BEAUMONT, Texas – Lamar University had a shot to tie the game with a two-point conversion with just under six minutes remaining, but the Cardinals were denied and McNeese figured out a way to hold on defeating No. 19 Lamar University, 21-19, on Senior Day. The loss drops Lamar to 8-4 on the season and 5-3 in Southland Conference play.
 
Lamar recorded one of its biggest nights of the season offensively rolling up 416 yards of offense, including 281 on the ground. The Cowboys ended the game with 359. Senior Xavier Coleman saved his best performance for senior day rushing for a career-high 141 yards on 15 carries (9.4 ypc). Freshman LaDamian McDowell nearly hit the century mark with 10 carries for 93 yards and a touchdown.
 
Sophomore Aiden McCown completed eight passes for 135 yards and a touchdown (the touchdown pass was a seven-yard strike to Izaha Jones in the first quarter).
 
Defensively, Kristian Pugh also came up huge on senior day. The Beaumont native recorded a game-high 11 tackles, forced a fumble and picked off a pass – his fourth of the year – which he returned 35 yards. Redshirt freshman IyiolaOluwa Solomi added eight stops, including an assisted sack, in his first career start.
 
The Cardinals led for the majority of the first half taking the first lead of the game at the 10:36 mark when McCown connected with Jones. While McNeese managed to tie the game midway through the second, the Cardinals' lead appeared to be in jeopardy late in the half but a rush up the middle by McNeese quarterback Devin Lippold was stuffed inches shy of the goal line forcing a field goal attempt which was blocked allowing Lamar to carry all the momentum into the locker room.
 
Lamar tacked on two Ben Woodard field goals (25 and 26 yards) to take a six-point lead midway through the third, but McNeese finally answered with nine minutes to go in the fourth on a five-yard touchdown pass from Lippold to Reed Boyd.
 
Unfortunately, McNeese responded to the touchdown by coming up with the biggest defensive play of the game. Philip Bradford picked off a pass and returned it 20 yards for the score. Lamar would answer with a touchdown on a nine-yard rush from McDowell but couldn't convert the two-point play and the Cowboys managed to keep LU off the board for the final 5:41.