BEAUMONT, Texas – Lamar University will put its national ranking on the line Saturday when they travel down I-10 to face Texas Southern. The Cardinals enter the week coming off a big upset over No. 4 South Dakota and look to string back-to-back wins together to move over the .500 mark in the third week of the season.
 
The Cardinals defense set the tone in last week's victory. After the 2024 NCAA FCS semifinalists scored 10 points on their opening two possessions, Lamar's defense slammed the door shut. Big Red allowed only three points to the Coyotes the rest of the way and held South Dakota to a mere 85 yards offense in the second half. In addition, the defense came up with two key turnovers and special teams forced a third all which played huge roles in the victory.
 
But, that was last week and Saturday presents new challenges. Texas Southern enters week three looking for its first win of the season, which makes them even more dangerous. After dropping a heartbreaking one-point conference loss to Prairie View A&M in week one, the Tigers then went on the road and put up a strong fight at California. Just for the sake of comparison, TSU rolled into the Golden Triangle last season and lost by only three points.
 
Saturday's game is set to kick off at 6 p.m. from Shell Energy Stadium in Houston. The game will be broadcast live on Newstalk 560 and streamed live on SWAC TV.
   
LU vs. the Tigers
The series between Lamar and Texas Southern is even at three wins a piece, with Big Red having won the last two games including a three-point victory last season in Beaumont. The Cardinals won the only other meeting in Houston (41-8) but that came in the first meeting in series history back during the 1980 season.
 
Climbing the Ladder
Lamar University head coach Pete Rossomando is already the school's fourth all-time winningest coach despite being just two games into his third season with the program. Saturday's win over No. 4 South Dakota was Rossomando's 14th with the program and second over a nationally ranked opponent. Rossomando enters 2025 having guided the Cardinals to back-to-back winning seasons for the first time since 1966 and 1967.
 
Not Backing Down
After not having defeated a nationally ranked opponent since 2019, Lamar is quickly turning the Golden Triangle into the Bermuda Triangle for nationally ranked opponents. The Cardinals have now knocked off nationally ranked opponents in consecutive years – No. 20 Weber State in 2024 and No. 4 South Dakota in 2025. Saturday's win stands as the program's largest win over a non-conference opponent (LU defeated No. 3 Sam Houston, 49-46, in 2015).
 
The Defense (Doesn't) Rests
Lamar surrendered just 13 points and 243 yards of offense to South Dakota Saturday but 158 of those yards came in the first half and 10 of the 13 points came on USD's first two drives. Lamar held the Coyotes to just three points and 85 yards in the second half. Big Red also picked off a pass and forced two fumbles.