McNeese State downs Northwestern State 21-7 in spring football action

Story and photo by Robert H Kelly
Copyright 2021 All Rights Reserved

NATCHITOCHES, LOUISIANA (March 20, 2021) McNeese State quarterback Cody Orgeron completed 17-of-22 passes and two touchdown as the Cowboys downed the Northwestern State Demons by the score of 21-7 at Turpin Stadium in Natchitoches.

On their second possession, at the 4:42 mark of the first quarter, the Demons drove 91 yards in eight plays to score the first touchdown of the game. Quarterback Kaleb Fletcher (Poteet HS, Mesquite, Texas) completed a 13-yard pass to wide receiver Kendrick Price, Jr. (Lindale HS, Lindell, Texas) for the score. The Cowboys evened the score 2:35 later when tight end Jama Pettigrew (St. Augustine HS, New Orleans, Louisiana) caught a two-yard pass from Orgeron (Mandeville HS, Mandeville, Louisiana) to cap a 59-yard drove that lasted 2:29. Both teams converted the kicking extra points to tie the score at seven after 15 minutes of play. After a spirited and intense second quarter, neither team was able to find the end zone, with the score remaining tied at seven at halftime.

It did not take long for McNeese to find the end zone in the third quarter. On the third play in the second half; a first-and-ten play, Oregron finds wide receiver Trevor Begue (St. Thomas More HS, Lafayette, Louisiana) open on the right side of the field; connecting with a 75-yard pass for the Cowboys' second TD of the game. Jacob Abel (Goddard Eisenhower HS, Goddard, Kansas) added the extra point to give McNeese a 14-7 lead with 13:45 remaining in the third quarter. Not limiting their scoring to the air, the Cowboys added a rushing touchdown to the scoreboard six minutes later. Backup quarterback Walker Wood (Lafayette HS, Lafayette, Kentucky) kept the ball and plunged over the goal line from the one-yard line for the third touchdown for the Cowboys. Abel again added the kicking conversion to push the McNeese lead to 21-7 and the eventual win, 

For McNeese, Begue led the game with 165 receiving yards, on eight catches and one touchdown.  Freshman Josh Parker (Catholic HS, baton Rouge, Louisiana) rushed for 77 yards  on 16 carries, with Sam Andre accounting for seven tackles). The Demons were paced by Fletcher, completing 13-of-18 for 177 yards, while Javon Antonio (East St. John HS, LaPlace, Louisiana) caught six passes for 103 yards. The Cowboys raised their season record to 2-3, with a 1-3 mark in Southland Conference action. The Demons fall to 0-3 in both their season and conference games.