Southland Conference

Closing in on six decades of service, the Southland Conference continues to be a model of innovation, stability and consistent achievement as it celebrates the academic and athletic accomplishments of its member institutions and more than 4,200 student-athletes. The Southland operates within a structure of shared core values by its membership: Excellence, Student-Athlete Focused, Integrity, Diversity and Inclusion, Sportsmanship, and Fiscal Responsibility.

Now entering its 58th year, the Southland Conference has transformed itself into a dynamic and respected consortium of eight comprehensive universities in Texas and Louisiana. Beginning with a historic meeting of five original institutions in Dallas on March 15, 1963, the Southland Conference set on an extraordinary course that has proven successful well into the 21st Century.

The members of the Southland Conference are Houston Baptist University, the University of the Incarnate Word, McNeese State University, University of New Orleans, Nicholls State University, Northwestern State University, Southeastern Louisiana University and Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi. All told, the membership of the Southland encompasses over 140,000 current students and an alumni base of nearly 900,000.

Southland cities encompass approximately 14 million people, and its geography covers many of the nation’s top 100 television markets, including Dallas-Fort Worth, Houston, San Antonio, New Orleans, Shreveport and Baton Rouge. League institutions, their locations, and many of their namesakes are significant to the history of the South Central and Southwest regions of the United States.

Southland institutions are annually positioned among the nation’s best public and private universities, exemplified by superb undergraduate and graduate education rankings, and featuring unique and accomplished curriculums at the bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral levels. Member universities are frequently acknowledged for their superior standing in areas such as college buy value and return on investment, student engagement, best-in-region status, favorable student-to-faculty ratios, service learning, military-friendly designations, honors programs, online learning, faith-based learning, and access to higher education for all income levels.

Numerous Southland alumni have earned acclaim as business, medical, education and government leaders and innovators, iconic entertainers such as filmmakers, musicians and television/film actors, and athletes that starred at the professional and Olympic levels to earn hall of fame distinction.

Athletically, the Southland Conference sponsors championship play in 18 NCAA Division I sports at the NCAA Division I level. Women’s sports include basketball, beach volleyball, cross country, golf, soccer, softball, tennis, indoor and outdoor track and field, and volleyball. Men’s sports include baseball, basketball, cross country, football, golf, tennis, and indoor and outdoor track and field. Since 2015, the Conference has also administered the Southland Bowling League, an affiliated women’s sport that has produced NCAA national champions in three of the last four years.

The Conference boasts automatic qualification in all NCAA team sports, and league members have taken advantage of this access with recent wins in NCAA baseball, softball, football, and basketball championships. Additionally, Southland teams have won numerous contests in other national postseason events.

The Southland has also taken a lead role in the NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision by serving as the host conference for the annual DI national championship game in the league office’s base of Frisco, Texas, since 2011. Working with its partners, the City of Frisco and Hunt Sports Ventures, the Southland’s hosting role has been reaffirmed three times since the initial game, that will remain at Frisco’s Toyota Stadium at least through the 2025 game.

Preseason Poll 1. Southeastern (7) 90 2. Incarnate Word (7) 86 3. Nicholls (2) 79 4. McNeese 61 5. Northwestern State 44 6. Texas A&M-Commerce 39 7. Lamar 25 8. Houston Baptist 24

2022 PRESEASON FIRST-TEAM OFFENSE

Pos. Name

University

QB Lindsey Scott Jr. UIW RB Collin Guggenheim Nicholls RB Deonta McMahon McNeese TE/HB Lee NeGrotto Nicholls WR Taylor Grimes UIW WR K.J. Franklin Nicholls WR Gage Larvadain Southeastern OL Caron Coleman McNeese OL Nash Jones UIW

OL John Allen Southeastern

Cl. Hometown

Sr. So. Zachary, La. Kenner, La.

Sr.

Frostproof, Fla. So. Pass Christian, Miss. Sr. Jr. Godley, Texas Prairieville, La. So. Donaldsonville, La. Jr. Nacogdoches, Texas Jr. Nacogdoches, Texas Jr. Jackson, Miss.

OL Jalen Bell OL Evan Roussel Southeastern Louisiana Sr. Nicholls So.

K Gavin Lasseigne Nicholls Jr. Amory, Miss. Gramercy, La. Raceland, La.

P Brady Buell Houston Baptist Sr. Traverse City, Mich.

2022 PRESEASON FIRST-TEAM DEFENSE

Pos. Name

DL Perry Ganci

University

Nicholls

DL Mason Kinsey

McNeese DL Cameron Preston Incarnate Word DL Garrett Crawford Southeastern

DL Accord Green

McNeese LB Kelechi Anyalebechi UIW LB Kordell Williams McNeese

Cl. Hometown

Jr. New Orleans, La. R-Sr. Mansfield, Texas Gr. Crowley, Texas Jr. Slidell, La. Sr. New Orleans, La. Gr. Pearland, Texas R-Sr. Carencro, La.

DB Zy Alexander Southeastern

So. Loreauville, La. DB Kaleb Culp UIW Jr. Dallas, Texas

DB Shemar Bartholomew Northwestern State Sr. New Orleans, La.

DB Donnell Ward-McGee Southeastern Louisiana Sr. New Orleans, La.

DB PJ Herrington Northwestern State Sr. Natchez, Miss.

KR Gage Larvadain Southeastern So. Donaldsonville, La. PR Mason Pierce McNeese R-So. Pearland, Texas

2022 PRESEASON SECOND-TEAM OFFENSE

Pos. Name

QB Kohen Granier

University

Nicholls

Cl.

Sr.

Hometown

Destrehan, La. RB Taron Jones Southeastern Sr. Mandeville, La.

RB Scooter Adams Northwestern State R-Jr. Hallettsville, Texas

TE/HB Roger McCuller UIW Gr. Hallsville, Texas WR Darion Chaffin UIW Gr. Wichita Falls, Texas WR Mason Pierce McNeese R-So. Pearland, Texas WR CJ Turner Southeastern R-Sr. LaPlace, La. OL Mark Barthelemy Nicholls Sr. Opelousas, La. OL Reid Francis UIW Sr. College Station, Texas OL Caleb Johnson UIW Gr. Mount Pleasant, Texas OL Calvin Barkat McNeese Sr. Sachse, Texas OL Breenan Lanclos Southeastern R-Jr. Mandeville, La. PK Carson Mohr UIW Sr. The Woodlands, Texas P Kevin Nguyen UIW Gr. Rohnert Park, Calif.

2022 PRESEASON SECOND-TEAM DEFENSE Pos. Name University Cl. Hometown DL Isaiah Longino Northwestern State Sr. Humble, Texas DL Jomard Valsin Northwestern State Sr. Port Arthur, Texas

DL Bryce Cage Southeastern So. Baton Rouge, La. LB Rodney Dansby Houston Baptist So. Houston, Texas LB Isaiah Paul UIW R-Jr. San Antonio, Texas LB Hayden Shaheen Nicholls So. Baton Rouge, La. LB Brennan Young Houston Baptist Sr. Conroe, Texas DB Elliott Davison UIW Jr. Flint, Texas DB Jordan Jackson Nicholls Jr. Prairieville, La. DB Isaiah Cain Houston Baptist So. Austin, Texas DB Brandon Richard UIW Sr. San Antonio, Texas DB Coi Miller Houston Baptist Sr. Fort Worth, Texas KR Ce’Cori Tolds UIW Gr. Houston, Texas PR Gage Larvadain Southeastern So. Donaldsonville, La.