Northwestern State University of Louisiana Demon football made an appearance at the 2024 Southland Football Opening Drive on Monday, July 22 at the Henry B. Gonzalez Convention Center in San Antonio, Texas to discuss the upcoming season.
Head Coach Blaine McCorkle first acknowledged the event hosted by the Southland Conference (SLC).
“Thanks for having us and thanks to the SLC for putting this on, it’s been a great event for the last two days,” McCorkle said. “I think these guys have had a great experience and it’s given us an opportunity to promote our brand both at Northwestern State and at the SLC, so thank you to everyone who has taken part in this.”
McCorkle addressed the difficult season the team went through last year.
“It’s no secret what the program has been through the last six to eight months, close to a year now, shutting down a season, losing their teammate Ronnie,” McCorkle said. “ It was very hard on these guys, they’ve gone through as much as every college football player should ever have to go through. The best thing these guys need to do is go out and play a little bit of football, that’s the best medicine they can have.”
He then expressed excitement moving forward into the new season with new and returning players.
“We’re really excited to get the season started, it’s 38 days until now and it’s been a long time coming for these guys and the players at Northwestern State,” McCorkle said. “We’ll report 108 young men to training camp, and 60 of the 108 were not on the roster last fall. So it truly is a new rebuild with a lot of new faces and the 50 plus that are returning. I couldn’t be prouder of those guys for choosing to stay through the hard times.”
McCorkle addressed the tough schedule ahead for the demons.
“We’ve got a tough slate ahead of us, we’ve got one of the toughest schedules in Football Championship Subdivision football with our non-conference slate and then going into conference play, but we’re excited for the challenge and getting going,” McCorkle said. “It’s been 625 days since Northwestern State has won a football game and we hope this fall we can give these guys, the campus and the whole city of Natchitoches something to be really proud of and restore the place to the once very proud and prominent place that it used to have in NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision football (FCS).”
He then gave a glimpse of what it was like to take over as head coach for the team.
“It’s been a lot of work and it’s been a journey. I’ve really enjoyed every minute along the way, it’s not just been something that is necessarily new to me. I came from a place that had a very similar situation when I took over at Belhaven University in Jackson, Mississippi six years ago in terms of success in academics and culture,” McCorkle said. “I’ve referenced a lot to the success and the turnaround at my last stop, but I believe that the guys at Northwestern State have bought in quicker than the guys at Belhaven. We’re excited to get going and see what the season looks like.”
He addressed the young talent of the offensive side.
“The offensive line will be brand new, I think we’ve got maybe three new combined starts on our entire roster on the offensive line,” McCorkle said. “We’ve got a couple young running backs that can be good and on the edge we’ve got legitimate speed to take advantage of. We’re going to put them in the position to make good plays.”
McCorkle explained the strengths on the defensive side.
“Up front we have three defensive lineman that are really good football players, they’ve got unique skill sets and I’m excited about that,” McCorkle said. “Our concern on defense is our depth. I feel good about our first 11, and we have some guys in spots that have good depth. Overall we need more numbers, but hopefully some of the 60 brand new faces can give us some depth.”
McCorkle shared the new identity that he hopes the NSU and Natchitoches community will soon see.
“I want people to see when they sit in the stands is a group of guys that play really hard, physically and with a lot of passion,” McCorkle said. “You have to play for the right reasons. I think that’s the track we’re on right now, and these guys have done a good job buying in culturally and also the offense, defense and all the football specifics as well.”
Chance Newman, senior quarterback, shared the team’s excitement going into the season.
“There’s a lot of optimism coming out of last season, everyone was kind of ready for that fresh start,” Newman said. “The guys who stayed were the guys who wanted to be a part of this and wanted to be a part of something special and build Northwestern State football back to what it’s been in the past and what it will be in the future.”
Newman addressed what the team needs to do to start the season strong and get a win.
“It’s going to mean a lot to the guys in the locker room and the community. We’ve practiced hard all off season, so it’s time to reap the benefits in our eyes,” Newman said. “The guys are ready to play football. We’ve put in the work to this point and it’s going to mean a lot to us to win.”
Cadillac Rhone, junior linebacker, gave his perspective on the team getting ready to play some football.
“It’s been great, the guys are really hungry. We haven’t won in a long time and most of the guys are ready to get that first win under their belt and want to thank the coaches for coming in and understanding what we went through,” Rhone said. “I’ve been counting down since spring ball for the season to start, I’m ready to go.”
Rhone then addressed the transition to linebacker as a former safety.
“At first it was kind of complicated learning the techniques and everything, but I just put my trust in God,” Rhone said. “ I went to work at it and bought into what the coach was telling me to do and put the team before me.”
The team will open the 2024 season against the University of Tulsa Hurricanes on Thursday, Aug. 29 at 7 p.m. in Oklahoma.
