THIBODAUX – The 15^th-ranked McNeese Cowboys will resume Southland Conference action on Saturday when the Cowboys take it to the road for an afternoon visit to Nicholls.
 
Kickoff is set for 2:30 at Guidry Stadium and the game will be televised live on Cox Sports Television. It will also be streamed on ESPN3 but will be blacked out in markets that carry CST. It can also be heard live on the McNeese Radio Network which is flagshipped by 92.9 FM The Lake.
 
The Cowboys (3-0, 2-0 SLC) are coming off a 37-0 shutout win over Mississippi College in their last outing to mark the first shutout since the 2012 season finale against Lamar. Nicholls (0-3, 0-1) fell 48-0 at the Pac 12's Colorado.
 
But despite what the records show, McNeese head coach Matt Viator is expected nothing but the best from the Colonels.
 
"We expect them (Nicholls) to play good against us because they always do," he said. "When you watch their offense, they're a lot like us. They've changed on both sides of the ball. Defensively, they're very sound in what they're doing and that comes from Coach (Tim) Rebowe's background and what he knows."
 
Tim Rebowe is in his first year as head coach of the Colonels after he spent the last 11 seasons as an assistant at Louisiana-Lafayette.
 
"He's really good at what he does," said Viator of Rebowe. "Nicholls is always a tough place to play. This will be their first home game so I'm sure they are excited about that. It's always a chore to go down there."
 
Nicholls will definitely have its hands full with the nation's No. 1 ranked scoring defense (6.7) and No. 2 team in total defense (249.0 ypg) in the Cowboys' Defense With Attitude. The Cowboys are also allowing just 90 yards per game rushing (9^th in the FCS) and is third in the country with fewest first downs allowed (37).
 
"We're playing really good," said Viator. "We've adjusted well on defense to who we're playing. We're creating negative plays and I think we're playing extremely fast and with a good attitude."
 
Nicholls has been blanked in two of its three games this season with the only score being 10 points in a 20-10 loss at Incarnate Word.
 
Running back Michael Henry lead the team with 182 yards rushing and 4.3 yards per carry while quarterback Tuskani Figaro, who missed all of last season, has duel threat ability that has seen him throw for 254 yards while rushing for another 69 on the season.
 
"He's a really good athlete," said Viator of Figaro. "He's a big kid that can run. He's the kind of kid, athletically, that can give you a chance."
 
For the Cowboys, they themselves have their own duel threat QB in Daniel Sams who leads the team in rushing with 257 yards and has thrown for another 507.
 
David Hamm has picked up 163 yards on the ground, Ryan Ross 152, and Derrick Milton 117.
 
As a team, the Cowboys are ranked 13^th in the FCS with 248.7 yards per game rushing and 16^th with 36.0 points per game.
 
The Cowboys have outscored their opponents by a 108-20 margin on the season, including 50-14 in the first half alone.
 
"We got off to a better rhythm (against Mississippi College)," said Viator. "We looked fast and a lot crisper."
 
WORTH NOTING: Head coach Matt Viator has 71 career wins. He needs 7 more to tie Bobby Keasler as the school's all-time winningest coach and 2 more to tie Louisiana Tech's Maxie Lambright for 4^th on the SLC all-time list… Saturday's game will be the first of two straight played on Cox Sports TV. Next week's 6 p.m. kickoff against Southeastern Louisiana will also air on CST… McNeese has won 6 straight in the series and holds a 28-11 lead all-time… McNeese defense has blanked opponents in 10 of 12 quarters played this year and has held teams scoreless in each of the 2^nd and 3^rd quarters on the season… the 20 points allowed through the first three games is the least amount since 1979 when the team allowed 6 points through the first three.