Greetings, Lion fans, and finally, the Lions return to the friendly confines of The Hawk after what seems an interminable 37 days. Let’s begin by addressing the elephant in the room.

Yes, the Lions are 0-4. There’s no getting around that. Yes, the offense, up until last week, was absolutely horrendous. The Blue Gang, other than an outstanding performance against Old Dominion, is giving up almost 500 yards per game. That’s one heck of a negative balance sheet.

Let’s look at the other side of that sheet. To date, the Lions have played the toughest FCS schedule in the state, and arguably in the nation. UC-Davis sits and #20 (Stats Perform) and #18 (Coaches). Sacramento State is at #4 (#7 Coaches). Incarnate Word, who the Lions face the week after this, are at #8 (#6 Coaches). Stephen F. Austin received votes in the Coaches Poll.

Are there areas to fix? Of course, and the list of them would take up a whole separate column. We’ll save that one for another time.

Last week was like a dance. The offense, with Josh Magana at the helm, put up 27 points, and finally got the passing game untracked. Micaelous Elder caught 7 passes for 86 yards and a touchdown, and Magana threw for two more. Reggie Branch rushed for 76 yards and a touchdown. Two steps forward.

The defense, however, despite producing a turnover and sack, gave up 56 points and 555 yards, including 425 passing yards. Two steps back.

Special teams, despite another great night from punter Mitchell McGarry, had a field goal blocked, and were caught off guard by two onside kicks. Two more steps back.

When we broke down the 2023 season in August, I said the best-case scenario would be 9-2, and the worst, 6-5. 6-5 is still a realistic possibility, despite every indication that it isn’t. I also said that this four-game stretch, three of which were on the road on both coasts, was absolutely brutal, and that the Lions could be easily as high as 3-1, or as low as 0-4.

Well, here we are at 0-4. It’s always darkest before the dawn. Now, the Lions begin again, this time in Southland Conference play. Starting now, the Lions are 0-0. So, let’s turn our attention to our neighbors from Lake Charles, the McNeese State Cowboys.

OVERALL:

Lion Offense:

Points: 13.0 ppg

Rush: 137.5 ypg

Pass: 140.2 ypg

Total: 277.8 ypg

Turnovers: 5

Cowboy Defense:

Points: 36.0 ppg

Rush: 244.0 ypg

Pass: 199.4 ypg

Total: 443.4 ypg

Turnovers: 5

McNeese comes into this game winless at 0-5, with a 31-10 Southland loss to Nicholls State last week, and most notably, a 49-7 loss to Florida in The Swamp. Second year coach Gary Goff is struggling to turn around a McNeese program that is 4-12 under his tenure. The Cowboy defense has some good size but is very young and inexperienced.

The Lions continue to improve offensively. After giving up an early score, they responded when Reggie Branch broke free for a 63-yard touchdown run that knotted the score at 7 early. They converted 8 of 15 third down plays, and averaged 6 yards per pass attempt. While not earth shattering, 6 yards was a vast improvement from earlier in the season. Josh Magana has proven to possess an accurate arm, and sound decision making so far. The offensive line did not give up a sack, and even when the game was out of reach, still kept fighting, and put up two fourth quarter touchdowns that forced the Lumberjacks to keep their foot on the gas.

UP FRONT/TALE OF THE TAPE:

Lion Offensive Line 6’2″ 319 lbs.

Cowboy Front 7: 6’3″ 261 lbs.

The Cowboy defense has five defenders with one sack and two with an interception each. They are led in tackles by redshirt sophomore Micah Davey (6’2″ 239 lbs.) who has 71 tackles (37 solo). He is joined by sophomore Demetrios Walker II (6’3″ 215 lbs.), and redshirt senior Brayden Adams (6’2″ 215 lbs.) . Up front, the Cowboys have redshirt freshman Masey Lewis (6’4″ 268 lbs.), redshirt junior Earnest Grayson (6’3″ 254 lbs.), and a pair of sophomores, Dominick Bolden (6’1″ 268 lbs.,), and Trey Winters (6’7″ 350 lbs.)

The Lion offensive line has three juniors, Jadin Jones (6’5″ 311 lbs.), Santos Valdez (6’1″ 321 lbs.), and Michael Martin (6’1″ 345 lbs.). They are accompanied by two sophomores, Kyle Lofye (6’3″ 312 lbs.), and McKenzie Agnello (6’4″ 310 lbs.).

After a what seemed like a terrible start, the offensive line has significantly reduced the number of penalties, and surprisingly, have only given up 5 sacks this season. As the saying goes, ” We may not be where we want to be, but we’re not where we were.”

MOVERS AND SHAKERS/THE BACK LINE:

Lion Movers and Shakers: 5″11 198 lbs.

Cowboys Back Line: 6’0″ 183 lbs.

Junior Josh Magana (6’1″ 203 lbs.) took over at quarterback last week, and promptly went 20-28 for 188 yards and three touchdowns. Sophomore Keith Miller (6’3″ 219 lbs.) caught 3 balls for 41 yards and a touchdown and has developed into a threat inside the red zone. Reggie Branch became more of the featured back last week with 7 carries and had some early success. The 27 points and 370 yards were both season highs for the Lions.

A freshman, Boogsie Silvera (5’11” 186 lbs.), and junior Johnquai Lewis (6’2″ 176 lbs.) also are among the team leaders in tackles, Silvera with 35 (16 solo) and Lewis with 26 (19 solo). Junior Thomas Miles (6’1 192 lbs.), and Jadden Matthews (6’1″ 178), man the other secondary posts.

VERY SPECIAL, INDEED: Mitchell McGarry continues his outstanding punting, with 24 kicks for a 38.5 yards average, and a long of 58 yards. Emmanuel Adagbon is coming off of his poorest performance so far, with an extra point attempt banging off the left upright and having a later field goal attempt blocked. He is now 2 of 4 this season on field goals, with a long of 43 yards, and is 4-5 on extra point attempts.

What was most disappointing was the Lion special teams almost giving up one onside kick because the ball didn’t travel ten yards, and indeed giving up another. You can bet special teams coach Jack Welch will certainly be addressing that this week.

THE LIONS WINT THIS MATCHUP IF: Keep the faith, Lion fans. The season begins anew this Saturday. The beginning of Southland Conference play is much like New Year’s Eve. Everyone gets a chance to make a resolution and start over. Well, that’s what the Lions get to do here after a beyond tough non-conference schedule. The remaining six games are all every winnable, and yes, that include Incarnate Word. Don’t look now, but the offense is beginning to show signs of life, and FINALLY, FINALLY, the Lions are at home.

See You at The Hawk.