HAMMOND – The No. 10 Southeastern Louisiana football team will look to win its second straight Southland Conference championship on Thursday, when it travels to face Nicholls at 6 p.m. in the River Bell Classic in Guidry Stadium.
 
The game between the Lions (8-3, 6-1 Southland) and the host Colonels (0-11, 0-7 Southland) will be televised live on WHNO (Charter Channel 14).  The contest will also be broadcast live in the Hammond area on the flagship station of Southeastern Football, KSLU-FM (90.9), as well as affiliates and Northshore Broadcasting stations Kajun 107.1 FM (WHMD) and The Highway 104.7 FM (WJSH).
 
Southeastern will repeat as Southland champions with a win in Thibodaux, marking the first time since 1960 and 1961, when the program won consecutive Gulf States Conference titles, that the Lions would repeat as conference champions. SLU enters the final week of the regular season tied with Sam Houston State atop the Southland Conference standings. The Bearkats host Central Arkansas next Saturday in Huntsville, Texas.
 
Should the teams finish tied atop the Southland Conference standings, both teams will be considered Southland Conference champions. Since the two teams did not play during the regular season, the tie between the Lions and Bearkats would have to be broken by Southland tie-breaker rules to determine which team receives the Southland's automatic bid to the NCAA Playoffs. A Northwestern State win over Stephen F. Austin would give SLU the automatic bid, while a SFA victory in the battle for Chief Caddo would provide the automatic bid to the Bearkats.
 
Should Southeastern close the regular season with a victory, the Lions would be all but assured a playoff berth regardless of the automatic bid outcome. SLU put itself in that position with Saturday's 28-9 win over No. 11/13 McNeese State – the program's first victory over a ranked opponent this season. The 24-team Division I Championship field will be announced on Sunday at 10 a.m. on ESPNU.
 
In addition to the conference championship, Southeastern will be looking to claim the River Bell trophy for the fourth straight season. The Lions have also won their last nine games versus in-state Southland Conference competition heading into Thursday's tilt in Thibodaux. Southeastern head coach Ron Roberts is wary of the Colonels with the Lions coming off an emotional win over McNeese on Saturday.
 
"I've been around long enough to know when it comes to rivalry games, you can throw the records out," Roberts said. "(Nicholls interim head) Coach (Steve) Axman has done a great job getting his team to continue to play extremely hard each week. We won a big game last week, but we now have to worry about the task at hand. We have to be focused and concentrate on reaching our goal of winning a Southland Conference championship."
  
Southeastern enters the game with an offense that averages 466.6 yards and 40.4 points per game led by senior quarterback and Walter Payton Award candidate Bryan Bennett. The Granada Hills, California native has thrown for 2,095 yards and 17 touchdowns, while accounting for 655 yards and 13 scores on the ground.
 
Senior Devante Scott (38 catches, 815 yards, five touchdowns) and junior Jeff Smiley (33-564-7 TD) are Bennett's top targets. Junior Kody Sutton (552 yards, 6 TD), junior Rasheed Harrell (348-2 TD) and freshman Eugene Bethea (295-2 TD) highlight a balanced rushing attack that is averaging 237.6 yards per game.
 
SLU will be looking to produce against a Nicholls defense that is allowing 529.8 yards and 49.1 points per contest. Senior Davin Bovie leads the Colonels with 101 tackles, while sophomore Ronnie Walker and senior Josh Dewey each have a team-high five tackles for loss. Sophomore B.T. Sanders and Josh Singleton lead NSU with two interceptions apiece.
 
The Lions counter with a defense that leads the Southland by yielding 296.6 yards and 18.7 points per contest. Senior Tyler Stoddard leads the team with 79 tackles, followed by senior Drew Misita (72), senior Buck Buchanan Award candidate Isiah Corbett (62), junior Micah Eugene (5) and senior Kaleb Muse (55). Corbett also leads SLU with 11.5 tackles for loss and 4.5 sacks.
 
Junior Denzel Thompson tops the team with four interceptions, followed by Corbett with three, as well as senior Marice Sutton and junior Harlan Miller with two apiece. Eugene continues to lead the team with two fumble recoveries.
 
Southeastern will be looking to contain a Nicholls offensive attack that has produced 279.4 yards and 14.5 points per contest. Seniors Kalen Henderson (825 yards, 3 touchdowns) and Beaux Hebert (990-6 TD) have split time under center for the Colonels. Senior Demon Bolt (28 catches, 419 yards, 2 TD) is the team's top receiver, while junior Michael Henry is one of the league's top running backs with 887 yards and six touchdowns.
 
All information regarding Southeastern's trip to the playoffs can be accessed at www.lionsports.net/playoffs2014.