NATCHITOCHES – Northwestern State's 6 p.m. home opener Saturday against Lamar marks a stretch of nine straight Southland Conference games as the Demons (0-2) look to start the league race on the right foot against the Cardinals (1-1).
 
In head coach Jay Thomas's fifth season at NSU, the program has continually upgraded iconic Harry Turpin Stadium, but all renovations pale in comparison to the most recent upgrade: a 17-foot-high, 54-foot-wide video board and sound system that will make its debut Saturday.

"It's going to be great to be right back here in Turpin Stadium," Thomas said. "We'll have the new scoreboard, the purple smoke going in front of our home fans, and all the excitement. There just is not anything like a game day here in Natchitoches."
 
The game will be televised on Cox Sports Television to cable subscribers in Louisiana and 13 other states, and will be available elsewhere on ESPN3.

In Louisiana, CST is available on cable systems in communities including Abbeville, Acadia, Alexandria, Anacoco, Assumption, Baker, Bastrop, Baton Rouge, Belle Chasse, Blanchard, Boyce, Bossier City and Butte Larose. Others carrying CST include Crowley, Delcambre, DeRidder, Franklin/Patterson, Grammercy, Grand Coteau, Grand Lake, Houma, Jackson/Clinton, Jefferson Davis, Jonesboro, Kaplan, Lafayette, Lafourche, Lake Charles/Sulphur, Laplace, Leesville, and Livingston. More CST affiliates are in Maringouin, Minden, Morgan City, Natchitoches, New Iberia, New Orleans, Pendleton, Plaquemine, Reserve, Ruston, Sibley, St. Francisville, St. Landry, St. Martinville, St. Mary, St. Tammany, Sulphur, Tangipahoa, Terrebone and Winnfield.
 
Outside of Louisiana, noteworthy markets whose cable systems have CST include Fayetteville/Bentonville, Fort Walton, Gainesville, Macon, Panama City, Pensacola, Roanoke, Santa Barbara, Scottsdale, Topeka, Tulsa, Tucson, and Wichita.

A full CST affiliate list is available at http://coxsportstv.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/Affiliate_List_Nov172016.pdf
 
Special "#StandUnited" tickets discounted to $5 are on sale and will be available at the stadium when gates open at 4:30 Saturday.
 
In last year's meeting, NSU fell victim to Murphy's Law, as everything that could have gone wrong, went wrong in the last 1:43 of the contest for the Demons.

Lamar scored two touchdowns in that timeframe, thanks in part to a recovered onside kick that led to a fourth-down score with six seconds remaining to cap the comeback.
 
"We have a sour taste in our mouths since last year. That's our driving force," said senior receiver Cameron Lazare who had a career-high eight catches for 70 yards last week in a 23-10 defeat at Grambling. "At Lamar, we had a win, let it slip through our fingers, and we won't let that happen again. We went from the peak of the mountain to the bottom of the ocean. It was a sharp drop and it hurts to remember."
 
In 2017, Thomas hopes to make the Cardinals sing a different tune, even if he is not exactly sure what to expect from a Lamar team that has been a part of two lopsided contests, losing 59-14 at North Texas and defeating first-year program Texas-Permian Basin 72-6 at home.

"They are a very quality opponent with a new staff that will surely have some new wrinkles, but we really are not sure of what we will be facing come game time," Thomas said. "We are going to have to do a good job during the game to figure out their M.O., and be able to make some adjustments throughout the game."
 
Adjustments have been nothing out of the ordinary for quarterback J.D. Almond, who will be getting his ninth career, and sixth straight, start under center for the Demons.
Almond has been a steady presence in his senior year, completing 32-55 passes (58 percent) for 403 yards with two touchdowns and one interception.
 
The QB1 has been spreading the wealth in the first two games, hitting senior wide receiver Bobby Chan-Chan 10 times for 133 yards, and fellow senior Cameron Lazare eight times for 70 yards.
 
The Demons rely on a two-headed attack out of the backfield, spearheaded by senior Chris Jones' 36 rushes for 126 yards and one touchdown this year. Sophomore Jared West has excelled in his role as the change of pace back, ripping off 58 yards on only ten carries thus far.

NSU's defense has played some inspired football under the leadership of first-year coordinator coach Brad Laird.
 
Last year's top tackler, linebacker Nick Pierotti, has picked up right where he left off as the senior is tied with fellow senior Chrishard Buhl for stops with 16 each.
 
For live updates throughout the game, follow NSUDemonsFB on twitter.com and listen to the NSU radio broadcast, which can be heard on the Demon Sports Network, flagshipped by 100.7 FM KZBL in Natchitoches. Affiliates are News Radio 710 KEEL AM in Shreveport, 105.5 KBUCK FM in Alexandria and KWLA 103.1 FM serving Many and Leesville. A live audio stream of the broadcast including play-by-play man Patrick Netherton, analyst Richard de Vargas and sideline reporter Tony Taglavore, is available at NSUDemons.com.
 
Following the bye week (Sept. 23), The Demons will resume play at Turpin Stadium on Sept. 30, hosting Southeastern Louisiana at 6:30 p.m. The game will be shown live on Cox Sports Television.