HAMMOND, La. – The reigning Southland Conference champion Southeastern Louisiana University football team is ranked 16^th in the latest Stats Perform FCS Top 25 released Monday.
 
SLU (0-1) opened the season with a 48-7 loss at FBS opponent Mississippi State and dropped one spot in the poll. The Lions trailed the Bulldogs, 10-7, late in the second quarter, but MSU scored the game's final 38 points, including a 28-0 advantage after halftime.
 
Southeastern was led in Saturday's opener by defensive back Ian Goodly. The Covington, Louisiana native finished with a game-high 15 tackles on the way to being named SLC Defensive Player of the Week. FCS Punter of the Year Watch List member Austin Dunlap averaged 46.3 yards per punt for the Lions and downed four punts inside the 20-yard line.
 
SLU is one of two Southland Conference teams ranked in the top 25. UIW, which lost its season opener, 28-14, at UTEP, dropped three spots to No. 10.
 
The Lions will travel to South Alabama for a 4 p.m. contest Saturday in Mobile, Alabama in the second of three straight road games for Southeastern to start 2023. The Lions-Jaguars tilt will be seen on ESPN+ and can be heard on the Southeastern Sports Radio Network (Kajun 107.1 FM, The Highway 104.7 FM, The Boss 103.7 FM/WFPR 1400 AM).
 
Season and single-game tickets for the 2023 home football season, which includes visits from HCU (Sept. 23), Tarleton State (Sept. 30), Lamar (Oct. 14), McNeese (Nov. 4) and Nicholls (Nov. 18) are available online at https://vivenu.com/event/2023-football-2klkar.
 
Stats Perform FCS Top 25
Team (First-place votes)                   Record            Points  Prv.
1.         South Dakota State (55)          1-0                   1,399   1
2.         North Dakota State (1)            1-0                   1,330   2
3.         Montana State                         1-0                   1,298   3
4.         William & Mary                     1-0                   1,184   4
5.         Holy Cross                              1-0                   1,114   5
6.         Furman                                    1-0                   1,075   6
7.         Idaho                                       1-0                   991      8
8.         Samford                                  1-0                   958      9
9.         Sacramento State                    1-0                   925      10
10.       UIW                                        0-1                   888      7
11.       New Hampshire                      1-0                   843      11
12.       Weber State                            1-0                   783      13
13.       Montana                                  1-0                   706      14
14.       Southeast Missouri                  0-1                   667      12
15.       UC Davis                                1-0                   617      16
16.       Southeastern                          0-1                   578      15
17.       North Dakota                          1-0                   524      17
18.       North Carolina Central           1-0                   387      19
19.       Delaware                                 1-0                   317      22
20.       Mercer                                     1-1                   240      20
21.       Northern Iowa                        0-1                   190      23
22.       Rhode Island                           0-1                   167      21
23.       Florida A&M                          1-0                   154      NR
24.       Southern Illinois                      1-0                   152      NR
25.       Youngstown State                  1-0                   103      NR
 
Others Receiving Votes: Eastern Kentucky 90, Richmond 89, Central Arkansas 78, Gardner-Webb 67, Villanova 66, Elon 40, UT Martin 38, Abilene Christian 32, Morgan State 31, UAlbany 22, Yale 13, Jackson State 12, Tarleton State 9, St. Thomas 7, Saint Francis 3.
 
2023 Southeastern opponents in bold italics
 
TICKETS
For ticket information, contact the Southeastern Athletics Ticket Office at (985) 549-5466 or visit www.LionSports.net. Southeastern will continue offering mobile ticketing as the primary source for securing tickets for the 2023-24 season. All tickets will be available via e-mail or text message in a PDF format for fans to download on their phone or print at home. Tickets can also be downloaded to Apple Wallet.
 
SOCIAL MEDIA
For more information on Southeastern Football, follow @LionUpFootball and @Coach_Scelfo on X, like /SLUathletics on Facebook and follow lionupfootball on Instagram.
 
TOUCHDOWN CLUB/S CLUB
Fans interested in becoming active supporters of the football program are encouraged to join the Touchdown Club. Lion football alums are encouraged to join the exclusive S Club, which is restricted to Southeastern athletic letter winners.
 
All membership fees and donations to both the Touchdown Club and S Club (football) are available for the exclusive use of the Southeastern football program. Membership information is available by contacting the Lion Athletics Association at laa@southeastern.edu or (985) 549-5091 or visiting www.LionUp.com.
 
INSIDE SOUTHEASTERN FOOTBALL WITH FRANK SCELFO
The 2023 season of Inside Southeastern Football with Frank Scelfo is airing from its new home – Walk-On's Sports Bistreaux (305 CM Fagan Dr) in Hammond. Hosted by Scelfo and Allen Waddell, the hour-long radio show will air Mondays throughout the football season on Kajun 107.1 FM, The Highway 104.7 FM and The Boss 103.7 FM/WFPR 1400 AM.
 
CLEAR BAG POLICY
Southeastern Athletics instituted a clear bag policy for all ticketed events, effective with the start of the 2018 football season. For more information on the clear bag policy, visit www.LionSports.net/clear.