By Jason Pugh, Northwestern State Associate Athletic Director for External Relations; featured photo by Chris Reich, NSU Photographic Services
NACOGDOCHES, Texas – The more things change, the more they come back to the same.
Such it is for the Northwestern State football team as the Southland Conference portion of its 2024 season arrives Saturday with a 7 p.m. matchup against longtime rival Stephen F. Austin on ESPN+.
The Demons (0-5) and Lumberjacks (2-2, 0-1) will meet in Nacogdoches for the first time since 2018, and the winner will claim possession of a newly designed trophy that will replace the retired Chief Caddo, which stood as part of the rivalry from 1960 to 2019.
“Rivalry games are fun,” first-year head coach Blaine McCorkle said. “It will be fun to go across the state line to play that other school that wears purple and see what happens. When you get to rivalry games, records are out the window. There is a lot of history and tradition with this one. A lot of people will be watching and paying attention. This game means a lot to a lot of people. Our team needs to recognize that and understand the responsibility that comes with this game.”
For much of the Chief Caddo portion of the rivalry, the Demons and Lumberjacks often met late in the season. At times, Southland Conference championships were on the line.
Saturday’s meeting gives Northwestern a chance to start Southland play on the right foot while Stephen F. Austin will try to level its conference record.
“It’s exactly what we need,” wide receiver Twon Hines said of opening conference play against a longtime rival. “We’re going to be juiced up. We’re going to be ready. For those of us who were here and those of us who weren’t here – at this point we’re all a team – we lost to SFA last year. That leaves a sour taste in my mouth. This is our chance. We have a chance to determine what we’re going to make this into. We’re very optimistic. We’re ready to go and keep jelling as a team.”
Fast forward a little more than a year from that Sept. 16, 2023, meeting and Stephen F. Austin is back in the Southland Conference, adding more fuel to a rivalry that is etched deeply in both programs’ history books.
“I’m really excited about the matchup,” redshirt freshman defensive end Chancellor Owens said. “There is a lot of history that goes into it. I’m definitely excited for it, especially with them being in the conference.”
Owens collected the first full sack of his Northwestern career in the Demons’ Sept. 28 loss at No. 13 Southeast Missouri State, playing a key role on a defense that limited the Redhawks to 15 fewer points than their scoring average. Additionally, the Demons held SEMO – the then-No. 6 passing attack in the Football Championship Subdivision – to 55 fewer yards than its average.
That followed a game against Weber State in which the Demons limited the FCS’ then-No. 11 rushing attack to nearly 100 yards fewer than its season average.
SFA, however, presents a different challenge than both of Northwestern’s previous two opponents. The Lumberjacks enter Saturday’s game ranked sixth nationally in total offense in a much more balanced way.
Both SFA’s rushing and passing attacks are 14thnationally in their respective categories.
“They’ve got a quarterback who’s on his fourth school and throws the ball around really well,” McCorkle said. “They’ve got a 230-pound running back who goes straight ahead. They have good receivers on the edge. They give you a good mix and play a balanced style of football. I enjoy watching them play. It’s something we’re trying to grow ourselves. We have our hands full on the defensive side to the ball to make sure we know where were and that we’re aligned right and assigned right, and we’re playing with that same effort we’ve been playing with to ensure we have another good showing on that side of the ball to give ourselves a chance to win.”