Latest news with #McNeese
American Press
4 days ago
- Sport
- American Press
Guzzardo finishes roster
Ayla Guzzardo finished her recruiting class Thursday. (Kirk Meche/ Special to the American Press) When she showed up at McNeese State, Ayla Guzzardo didn't come alone. The new Cowgirls women's basketball coach brought most of her Southland Conference championship program with her from Southeastern. Still, she needed one big piece to finish her roster puzzle. Guzzardo believes she signed that piece on Thursday in 6-foot-4 center Brittney Burton. Guzzardo is familiar with Burton, having signed her previously to play for the Lady Lions out of Woosman High School in Monroe. However, Burton didn't play for SELA last season. Still, Guzzardo went after her when she realized she was missing one more inside player to finish off her roster. 'Brittney is somebody we know very well,' said Guzzardo. 'We are excited to have her come to McNeese.' Guzzardo believes that once Burton gets back into basketball playing shape after the year off, she can be one of the better big players in the Southland. 'She has great hands and great footwork,' said Guazzardo. 'It is big that we got her here in the summer. I think she can be an all-conference player for us.' Guzzardo has turned the McNeese roster over in her first few months in town, as only leading scorer Paris Guillory returns from last year's Cowgirl team that finished 10-21, 5-15 in the SLC and missed the postseason tournament, which McNeese hosted. Despite suffering through a knee injury, Guillory was the only Cowgirl to average in double figures at 13.8 points per game. The St. Louis Catholic standout was in her first season at McNeese after spending her freshman year at Louisiana Tech. Guillory should help pick up the slack that Guzzardo must replace from her club a year ago, with the graduation of Alexius Horne, who led SELA at 14.3 'We will use a couple of people, probably to fill Alexius' numbers,' said Guzzardo. 'Paris will be a big part of that.' When she originally signed with Guzzardo in Hammond, Burton said she liked how the program felt like a family to her. That is something the new coach has tried to bring to McNeese. 'We are a family,' Guzzardo said. 'That's a big part of our success.' Guzzardo hopes that signing Burton will give her a second center and much-needed depth inside to make another run at a league title in her new home.
American Press
6 days ago
- Business
- American Press
SLC going to 9 games
The Southland Conference is moving to a nine-game football schedule. Monday, the league's athletic directors voted unanimously to add the ninth conference game starting in the fall of 2026. Currently, the SLC's 10 football-playing schools will play eight league games this season. For instance, McNeese will not play defending Southland champ Incarnate Word, which would likely be one of the conference's showcase contests in the fall. This is the first season with 10 football schools since the league regrouped after the 2021 purge, when five schools left the conference. This will also be the first season with Texas-Rio Grande Valley playing football. 'I like the idea of playing everybody in the conference,' McNeese head coach Matt Viator said. 'It makes a lot of sense to me. You get a true champion that way. It gives us another game against a like opponent.' The A.D.s were on the same page, as each school continues to struggle to find the proper schedule. 'We were all in agreement about it,' said McNeese A.D. Heath Schroyer. 'I think this is a great move by our league as we look to the future. Moving forward, it will be a lot easier for scheduling for all of us and will give us more shared revenue.' The Southland's decision comes as the Football Championship Subdivision looks to expand to a 12-game schedule overall every year. The Cowboys and the rest of the FCS typically play an 11-game schedule, unless the weekly calendar allows for 12 games before the Thanksgiving break. That usually happens about every four or five seasons. However, they have 12 games scheduled for next season, following a dozen games and a 6-6 finish last year. Twelve FCS games could be on the horizon as of 2026. Earlier this spring, the FCS Oversight Committee met and recommended that its schools play 12 games annually, starting with the 2026 schedule. The one-game extension is expected to be finalized during the Division I Council meeting June 24-25. 'I think it will pass and that is good for our programs,' said SLC Commissioner Chris Grant. 'It is another game for us to get revenue, and it has been hard for some of our teams to get games.' Securing another Division 1 contest and avoiding the need to travel outside the league's footprint is a significant win. 'This keeps our regional rivalries going,' said Grant. 'This is a big thing for our schools. We hope it could help lead to getting two or three teams back in the postseason. 'Our schools have upgraded their schedules, but we haven't seen the advantages of that yet.' Grant added that at the meetings, the league discussed a new contract with ESPN and efforts to secure more games on linear networks. Last year, McNeese opened its season with a game at Tarleton State on ESPN. Nicholls and UIW will open this year the same way. 'I'm really excited about the nine and 12 games,' Viator said. 'Anytime you get an opportunity to play a game, I think it is great for everyone.' Grant said the good news this year is that the league is not concerned with expansion; instead, it is focusing on moving forward as a group. That includes the 22-game conference basketball schedule that starts next season. Also discussed was the possible expansion of the postseason basketball tournaments. Currently, the top eight teams qualify for the tournament; however, the league is considering expanding to 10 teams in the future. Grant said the league would need more hotel rooms in Lake Charles, which has a limited number, as the state high school tournament is in town at the same time.
American Press
02-06-2025
- Sport
- American Press
McNeese sets times for home games
An architectural rendering of McNeese's new press box. (Special to the American Press) McNeese State is reverting to its pre-hurricane start times for its football games. Before hurricanes Laura and Delta disrupted the athletic department in the fall of 2020, the Cowboys started all home games at 6 p.m. For two seasons, they were forced to play at noon under the blazing sun while Cowboy Stadium was being renovated and a new lighting system was installed. Then, for two seasons, they played at 7 p.m. Now, with a new press box set to open and six home games scheduled for this season, McNeese is moving its games back to a 6 p.m. kickoff. 'After a lot of thought and discussion with a number of people that included season ticket holders, staff, campus employees, students and community members, it was the consensus that a 6 o'clock kick-off will allow our fans with children as well as those coming to games from the surrounding parishes, to get home at a reasonable time, and those tailgating will still be able to enjoy a full day of pregame gathering, one that will start the night before at our Friday Night Block Parties,' said Director of Athletics Heath Schroyer. Starting times for football have been a big talk in the league of late with many schools pushing for afternoon games. Some of that is for travel purposes. With the addition of Texas-Rio Grande Valley playing football this fall, the travel distance for teams has greatly increased. Some in the league wanted day games so players would get home earlier after long bus trips. There was even a push for the entire league to have start times no later than 4 p.m. Schroyer said at the time that McNeese would never go for that, stating that Saturday night games were a part of the football program's long history. The 6 p.m. start time will mean that fans on the east side of the stadium will have to deal with the sun more, especially early in the season. However, it also provides a different window in the ESPN+ schedule if most of the conference games are scheduled for the afternoon. McNeese will open its season on August 30 with a home game against Louisiana Christian, marking the return of Matt Viator as head coach. Viator is currently tied for most wins as a McNeese head coach after 10 seasons leading the Cowboys. He returns after nine seasons away from the program in hopes of turning the Cowboys around. They have not had a winning season since 2019, before the hurricanes. McNeese managed to achieve a 6-6 record last year, the second-largest turnaround in NCAA Division I football, behind only Indiana after a disastrous 0-11 season in 2023, the worst in school history. When the Cowboys open play, they will also unveil their new press box and suites, which replace the old one destroyed by Laura. In addition to the opener, McNeese will host Weber State on September 13, Southeastern on October 4, HCU for Homecoming on October 18, Northwestern State on November 1, and UTRGV on November 15. The Cowboys will not play Incarnate Word this season. McNeese players will be checking in for summer workouts and school starting this weekend, before practices begin next week.
American Press
23-05-2025
- Sport
- American Press
Put-ting in the work
McNeese senior Marcus Francis has had a record-setting career for the Cowboys. (McNeese Athletics) M arcus Francis left Lake Charles to chase his football dream. When he returned, he started on a different athletic path, leading to a record career in his hometown. Last weekend, Francis fulfilled his chase of greatness when he became the first McNeese State athlete to win the gold medal in both the discus and shot put at the Southland Conference Track and Field Championships. The Southland Thursday named him the Men's Outdoor Field Performer of the Year. 'It was a great feeling,' Francis said. 'It was a great meet. I've been working very hard for this.' But Francis's short journey from Lake Charles College Prep to McNeese's history books wasn't simple. Francis won the discus title last Saturday in Houston with a throw of 176 feet, two inches to win by nearly 20 feet over second-place Anthony Oliver of Lamar (158-10). His work the day before was even more impressive. On Friday, the senior thrower broke a 34-year-old McNeese record in the shot put with a toss of 61-9¾, breaking the mark of All-American and Olympian Kevin Toth (61-7¾) set in 1991. Francis is the first conference winner from McNeese in the shot put since Toth won the title in 1990 and 1991. 'That was something I was after from the first day I got to McNeese,' said Francis. 'I finally got it. It was a big thing for me. I put a lot of work into it.' And that work over the years has made a difference. Francis admitted that when he was in high school, football came first. He was more of a power guy who could throw a long way. After high school, Francis went off to play football at Highland Community College in Kansas, but that didn't work out. 'It just wasn't for me,' said Francis. 'I had a new perspective, a different perspective on football then.' He remembered that during his senior season in high school, McNeese head track coach Bredon Gilroy had left the door open for Francis if football didn't work out. 'Coach Gilroy made sure I knew McNeese had a place for me if I wanted it,' Francis said. 'He gave me a shot to come here and come home. It's been great.' The move worked out because Francis embraced his new number-one sport. 'When he picked football, we just kept talking, and I told him that he would have a spot here if he ever wanted it,' said Gilroy. 'He's worked so hard and progressed each year and grown as a person as well. It's been great to see.' Francis' improvement has impressed his throw coach, Janell Fullerton, who used to be his teammate. 'Marcus has worked on his techniques over his career,' said Fullerton. 'Before, in high school, he used his strength mainly. He had some learning to do. 'Now he has the technique down and is more than just a power thrower. You saw him work even harder when he started seeing the results.' Francis' double gold medal wins nearly earned him recognition as the meet's most valuable player. He finished with 24 points, one behind the winner, Ibrahim Fuseini of East Texas A&M. Francis placed fifth in the hammer throw earlier in the meet. He now owns the school record for the indoor and outdoor shot put, the outdoor discus and the indoor weight throw. That's a long way from his days as an offensive lineman. Francis says he loves the difference. 'You take less hits; that's nice. I think you have to be more mentally tough in track because you work independently. I just had to learn to stay focused because you don't have team drills.' He also started at McNeese just after the 2020 hurricanes, so the facilities were damaged, which was another hurdle to clear. 'It was definitely hard at the start,' Francis said. 'You had to share a lot of space and wouldn't get home until late. A lot of things were still broken. Now it's great with everything new.' What really fits his style, he said, is the fact that not everyone follows his sport. 'I'm not a big deal at wanting attention,' Francis said. 'I stick to myself a lot. Not everyone knows who I am. I like that.' Francis has a chance in a week to make an even bigger name for himself at the East Regionals in Jacksonville, Fla., where he'll try to earn a spot in the national championships. Cowboy hurdler Jaden Powell will join him at the first round meet May 28-31. 'I believe I can be even better,' Francis said. 'I believe I can throw it way further.' Maybe he can throw all the way to Oregon's NCAA Championships? That would finish his college track and field journey perfectly.
American Press
22-05-2025
- Sport
- American Press
Ricklefsen out at McNeese
After 24 years with the program, Jimmy Ricklefsen is out of the McNeese baseball program. (McNeese Athletics) Jimmy Ricklefsen has been fired after serving the McNeese State baseball program for a total of 24 years. Cowboys' head coach Justin Hill made the decision Wednesday morning, according to sources close to the program. The news came just five days after McNeese finished its most recent season with a 32-17 record. However, it lost eight of its last 12 games and was eliminated from the Southland Conference postseason with two straight late losses. Since 2023, Ricklefsen has served as the Cowboys' assistant head coach, recruiting coordinator and alumni coordinator. He also coached the infield and first base while assisting with hitters. He is the longest assistant coach Hill has ever had. 'It caught me off guard,' Ricklefsen said. 'McNeese is near and dear to my heart and always will be. It will remain a big part of my life.' Attempts to reach Hill by the American Press were unsuccessful Thursday. Ricklefsen said he has been humbled by those who have reached out to him after the news broke. 'I'm touched and thankful to all the McNeese alumni and boosters who have sent me their wishes and support,' Ricklefsen said. 'It has meant a lot to me.' Ricklefsen is a 1986 McNeese graduate who played for the Cowboys from 1984-86 as both an infielder and an outfielder. He hit .333 his senior year. He led McNeese in stolen bases twice and had 11 career home runs. After graduating, Ricklefsen served as an assistant coach under the late Tony Robichaux from 1987-94, helping the Cowboys to their first-ever Southland Conference championship in 1988 and two NCAA Regionals appearances (1988, 1993). Ricklefsen was named McNeese's head coach before the 1995 season. He posted an 81-79 record, including tying the school record for wins in a season with 41 during the 1995 season. The Cowboys' 41-16 record and .719 winning percentage that year stands as a school record. Ricklefsen has been a baseball coach in the Southland Conference for 38 years, the most in conference history. Before returning home to McNeese, Ricklefsen served 19 years on the staff at Lamar, including six as an associate head coach, and helped guide the Cardinals to two conference championships, two league tournament titles and six NCAA Regionals appearances. He became one of 450 coaches in the country to be inducted into the American Baseball Coaches Association (ABCA) as a lifetime member. The award induction ceremony took place on Jan. 7, 2022. He has been a member of the organization for 36 years. Ricklefsen said he is not retiring and that his phone has already been ringing. The Ricklefsen File: McNeese – Assistant Head Coach (2023-Present) McNeese – Assistant Coach (2016-2023) Lamar – Associate Head Coach (2010-2015) Lamar – Assistant Coach (1998-2010) McNeese – Head Coach (1995-1997) McNeese – Assistant Coach (1988-1994) McNeese – Graduate Assistant (1987)
