Quarterback Landyn Locke gave the home fans plenty to be excited about in the season opener, throwing for 335 yards and 3 touchdowns at Troy — the best passing day by a Sam Houston quarterback since the program moved up to the FBS level in 2023. The problem was the other side of the ball: the Bearkats still lost that game 24-21, which says Phil Longo's offense is ahead of a defense that's still finding its footing early in year two under him.
Nicholls arrives in year 2 under Tommy Rybacki after a 4-8 debut season, and the roster turned over enough this offseason — nearly 50 new signees mixed in with 36 returning letterwinners — that this looks like a ground-up build more than a program peaking. The Colonels already played their Week 0 opener against Mississippi Valley State and hosted UTRGV for their Southland conference opener before this trip, so this is their third game of the year and their first look at an FBS roster.
Stepping up two subdivisions against a team that just hung 335 air yards on a Sun Belt defense isn't the ideal spot to find out how far along that rebuild is. The number reflects it — Sam Houston is laying more than two touchdowns and change, with the total also sitting in the high 40s, so the market already expects this to get away from Nicholls early.
The real variable isn't who wins, it's how long Sam Houston's starters stay in once it does — nothing about the matchup, the class gap, or the weather points toward a game that's still competitive in the fourth quarter, which is more about the home team's discipline than anything Nicholls can control.