Week 3 Could Tell Us Plenty About the Southland

Week 2 of the Southland Conference delivered in-conference matchups, close calls and high-level road performances, showing why several of these teams are earning national attention.

The Lamar Cardinals will be on a bye this week, but the rest of the conference has a loaded Week 3 slate that includes multiple FBS opportunities, intriguing nonconference tests and a Southland matchup between two teams desperate to get back on track.

Let’s dive into the Week 3 Southland slate.

Southeastern Louisiana (1-2, 0-1 SLC) at ULM (0-2)

3:30 p.m.

The Lions earned a close home win over North Alabama last week as they now prepare for a three-game road trip.

This is the final nonconference game for Southeastern Louisiana as it travels to face ULM. It will be the second Sun Belt opponent the Lions have played this season, with the first being South Alabama.

“I thought we did some good things against North Alabama. Our special teams did some good things. I felt that individually we are getting more consistent, and if we can get a full game, this team can do some special things,” head coach Frank Scelfo said during his media availability.

“ULM has had a difficult start to their season, but I think they found a bit of their groove, and they are improving in the right direction.”

The Warhawks will play their home opener after dropping their first two contests on the road. ULM has played two different quarterbacks but will stick with Austin Carlisle, a dual-threat quarterback who gives the Warhawks’ offense a different look.

The Lions and Warhawks will meet for only the third time in history. This is their first matchup since 2018, when ULM edged Southeastern Louisiana 34-31.

Nicholls (2-1, 1-0 SLC) at Sam Houston (0-2)

6 p.m.

Nicholls is coming off a home win over UTRGV in its conference home opener.

Ean Rodrigue threw four touchdowns, three of them to Jackson Dufrene, who totaled 100 receiving yards.

“We played nearly a clean game against them (UTRGV), but the credit goes to our coaching staff as well because they did a phenomenal job preparing for a well-coached team,” Tommy Rybacki said after the win over UTRGV.

“Now we prepare for our final nonconference game at Huntsville, and it’s a familiar opponent that I’ve seen in the past, but our guys will prepare for this one.”

Sam Houston is coming off a close home loss to Tulsa that was decided by one possession. Both of the Bearkats’ losses this season have been one-possession games.

The last time the Colonels and Bearkats faced each other was in 2021, when Sam Houston rolled to a 71-17 win in Huntsville.

For Nicholls, this is an opportunity to turn a strong start to Southland play into a statement against an FBS opponent.

Houston Christian (2-1, 1-0 SLC) at UIW (1-1)

6 p.m.

Houston Christian scored a program-record 88 points in its victory over Arkansas Baptist.

Cutter Stewart and Hayden Drinkard each scored three touchdowns as the Huskies bounced back in a major way.

“We had a good week of practice after a difficult loss at Rice. We found different options on offense, and our defense helped in setting us up with short fields at times,” head coach Jason Bachtel said after the win.

“Now we prepare for two road games beginning with Incarnate Word, a team with which we have struggled before, but it will be a tough matchup for us.”

Incarnate Word is coming off a 38-28 road loss to nationally ranked Northern Arizona. Quarterback Emmett Brown threw for 430 yards, while Zach Phillips totaled 125 all-purpose yards and a touchdown.

For the Cardinals, the matchup against the Huskies will be their Southland home opener.

UIW has never lost to Houston Christian.

Could this finally be the time it happens?

East Texas A&M (1-2, 1-1 SLC) at Tulsa (2-0)

7 p.m.

The Lions earned a much-needed win over Northwestern State last week in Commerce to boost morale.

“We did a lot of things well against the Demons. We made great progress, but now we face a good Tulsa team that is off to a very good start,” East Texas A&M head coach Clint Dolezel said in a recent interview.

Micah Simpson had an efficient game, totaling 139 all-purpose yards and two touchdowns for the Lions.

East Texas A&M will now face the fifth FBS opponent in program history.

The Golden Hurricane are in the middle of their nonconference schedule as they prepare to host East Texas A&M. With a home win over Oklahoma State already on the résumé this season, Tulsa is receiving votes in both the AP and USA Today Coaches polls.

Tulsa and East Texas A&M will meet for the first time.

Quarterback Baylor Hayes has thrown for 363 yards with a 62.6% completion rate.

#15 Stephen F. Austin (3-0, 2-0 SLC) at Prairie View A&M (1-2, 1-0 SWAC)

7 p.m.

The Lumberjacks took care of business on the road, knocking off Abilene Christian 26-7.

Gavin Rutherford accounted for three touchdowns for SFA as the Lumberjacks remained atop the Southland Conference standings.

“I was pleased with the way we finished the game because we were a little flat, and in the second quarter we got some juice going to settle us down a bit,” Colby Carthel said after Saturday night’s win.

“Tremaine Jackson has a great thing going on down there. He was able to turn around that program, and his team is playing some good football. Their offense runs through their QB, number 21, and we need to find ways to contain them.”

Prairie View A&M has a home win on its résumé after defeating in-state conference rival Texas Southern and will be looking to put the Lumberjacks on upset alert.

The Panthers already played nationally ranked Tarleton State on the road and kept that game close. Now, with the home crowd on their side, an upset would do wonders for the program.

Quarterback Tevin Carter leads Prairie View A&M with 813 all-purpose yards and seven touchdowns.

SFA enters at 3-0 and #15 in the FCS Nation Top 25, but this could be a dangerous road test for the Lumberjacks.

Northwestern State (0-3, 0-1 SLC) at Weber State (1-2, 1-0 Big Sky)

7 p.m.

The Demons close out the nonconference portion of their schedule on the road against Weber State.

It has not been the best start for Northwestern State in 2026, but a nonconference road win could jump-start its season.

“We are closing out the nonconference a little differently this time around against a good Wildcat team. Most of our guys will be playing in mountain scenery at the elevation in Ogden, Utah,” head coach Blaine McCorkle said.

“We have been adjusting a few things at practice, and it’s a bit of a short week because of travel, so we need to be on alert.”

For the Wildcats, this is also their final nonconference game before entering the remaining slate of Big Sky Conference play.

A win for Weber State would provide some much-needed momentum after suffering back-to-back road losses. Its lone victory so far was a conference win over Northern Colorado.

Head coach Eric Kjar is in his first year leading Weber State, while quarterback Nate Dahle has produced 688 total yards of offense and five touchdowns.

The Wildcats are seeking their first winning season since 2023 and their first playoff appearance since 2022.

McNeese (1-2, 0-1 SLC) at UTRGV (1-2, 0-1 SLC)

7 p.m.

If anyone needs one win more desperately than the other, please ask these two programs.

For UTRGV, defending home turf will definitely be tested this week as it hosts a desperate McNeese team.

In their conference opener on the road, the Vaqueros responded twice to double-digit deficits, but the second half took its toll as the offense looked out of sequence.

Aiden Jakobsohn came in and threw a pair of touchdown passes to pull the Vaqueros closer, but in the end, it wasn’t enough.

“We made that change at quarterback, and the guys responded. But we committed penalties that killed some drives, so we need to do a better job being disciplined,” UTRGV head coach Travis Bush said.

“I feel we are getting there, but McNeese is a hungry team that had a nationally ranked team on the ropes as well.”

For the Cowboys, losing at home to nationally ranked Tarleton State at the end was an enduring experience. It was their second home loss of the season to a ranked opponent.

Now, McNeese embarks on its first road trip of the season, heading deep into South Texas near the Mexico border to face UTRGV in Edinburg.

“They pack their stadium, which makes for a great environment. They are undefeated in Edinburg, but we have to really focus on ourselves to have a chance,” McNeese head coach Matt Viator said during his press conference.

“I have a lot of respect for the way they have done it, and it will be a difficult challenge.”

Both teams enter at 1-2 overall and 0-1 in Southland play. Something has to give.