tavares (PxP), Cody Stroud (Analyst), Lexi Arabie (Sideline Reporter)
Radio: 92.9 The Lake and 929thelake.com (Link) – Tom Hoefer (PxP), Mark Young (Analyst)
Live Stats: StatBroadcast (Link)
Media Central: (Link)
Tickets: (Link)
Digital Program: (Link)
 
 
LAKE CHARLES - McNeese will wrap up its season-starting three-game home stand on Saturday night when it hosts No. 4/5 Tarleton State.
 
Kickoff is schedule for 6 p.m. in Navarre Stadium.
 
The Cowboys (1-1) are coming off a 52-0 shutout win over Texas Wesleyan on Saturday while Tarleton State (2-0) went on the road to beat FBS Bowling Green 20-13. With a No. 4 ranking in the FCS STATS Perform Top 25 poll (No. 5 in AFCA Coaches Poll), the Texans are the highest-ranked opponent in Navarre Stadium since McNeese defeated No. 2 Sam Houston State 31-23 in the 2013 season.
 
"Tarleton is a really good team," said head coach Matt Viator. "What impressed me right off the bat, in their first two games, they won two different ways which is always indicative of a good team. In their first game against Prairie View, the just out-scored them and out-everything'd them in total yards and points. Then at Bowling Green, it was a totally different game. It was a more defensive field position game. The held Bowling Green to 13 points and stopped them twice on fourth-and-1 in the fourth quarter."
 
In the win over Texas Wesleyan, the Cowboys put up 500 yards of offense (220 rushing and 280 passing) and scored in seven of nine drives after the first two offensive possessions. McNeese got a seventh TD on a blocked field goal by Javon Davis which was scooped up by Safir Stills-Bey and returned 70 yards for the score.
 
"I thought we threw and caught the ball pretty good," said Viator. "And (quarterback) Devin (Lippold) making his first start, he handled himself really good."
 
Tarleton's offense is led by running back Tylan Hines, who leads the FCS with 434 rushing yards and a 217.0 rushing yards per game average. Hines, this week's national offensive player of the week, ran for 250 yards in last week's win at Bowling Green.
 
Both teams are ranked in the top 25 in the FCS in rushing offense (McNeese 24th with a 209.5 average; Tarleton 13th with a 245.0 average). The Cowboys are 20th in the nation in total offense (453.5 yards) while Tarleton is 14th with 485.0 yards per game.
 
Both quarterbacks, McNeese's Lippold and TSU's Kaden Anderson, have thrown five touchdowns through the first two games. Lippold threw four TDs in last week's win over Texas Wesleyan despite playing just two-and-a-half quarters.
 
McNeese receiver Smiley Edwards and TSU wide out Marquis Willis are tied at No. 3 in the nation with three touchdown catches on the year.
 
Defensively, the Cowboys are 22nd in the FCS with allowing 308 yards per game while Tarleton is giving up 455.0 yards a contest. McNeese is No. 18 in the nation in scoring defense (16.0 ppg) while Tarleton is 32nd (21.5 ppg).
 
McNeese has recorded six sacks on the year, ranking 12th in the FCS while Tarleton has gotten to the quarterback once.
 
The Matchup
    Saturday's game will be the sixth meeting in the series between McNeese and Tarleton State with the Cowboys leading 3-2.
    The series began in the 1949 season with both schools competing in the junior college ranks. McNeese won that game 20-14.
    The teams last played in Week 0 and on national TV in 2024 (Aug. 24) at TSU with the Texans holding off a McNeese fourth-quarter rally. The Cowboys scored 13 points in the fourth quarter, rallying from a 26-7 deficit and missed on a 44-yard field goal attempt with four seconds remaining to tie the game and send into overtime.
    The two teams last played in Navarre Stadium on Sept. 2, 2023 with the Texans cruising to a 52-34 win.
    The most memorable game between the two came in the season opener of the 2021 spring season on Feb. 13, 2021 in Stephenville with the game being played in wintry conditions. McNeese scored 21 fourth quarter points, 14 of those in the final 2:46, to send the game into overtime. Cowboys' quarterback Cody Orgeron scored on a 19-yard run in the second OT to give the Cowboys a 40-37 win.
    The two first played in the 2016 season with McNeese beating a then-D2 Tarleton State team 33-3 in Navarre Stadium.
 
Lippold earns SLC Player of Week honors; etches name in school record book in first-career start
• McNeese quarterback Devin Lippold posted a record-setting night in making his first-career start for the Cowboys last Saturday, throwing for four touchdowns and 199 yards. Because of those numbers, he was named this week's Southland Conference Offensive Player of the Week.
• The sophomore from Houston became the first McNeese QB in school history to throw for 4 TDs in making his first start, connecting on scores of 22, 10, 8 and 36 yards.
• He completed 15 of 20 passes and recorded a 224.6 efficiency.
• The four TD passes were the most since the 2021 spring season when Cody Orgeron threw for four against Nicholls.
 
Tarleton highest ranked opponent at home since 2013
• Tarleton's No. 4 ranking is the highest for an opponent to come into Navarre Stadium since No. 2 Sam Houston State in 2013, a 31-23 McNeese win.
• McNeese is 34-34 at home against ranked opponents and 4-5 against Top 5 opponents at home.
• McNeese's last Top 5 home opponent was #5 UIW in 2023, a 35-24 loss.
 
Quick hits from Saturday's win over Texas Wesleyan
•  HC Matt Viator won his 84th game at McNeese, moving him past NSU's Sam Goodwin for No. 2 all-time in the SLC record book while at a league school. (103 career wins).
•  The 4 TDs thrown by Devin Lippold are the most by a Cowboy making his 1st start.
•  Safir Stills-Bey blocked FG return for a TD was the 1st since 2002.
•  The 70-yd return was the 2nd-longest blocked FG return for a TD in school history.
•  Brady Barrier is 3rd McNeese QB to throw TD pass this season.
•  Sentario Willis picked off a pass for the second straight game. Last time that happened was last season (Javon Davis vs. NSU, ETAM).
•  The 2 blocked kicks in the game marked the first time for that to happen since 2018 (at SLU).
• The shutout posted by McNeese was the earliest to start a season since 2003 when the Cowboys blanked Henderson State 42-0.
 
Lippold Tops SLC in Two Categories
• Devin Lippold is ranked No. 1 in the Southland Conference in a couple of categories - passing TDs (5) and pass efficiency (174.0).
• Lippold is also ranked 9th in the FCS in passing TDs and 12th in efficiency.
• His 4 passing TDs against Texas Wesleyan on Saturday rank as the fourth most in a game this season.
• McNeese's five total passing TDs on Saturday is ranked as the third-most by a team this year (Morehead State 7; Alcorn, Illinois State, South Dakota each with 6).
 
Back Attack
• McNeese's running back production has put up good numbers through the first two weeks, averaging 209.5 yards per game to rank third in the Southland and 24th in the FCS.
• Omiri Wiggins leads the team with 136 yards (No. 2 in SLC, 43rd in FCS) and made his McNeese debut with 126 yards against Stephen F. Austin.
• Wiggins carried the ball just five times for 10 yards against Texas Wesleyan.
• The Cowboys' 6.0 rushing yards per carry on the season is ranked 13th in the FCS.
 
McNeese vs. Ranked Opponents
• Saturday's game against No. 4/5 Tarleton State will mark the second contest against a ranked opponent through the first three games (L, 38-27 vs. #13/13 SFA in Week 0).
• It will mark the 140th game against a ranked opponent in the school's Division I history.
• McNeese is 57-62-1 all-time against ranked opponents and 12-22 vs. teams ranked in the top 5.
• The Cowboys' last win over a Top 5 team came against No. 2 Sam Houston (31-23) back in 2013.
• McNeese's last win over a ranked team was in last year's finale against No. 19 Lamar (21-19).
• The last home win over a ranked team was in 2021 vs. No. 16 UIW (28-20).
• Head coach Matt Viator is 8-15 vs. ranked opponents while at McNeese.
 
Smiley Smiling Way Into End Zone
• New wide receiver Elisha "Smiley" Edwards has had quite a start to his McNeese and Division I career.
• Edwards leads the team and Southland Conference, and is ranked No. 3 in the FCS with three touchdown catches.
• He scored two TDs against Texas Wesleyan of 8 and 36 yards in back-to-back scores.
• His 45-yard TD against SFA in the opening drive of the game was the longest reception of his D1 career.
 
Coaching Legends Make Return to Schools
• McNeese head coach Matt Viator and Tarleton State head coach Todd Whitten both got their head coaching starts done at their current schools, left for other head coaching opportunities, and returned to their schools.
• Both are their respective program's all-time winningest coaches - Viator with 84 wins in now his 12th season at McNeese while Whitten as won 128 games in 17 years at TSU.
• This will be Whitten's 10th game against the Cowboys in his head coaching career and is 2-7 overall (2-2 while at TSU and 0-5 as Sam Houston State head coach from 2005-09.
• This will be Viator's first game against the Texans.
• Viator is 4-0 vs. Whitten in head-to-head matchups, all while Whitten was at Sam Houston State.