The 2024 season for Northwestern State University’s football team marked a year of transition and growth for the team with the guidance of new head coach Blaine McCorkle. While the team’s season did not go as expected with a 0-12 record, spectators were able to see a noticeable difference in the team’s dynamic and a sense of teamwork that wasn’t present in previous years.
McCorkle considers the most rewarding moment of the season to be seeing the football players come together and work as a team. “I think one thing we noticed when we first got here is that we were very divided and fragmented. They didn’t know each other, and to watch them grow in unity and become a family with a strong brotherhood was neat to watch,” McCorkle said. “Before we can have any success on the field, they’ve got to learn to care about each other and do those things. I think that was a huge first step for us.”
McCorkle’s goal of bringing the team together seems to have been a major success, as many of the players felt the same about the team’s newfound unity. The players have taken pride in the work they put into the year and hope to continue building on this growth.
Dan Wallace is a senior project management major and wide receiver for the team. “You grow so close to the guys over the years, and throughout the spring, summer and fall, it builds more of a brotherhood than it would with being a regular team. You establish better relationships all around so it feels more like being a part of a big, happy family,” Wallace said.
After the 2023 season cancellation, the 2024 season filled the team with gratitude and hope as they finished out a complete season. Danny Sears, a junior sports recreation and management major, plays as a linebacker for the Demons. His favorite part of the season was being able to play football with his current teammates.
“I’ve been here for three years now and this is probably the closest I’ve ever been to a team in my life. I know it didn’t go the way we wanted to, but still getting the opportunity to play with these guys that I can call brothers now is pretty awesome,” Sears said.
Caleb Billiot, a senior health and exercise science major and defensive lineman, is constantly working on improving for the next season. “Coach McCorkle always says to be constant and continue to improve. So in every single aspect that we do, whether that be in the classroom, the field, practice or even the little things like being in meetings and taking notes, I’m taking things a lot more seriously and getting ready for the next season,” Billiot said.
With the closing of the 2024 season, NSU’s football team has shown amazing resilience and determination in the games that they played. Despite a less successful season than hoped, the team is developing into a family that can only strive for better. The 2025 season is looking brighter with each step the team is taking.
