2020 McNeese State Cowboys football team

The 2020 McNeese State Cowboys football team will represent the McNeese State University in the 2020 NCAA Division I FCS football season. The Cowboys will play their home games at Cowboy Stadium in Lake Charles, Louisiana, and will compete in the Southland Conference. They will be led by first-year head coach Frank Wilson.[1] The Cowboys will commence the season with an away in-state rivalry game against Louisiana and will conclude the season against other rival Lamar.

2020 McNeese State Cowboys football
Conference	Southland Conference
2020 record	0–0 (0–0 SLC)
Head coach	Frank Wilson (1st season)
Offensive coordinator	Ronnie Letson (1st season)
Defensive coordinator	Grady Brown (1st season)
Home stadium	Cowboy Stadium (Capacity: 17,610)

2020 Southland Conference football standings
	Conf							Overall
Team		W		L					W		L
Abilene Christian		0	–	0					0	–	0
Central Arkansas		0	–	0					0	–	0
Houston Baptist		0	–	0					0	–	0
Incarnate Word		0	–	0					0	–	0
Lamar		0	–	0					0	–	0
McNeese State *		0	–	0					0	–	0
Nicholls		0	–	0					0	–	0
Northwestern State		0	–	0					0	–	0
Sam Houston State		0	–	0					0	–	0
Southeastern Louisiana		0	–	0					0	–	0
Stephen F. Austin *		0	–	0					0	–	0
* – Ineligible for FCS postseason play due to NCAA sanctions As of August 14, 2020; Rankings from STATS Poll

Previous Season

The Cowboys finished the 2019 season 7–5, 5–4 in Southland play to finish in the Southland Conference. Following the season, first-year head coach Sterlin Gilbert resigned following the mediocre season.[2]

Preseason

Recruiting class

Reference(s):[3]

US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes

Name	Hometown	High school / college	Height	Weight	Commit date
Khaylon Chapple Defensive Line	Haughton, LA	Haughton HS	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	220 lb (100 kg)	Dec 1, 2019
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports: N/A    ESPN: N/A
Caron Coleman Offensive Line	St. Louis, MO	Pattonville HS	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	300 lb (140 kg)	Dec 1, 2019
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports: N/A    ESPN: N/A
Luke Howard Tight End	Lafayette, LA	St. Thomas More Catholic HS	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	220 lb (100 kg)	Dec 1, 2019
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports: N/A    ESPN: N/A
Mason Kinsey Defensive End	Mansfield, TX	Mansfield Legacy HS Navarro College	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)	230 lb (100 kg)	Dec 1, 2019
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports: N/A    ESPN: N/A
Grayson Mays Defensive End	Bellville, TX	Bellville HS	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)	240 lb (110 kg)	Dec 1, 2019
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports: N/A    ESPN: N/A
Josh Parker Running Back	Baton Rouge, LA	Catholic HS	5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)	190 lb (86 kg)	Feb 5, 2020
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports: N/A    ESPN: N/A
Tyler Patrick Offensive Line	Wamego, KS	Wamego HS Butler College	6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)	235 lb (107 kg)	Dec 1, 2019
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports: N/A    ESPN: N/A
Brendan Sirls Wide Receiver	Arlington, TX	Mansfield Summit HS	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)	185 lb (84 kg)	Dec 1, 2019
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports: N/A    ESPN: N/A
Rae'kwon Starks Cornerback	Harvey, LA	Helen Cox HS	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)	190 lb (86 kg)	Feb 5, 2020
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports: N/A    ESPN: N/A
Ridge Texada Defensive Back	Frisco, TX	Centennial HS	5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)	170 lb (77 kg)	Dec 1, 2019
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports:    ESPN: N/A
Quad Wilson Safety	San Antonio, TX	Brandeis HS	5 ft 9 in (1.75 m)	170 lb (77 kg)	Feb 5, 2020
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports: N/A    ESPN: N/A
Leon Young Defensive Line	Dallas, TX	Cedar Hills HS	5 ft 11 in (1.80 m)	260 lb (120 kg)	Feb 5, 2020
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports: N/A    ESPN: N/A

Award watch lists

Listed in the order that they were released

Award	Player	Position	Year

Southland coaches poll

The Southland Conference coaches poll will be released in July 2020.

Offense 1st team 2nd team

Defense

1st team

2nd team

|}

Southland Preseason All-Conference teams

Offense 1st team 2nd team

Defense

1st team

2nd team

|}

Roster

2020 McNeese State Cowboys football team roster
Players			Coaches
Offense Pos. # Name Class WR 1 Cyron Sutton Sr QB 2 Cade Bartlett  Fr RB 4 Elijah Mack Sr QB 8 Cody Orgeron Sr QB 10 Matt Keller Sr QB 12 Matt Gardner  Jr WR 13 Nate Briscoe Jr WR 14 Draysean Hudson  Sr WR 15 Zach Hayes So WR 19 Tyler Washington  Fr RB 33 J'Uan Gross Jr RB 34 J'Cobi Skinner Jr TE 36 Dontay Hargrove Sr RB 37 Carlos Williams So TE 40 Dominic Prudhomme  Fr TE 44 Jacob Logan Sr RB 47 McCaylon Thibeaux  Fr OL 53 Kyle Herridge Jr OL 55 Cutter Leftwich Jr OL 57 Aaron McDaniel  Fr OL 58 Tanner Pugh Jr OL 62 Joe Latronico Sr OL 63 Charley Zeno  So OL 64 Jack Zelezinski  Fr OL 66 Juwan Felix  Fr OL 68 Caleb Gary Sr OL 71 Jamarius Bolding Sr OL 73 Calvin Barkat Jr OL 77 DeMarcus Thomas So OL 78 Hayden Shaw  Fr OL 79 Nick Holiday  So WR 81 Deon Cormier  So WR 83 Trevor Begue Sr TE 84 KJ Brown  Fr WR 86 Markel Cotten  Fr WR 87 Markquell Stewart  Fr WR 88 Tylin Bryant  Fr WR 89 Mason Pierce So QB Morgan Clark  Fr RB Ivory Roberts  Fr	Defense Pos. # Name Class DB 1 Darion Dunn Sr DB 2 Cory McCoy Sr DB 4 Colby Burton Sr DB 7 Gabe Foster Sr DL 8 Damien DeGruy Jr LB 10 Darius Daniels So DB 16 Colby Richardson Jr DB 17 Darius Johnson Sr DB 18 Eli Johnson So DB 21 Andre Sam Jr LB 23 Kordell Williams Jr DB 25 Darius Shields  Fr DB 27 Enos Lewis Jr DB 28 Andrew Croker  So LB 29 Jake LaFleur  Fr DE 30 Marcus Foster Sr LB 31 Dorion Pollard Sr LB 32 Carlos Scott Sr DB 35 Anthony Johnson So LB 41 Eric Rene  So DE 42 Earenest Grayson, III  Fr LB 43 Tyrell Flugence So LB 48 Andrew Hyacinth Sr DL 54 Jonathon Hageon  So LB 56 Brayden Adams  So DL 91 Tyrique Gibson Jr DL 92 Arthur Lott  Fr DL 93 Steven Conerly Jr DL 94 Kaleb Wenson  Fr DL 95 Chase Davis Jr DL 96 C. J. Semien Jr DL 97 Camron Peterson Jr DE 98 Logan Sonnier  Fr LB Blake Robinson  Fr	Special teams Pos. # Name Class K/P 3 Noah Anderson  So K 11 Kade Dixon Jr K 26 Eric Martin So P 38 Bailey Raborn Sr LS 51 Trey Vondenstein So LS 65 Chandler Perer  Fr	Head coach Frank Wilson (Nicholls) Coordinators/assistant coaches Ronnie Letson (Mississippi) Offensive Coordinator Grady Brown (Alabama A&M) Defensive Coordinator Gary Hyman (Humboldt State) Special Teams Coordinator Landon Hoefer (Texas Tech) Running Backs Chris Truax (LSU) Offensive Line J. B. Lageman (West Virginia) Defensive Line Deron Wilson (Southern Miss) Defensive Backs Will Thomas (LSU) Linebackers Blaine Gautier (Louisiana Wide Receivers Kyle Washington (Angelo State) Offensive Assistant Coach Kyle Little Director of Strength and Conditioning Matt Saucier Head Equipment Manager Raymond Donovan Video Coordinator Jim "Doc" Murphy Director of Sports Medicine Hunter Martin Assistant Athletic Trainer Matthew Bonnette Assistant Athletic Director/Information Director Alexandria Haley Director of Student Athlete Services Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible Injured Redshirt Roster Last update: March 22, 2020

Schedule

The 2020 schedule consists of 6 home and 5 away games in the regular season. The Cowboys will travel to Southland foes Southeastern Louisiana, Houston Baptist, Sam Houston State and Northwestern State. The Cowboys will play host to Southland foes Abilene Christian, Central Arkansas, Stephen F. Austin, Nicholls, and Lamar.

The Cowboys will non-conference football schedule consists of one home and one away game. The Cowboys will play Northern Colorado of the Big Sky Conference in the NCAA Division I FCS. They will travel to Louisiana of the Sun Belt Conference in the NCAA Division I FBS.

Date	Opponent	Site	Result
September 5	at Louisiana*	Cajun Field Lafayette, LA (Cajun Crown)
September 12	Northern Colorado*	Cowboy Stadium Lake Charles, LA
September 19	Abilene Christian	Cowboy Stadium Lake Charles, LA
September 26	at Southeastern Louisiana	Strawberry Stadium Hammond, LA
October 3	Central Arkansas	Cowboy Stadium Lake Charles, LA (Red Beans and Rice Bowl)
October 10	at Houston Baptist	Husky Stadium Houston, TX
October 24	at Sam Houston State	Bowers Stadium Huntsville, TX
October 31	Stephen F. Austin	Cowboy Stadium Lake Charles, LA
November 7	Nicholls	Cowboy Stadium Lake Charles, LA
November 14	at Northwestern State	Harry Turpin Stadium Natchitoches, LA (Rivalry)
November 21	Lamar	Cowboy Stadium lake Charles, LA (Battle of the Border)
*Non-conference game Rankings from AP Poll

Schedule Source:[4][5]

Game summaries

at Louisiana

See also: 2020 Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns football team and Cajun Crown

Overall record	Last meeting	Result
20-16-2	2016	LA, 33–20

Statistics	McNeese State	Louisiana
First downs
Total yards
Rushing yards
Passing yards
Turnovers
Time of possession

McNeese State at Louisiana – Game summary

	1	2	Total
Cowboys			0
Ragin' Cajuns			0

at Cajun Field, Lafayette, LA

• Date: September 5
• Game time: TBA CDT
• Game weather:  
• Game attendance:  
• Referee:  
• TV:  

Game information
First quarter Second quarter Third quarter Fourth quarter Top passers MCNS – LA – Top rushers MCNS – LA – Top receivers MCNS – LA –

Northern Colorado

See also: 2020 Northern Colorado Bears football team

Overall record	Last meeting	Result
1-0	2018	MCNS, 17-14

Statistics	Northern Colorado	McNeese State
First downs
Total yards
Rushing yards
Passing yards
Turnovers
Time of possession

Northern Colorado at McNeese State – Game summary

	1	2	Total
Bears			0
Cowboys			0

at Cowboy Stadium, Lake Charles, LA

• Date: September 12
• Game time: 6:00 p.m. CDT
• Game weather:  
• Game attendance:  
• Referee:  
• TV:  

Game information
First quarter Second quarter Third quarter Fourth quarter Top passers NOCO – MCNS – Top rushers NOCO – MCNS – Top receivers NOCO – MCNS –

Abilene Christian

See also: 2020 Abilene Christian Wildcats football team

Overall record	Last meeting	Result
5-1	2019	ACU, 10-17

Statistics	Abilene Christian	McNeese State
First downs
Total yards
Rushing yards
Passing yards
Turnovers
Time of possession

Abilene Christian at McNeese State – Game summary

	1	2	Total
Wildcats			0
Cowboys			0

at Cowboy Stadium, Lake Charles, LA

• Date: September 19
• Game time: 6:00 p.m. CDT
• Game weather:  
• Game attendance:  
• Referee:  
• TV:  

Game information
First quarter Second quarter Third quarter Fourth quarter Top passers ACU – MCNS – Top rushers ACU – MCNS – Top receivers ACU – MCNS –

at Southeastern Louisiana

See also: 2020 Southeastern Louisiana Lions football team

Overall record	Last meeting	Result
13-7	2019	MCNS, 38-34

Statistics	McNeese State	Southeastern Louisiana
First downs
Total yards
Rushing yards
Passing yards
Turnovers
Time of possession

McNeese State at Southeastern Louisiana – Game summary

	1	2	Total
Cowboys			0
Lions			0

at Strawberry Stadium, Hammond, LA

• Date: September 26
• Game time: TBA CDT
• Game weather:  
• Game attendance:  
• Referee:  
• TV:  

Game information
First quarter Second quarter Third quarter Fourth quarter Top passers MCNS – SELA – Top rushers MCNS – SELA – Top receivers MCNS – SELA –

Central Arkansas

See also: 2020 Central Arkansas Bears football team and Red Beans and Rice Bowl

Overall record	Last meeting	Result
6-7	2019	UCA, 31-40

Statistics	Central Arkansas	McNeese State
First downs
Total yards
Rushing yards
Passing yards
Turnovers
Time of possession

Central Arkansas at McNeese State – Game summary

	1	2	Total
Bears			0
Cowboys			0

at Cowboy Stadium, Lake Charles, LA

• Date: October 3
• Game time: 4:00 p.m. CDT
• Game weather:  
• Game attendance:  
• Referee:  
• TV:  

Game information
First quarter Second quarter Third quarter Fourth quarter Top passers UCA – MCNS – Top rushers UCA – MCNS – Top receivers UCA – MCNS –

at Houston Baptist

See also: 2020 Houston Baptist Huskies football team

Overall record	Last meeting	Result
3-0	2019	MCNS, 42-27

Statistics	McNeese State	Houston Baptist
First downs
Total yards
Rushing yards
Passing yards
Turnovers
Time of possession

McNeese State at Houston Baptist – Game summary

	1	2	Total
Cowboys			0
Huskies			0

at Husky Stadium, Houston, TX

• Date: October 10
• Game time: TBA CDT
• Game weather:  
• Game attendance:  
• Referee:  
• TV:  

Game information
First quarter Second quarter Third quarter Fourth quarter Top passers MCNS – HBU – Top rushers MCNS – HBU – Top receivers MCNS – HBU –

at Sam Houston State

See also: 2020 Sam Houston State Bearkats football team

Overall record	Last meeting	Result
22-9	2019	SHSU, 17-28

Statistics	McNeese State	Sam Houston State
First downs
Total yards
Rushing yards
Passing yards
Turnovers
Time of possession

McNeese State at Sam Houston State – Game summary

	1	2	Total
Cowboys			0
Bearkats			0

at Bowers Stadium, Huntsville, TX

• Date: October 24
• Game time: TBA CDT
• Game weather:  
• Game attendance:  
• Referee:  
• TV:  

Game information
First quarter Second quarter Third quarter Fourth quarter Top passers MCNS – SHSU – Top rushers MCNS – SHSU – Top receivers MCNS – SHSU –

Stephen F. Austin

See also: 2020 Stephen F. Austin Lumberjacks football team

Overall record	Last meeting	Result
19-13-1	2019	MCNS, 33-10

Statistics	Stephen F. Austin	McNeese State
First downs
Total yards
Rushing yards
Passing yards
Turnovers
Time of possession

Stephen F. Austin at McNeese State – Game summary

	1	2	Total
Lumberjacks			0
Cowboys			0

at Cowboy Stadium, Lake Charles, LA

• Date: October 31
• Game time: 6:00 p.m. CDT
• Game weather:  
• Game attendance:  
• Referee:  
• TV:  

Game information
First quarter Second quarter Third quarter Fourth quarter Top passers SFA – MCNS – Top rushers SFA – MCNS – Top receivers SFA – MCNS –

Nicholls

See also: 2020 Nicholls Colonels football team

Overall record	Last meeting	Result
26-11	2019	NICH, 20-34

Statistics	Nicholls	McNeese State
First downs
Total yards
Rushing yards
Passing yards
Turnovers
Time of possession

Nicholls at McNeese State – Game summary

	1	2	Total
Colonels			0
Cowboys			0

at Cowboy Stadium, Lake Charles, LA

• Date: November 7
• Game time: 6:00 p.m. CST
• Game weather:  
• Game attendance:  
• Referee:  
• TV:  

Game information
First quarter Second quarter Third quarter Fourth quarter Top passers NICH – MCNS – Top rushers NICH – MCNS – Top receivers NICH – MCNS –

at Northwestern State

See also: 2020 Northwestern State Demons football team and McNeese State–Northwestern State football rivalry

Overall record	Last meeting	Result
28-11	2019	MCNS, 30-20

Statistics	McNeese State	Northwestern State
First downs
Total yards
Rushing yards
Passing yards
Turnovers
Time of possession

McNeese State at Northwestern State – Game summary

	1	2	Total
Cowboys			0
Demons			0

at Harry Turpin Stadium, Natchitoches, LA

• Date: November 14
• Game time: TBA CDT
• Game weather:  
• Game attendance:  
• Referee:  
• TV:  

Game information
First quarter Second quarter Third quarter Fourth quarter Top passers MCNS – NSU – Top rushers MCNS – NSU – Top receivers MCNS – NSU –

Lamar

See also: 2020 Lamar Cardinals football team and Battle of the Border (Lamar–McNeese State)

Overall record	Last meeting	Result
16-3	2019	MCNS, 27-3

Statistics	Lamar	McNeese State
First downs
Total yards
Rushing yards
Passing yards
Turnovers
Time of possession

Lamar at McNeese State – Game summary

	1	2	Total
Cardinals			0
Cowboys			0

at Cowboy Stadium, Lake Charles, LA

• Date: November 21
• Game time: 3:00 p.m. CDT
• Game weather:  
• Game attendance:  
• Referee:  
• TV:  

Game information
First quarter Second quarter Third quarter Fourth quarter Top passers LAM – MCNS – Top rushers LAM – MCNS – Top receivers LAM – MCNS –

References

1. "Frank Wilson hired as McNeese head football coach". www.msn.com. Retrieved 23 March 2020.
2. "Gilbert resigns as McNeese FB coach to take Syracuse OC position". The Daily Iberian. Retrieved 23 March 2020.
3. "Frank Wilson announces signing class, introduces coaches". McNeese State University Athletics. Retrieved 23 March 2020.
4. "2020 Football Schedule". McNeese State University Athletics. Retrieved 23 March 2020.
5. "2020 McNeese Cowboys Schedule". ESPN. Retrieved 23 March 2020.