HAMMOND -- When offered the opportunity to play Division I-AA football power McNeese St., Southeastern Louisiana coach Hal Mumme jumped at the opportunity, in part to see where his program stood in its first season on the gridiron since 1985.

On Saturday night, the Cowboys showed the Lions and an overflow crowd of 9,758 in Strawberry Stadium just why they are a cut above almost every other I-AA program.

Top-ranked McNeese (4-1) jumped out to a 24-0 lead before Southeastern (2-4) recorded a first down, as the Cowboys rolled up 526 yards of total offense in
cruising to a 58-20 victory.

The Cowboys' offensive attack was balanced, as they gained 305 yards on the ground while three quarterbacks combined for 221 yards in the air. The Cowboys rolled up 31 first downs, controlled the ball for almost 39 minutes and punted just twice.

Vick King rushed for 95 yards to lead all ground gainers, while reserve Chris Thomas gained 88 yards and scored three times in the second half. Starting quarterback Scott Pendarvis was 10-of-18 for 180 yards, but played sparingly after building a 17-0 first quarter lead, alternating with senior reserve Ryan Corcoran, who was 4-of-5 for 41 yards.

Southeastern forced a three-and-out on the Cowboys' first possession, but the McNeese offense got in gear on its second drive, with Pendarivs hitting B.J. Sams on a slant for 18 yards and a first down to the Lions' 45.

A 5-yard run by King allowed the Cowboys convert a fourth-and-2, and two plays later, Pendarivs found Britt Brodhead in the right corner of the end zone, and Brodhead outfought David Daniels for the 32-yard touchdown that gave McNeese a 7-0 lead at the 9:41 mark of the opening period.

McNeese drove from its own 1 to the Southeastern in 12 plays on its next offensive possession, but with a fourth-and-inches from inside the 1, the Cowboys committed a false start penalty. The Cowboys expanded the lead to 10-0 on a 22-yard field goal by John Marino, the first of three for the left-footed kicker in the opening half.

Southeastern did not record a first down in the opening period, and Jim Hall's fourth punt of the period was fielded by Sams, a native of nearby Mandeville, at
his own 39.

Sams appeared to be trapped for a loss by a pair of Lions, but Sams broke free, reversed his field, and followed a convoy down the left sideline to a 61-yard
touchdown and a 17-0 lead at the 1:03 mark of the opening period.Sams was one of nine Cowboys to catch a pass, gaining 83 yards on his three receptions.

A failed fake punt left the Cowboys at the Lion 29 early in the second quarter, and after King burst up the middle for 13 yards to the 9, backup quarterback Ryan Corcoran found tight end John Boutte for the touchdown and a 24-0 lead less than two minutes into the period.

A pass interference penalty on a third-down incompletion gave the Lions their initial first down, and a 35-yard connection from Martin Hankins to Felton
Huggins put Southeastern in scoring position at the McNeese 15. Hankins then capped the 8-play, 69-yard march with a 15-yard pass to Josh Wilson for his first career touchdown.

Hankins was 18-of-51 for 259 yards and a pair of touchdowns, but he was sacked three times and was under constant siege by McNeese's blitzing defense.

Hutch Gonzales led the Lions with five catches for 51 yards, as he was one of 12 different Southeastern players to catch a pass.

Southeastern missed on two other opportunities to score later in the period. The first came when Daniels intercepted Pendarvis at the Cowboy 23, but three plays netted no yards and then Hess Crockett shanked a 40-yard field goal attempt.

The second chance came in the final minutes of the first half, as the Lions got to the McNeese 6, but without any timeouts, Southeastern ran the ball on first and goal. When Ray Perkins was stuffed for a 2-yard loss, time ran out before another play could be run.

King scored from 12 yards out early in the third quarter before giving way to Thomas, who scored twice in the third quarter and then on a 35-yard run with 8:51 to go to close scoring.

Southeastern scored a pair of second half touchdowns, first on a 60-yard Hankins to Felton Huggins hookup in the third quarter, then on a 1-yard run by Ray Perkins with 11 minutes left.

The Cowboys extended their lead to 16-13 in the all-time series. The teams will open the 2004 season in Lake Charles before Southeastern becomes a member of the Southland Conference in 2005.

McNeese St. 17 13 21 7-- 58
Southeastern Louisiana 0 7 7 6-- 20

FIRST QUARTER
MSU - Britt Brodhead 32 pass from Scott Pendarvis (John Marino kick), 9:41
MSU - FG Marino 22, 3:07
MSU - B.J. Sams 61 punt return (Marino kick), 1:03

SECOND QUARTER
MSU - John Boutte 9 pass from Ryan Corcoran (Marino kick), 13:05
SLU - Josh Wilson 15 pass from Martin Hankins (Hess Crockett kick), 9:31
MSU - FG Marino 37, 5:02
MSU - FG Marino 40, 2:50

THIRD QUARTER
MSU - King 12 run (Marino kick), 10:41
MSU - Chris Thomas 28 run (Marino kick), 6:52
SLU - Felton Huggins 60 pass from Hankins (Crockett kick)
MSU - Thomas 2 run (Marino kick), :53

FOURTH QUARTER
SLU - Ray Perkins 1 run (kick blocked), 11:00
MSU - Thomas 35 run (Marino kick), 8:51
A - 9,758.

TEAM STATISTICS MCN SLU
FIRST DOWNS 31 17
RUSHES-YARDS (NET) 58-305 20-24
PASSING YDS (NET) 221 268
Passes (Att-Comp-Int) 24-14-1 53-19-2
TOTAL OFFENSE PLAYS-YARDS 82-526 73-292
Fumble Returns-Yards 1-10 0-0
Punt Returns-Yards 2-63 1-0
Kickoff Returns-Yards 2-41 8-146
Interception Returns-Yards 2-10 1-2
Punts (Number-Avg) 2-38.0 5-44.0
Fumbles-Lost 1-0 1-1
Penalties-Yards 15-150 8-104
Possession Time 38:58 21:02
Third-Down Conversions 9 of 16 2 of 15
Fourth-Down Conversions 2 of 2 4 of 7
Red-Zone Scores-Chances 6-7 1-2
Sacks By: Number-Yards 1-2 0-0

RUSHING
McNeese St.-Vick King 18-95; Chris Thomas 9-88; Brent McPhatter 7-45; Jason Miller 5-25; Luke Lawton 10-22; Schuyler Olivier 4-12; B.J. Sams 2-9; Scott
Pendarvis 1-9; Chris Jones 2-0.Southeastern La.-Ray Perkins 14-23; Keylam Davis 4-1; Martin Hankins 2-0.

PASSING
McNeese St.-Scott Pendarvis 10-18-1-180; Ryan Corcoran 4-5-0-41; Chris Jones 0-1-0-0. Southeastern La.-Martin Hankins 18-51-2-259; Seth Babin 0-1-0-0; Brian Sheppard 1-1-0-9.

RECEIVING:
McNeese St.-B.J. Sams 3-83; Matt Gore 3-41; Britt Brodhead 2-42; Henry Smith 1-16; Hynson Lanaux 1-12; John Boutte 1-9; Marcus Turner 1-7; Luke Lawton 1-6; Vick King 1-5. Southeastern La.-Hutch Gonzales 5-51; Felton Huggins 2-95; Dane Wobbema 2-19; Keylam Davis 2-12; Josh Taylor 1-36; Josh Wilson 1-15; Ray Perkins 1-10; David Daniels 1-9; Brian Sheppard 1-8; Jeffrey Howard 1-6; D.J. Jackson 1-5; Choni Francis 1-2.