Our side
MoneylineSHSU to win
ours 76%
Projected score
21–34
NICH – SHSU
2026-09-19 · 7:00 PM
Elliott T. Bowers Stadium · Huntsville, TX
Early season
The books
No book has priced this game. Nothing to compare, and no ticket to build.
Series
Sam Houston lead
12–3
· 15 meetings since 2003
2025 unit ranks —
last completed season, from games actually played
Run game
even
9 ranks apart
Nicholls Colonels #198 rush offense
Sam Houston Bearkats #207 run defense
Pass game
even
28 ranks apart
Nicholls Colonels #212 pass offense
Sam Houston Bearkats #240 pass defense
Run game
edge Sam Houston Bearkats
97 ranks
Sam Houston Bearkats #152 rush offense
Nicholls Colonels #249 run defense
Pass game
edge Nicholls Colonels
197 ranks
Sam Houston Bearkats #259 pass offense
Nicholls Colonels #62 pass defense
Nicholls Colonels
Run-heavy · 59% run
Ball-control
Sam Houston Bearkats
Balanced · 50% run
Ball-control
Dual-threat QB · 39 rush ypg
Phil Longo · 2-10
Ranked by team-unit strength
(rush & pass offense vs. run & pass defense) across all 265
D1 teams, not by individual players. Identity, tempo and unit strength are measured from the
2025 season.
The evidence 2025 production and power ratings · supporting the number above
Who carried each team in 2025
Nicholls Colonels
DB
Skylar Husband
20 tkl · 1 PD · 1 INT
#71 DB
DL
Alex Villavaso
9 tkl · 1.0 sacks · 3.0 TFL
#102 DL
LB
Kennon Loftin
24 tkl
#96 LB
WR
Jackson Dufrene
6 rec · 105 yds · 3 TD
#101 WR
Sam Houston Bearkats
DL
Brody Henderson
11 tkl · 1.0 sacks · 2.0 TFL
#94 DL
WR
Chris Reed
7 rec · 145 yds · 2 TD
#94 WR
WR
Grady O'Neill
12 rec · 148 yds · 1 TD
#103 WR
DB
Ishmel Atkins
7 tkl · 4 PD
#254 DB
Top-rated players from last season, ranked within their
position across D1. A grade measures what a player produced, and no
2026 game has been played yet — so this is who produced for
these programs in 2025, not a claim about who is on the field this year.
Power breakdown
Def is higher = better. The projection assumes a 2.4-pt home edge (0 at neutral sites).
Where the number comes from
Nicholls offense vs Sam Houston defense-1.5 pts
Sam Houston offense vs Nicholls defense-2.3 pts
An efficiency adjustment from season-to-date EPA and success rate applies once teams have
played enough games; before then it is 0 and the number is the power rating alone.