LAKE CHARLES, La. – HCU trailed at the half, and again heading into the fourth quarter, but finished strong by outscoring McNeese 14-0 over the final 15 minutes to earn the 35-24 Southland Conference victory at Cowboy Stadium on a chilly Saturday night to secure the program's first-ever winning season.
McNeese (1-9, 1-5 SLC) opened the game with the ball and on the fourth play of the game, senior cornerback
Jordan Oliver jumped in front of a receiver for a 53-yard pick six and a quick 7-0 HCU (6-4, 4-2 SLC) lead less than a minute and a half in. The Cowboys opened their next drive with excellent field position after a 57-yard kickoff return by Cory O'Bryant set them up at the HCU 43. McNeese took the ball down to the Huskies' five but HCU held strong and forced the Cowboys into a 27-yard field goal.
On the ensuing HCU possession, the Huskies started at their own 12-yard line but engineered a 14-play drive capped by a
Colby Suits one-yard rush for the score and a 14-3 lead with 4:43 remaining in the first quarter. The Cowboys came right back, however, and scored on a six-play, 75-yard drive with quarterback Camden Sixkiller hitting O'Bryant for a 39-yard touchdown.
The Cowboys moved the ball again on their next possession, reaching the Huskies' 11 before
Rodney Dansby and
Jalyx Hunt combined on a sack to push them back to the 14. On the next play, junior
Zae Smith brought Sixkiller down for a sack nine yards behind the line of scrimmage, knocking the ball loose and falling on it to recover for the Huskies.
The next three possessions all resulted in punts but on a
Wheeler Bowron punt, McNeese's Jonathan Harris muffed the return and
Ashton Williams recovered at the McNeese 20-yard line. HCU lost three yards and the drive ended on a missed 40-yard field goal attempt by
Dillon Fedor. The Cowboys answered with a three-play drive that included a 48-yard pass and a 24-yard touchdown scamper by Joshon Barbie, giving McNeese a 17-14 lead at the break.
HCU opened the second half with a drive starting at their own 22marching down to the McNeese 49-yard line. On the seventh play of the drive, Suits found
Karl Reynolds with a deep ball that Reynolds hauled in near the 10 and took in for the score to regain the lead, 21-17.
McNeese again had a response, however, putting together a 16-play drive that included two pass interference calls and a holding call on the HCU secondary that resulted in a three-yard touchdown run by D'Angelo Durham and a 24-21 Cowboys lead at the 4:19 mark in the third quarter.
Following the Durham score, McNeese caught the Huskies off guard and recovered an onside kick at the Cowboy 46-yard line. The Cowboys punted after six plays for a touchback just ahead of the end of the quarter.
The Huskies engineered an 11-play, 80-yard drive with Suits rushing 21 yards for the touchdown with 11:26 to go for a 28-24 HCU lead. HCU forced punts on each of the next two McNeese drives, taking over at the 20-yard line with 6:39 left on the clock. The Huskies moved the ball methodically, primarily on the ground, chewing up clock with Valenzuela scoring to ice the game on a 17-yard touchdown run that capped a drive that took 5:15 off the clock. On the third play of the next McNeese drive, Sixkiller fumbled and Hunt scooped it up to seal the win.
Valenzuela had a career night for the Huskies, rushing for 171 yards and a score on 33 carries for the fifth-most rushing yards in a game in program history and his first career 100-yard game. Suits, meanwhile, carried the ball seven times for 50 yards and two rushing touchdowns. Through the air, Suits completed 10-of-22 for 135 yards and a touchdown while Reynolds ended the night with the touchdown catch and 99 yards on four catches.
Defensively,
Isaiah Cash led the Huskies with 10 tackles with Dansby next with six tackles. Oliver's interception was his first of the season and the fourth of his career while Hunt's fumble recovery was his second the year. The Huskies forced four turnovers in the win, including three fumble recoveries, while turning the ball over just once.
McNeese out-gained the Huskies, 386-360, with time of possession very nearly even. HCU piled up 225 yards on the ground while McNeese did the majority of its damage through the air with Sixkiller completing 19-of-34 for 249 yards.
The Huskies' six wins surpass the five wins of the 2019 team that finished the year 5-7 for the most wins in a season in program history. With just one game left, next Saturday vs. UIW, the Huskies are assured of a winning season in head coach
Braxton Harris's first season at the helm.
The Huskies wrap up the 2023 campaign on Saturday, Nov. 18, at Husky Stadium against the UIW Cardinals with a 2:00 p.m. kickoff.
