NATCHITOCHES – For nearly a decade, the No. 1 Northwestern State football jersey has stood as a testament to the top Demon wide receiver – players who sought excellence.
 
When Twon Hines told first-year head coach Blaine McCorkle he wanted to change his number from 11 to 1 for the 2024 season, it made for a perfect alignment.
 
Hines, a junior on the field who already has his undergraduate degree, came to Northwestern ahead of the 2023 season. In his introductory questionnaire, he described his life's ambition as to achieve arete.
 
"It just means reaching excellence," he said. "It's a philosophy – an ancient philosophy term that means excellence. The ancient philosophers would talk a lot about how people's main goal in life is usually to reach some type of excellence or overall happiness. When you're going through these things in life, that's what people are ultimately trying to reach – happiness and excellence overall in their life."
 
Hines' and the Demons' twin searches for excellence continue Saturday at 7 p.m. when they face longtime rival Stephen F. Austin (2-3) in Northwestern's Southland Conference opener in Nacogdoches, Texas.
 
A 6-foot, 185-pounder from Dayton, Ohio, Hines' first season in a Demon uniform consisted of six games and six receptions as he found his footing after transferring from Division II Central State in Ohio. That challenge reinforced Hines' belief in himself and in the Demon program.
 
It also has translated into a higher level of production on the field. Through five games, Hines is Northwestern's second-leading receiver with 10 catches and 138 yards – both totals that already outpaced his 2023 on-field production.
 
"Last year, obviously, was not the ideal situation for anybody that was part of the team," Hines said. "You go through adversity and you just take what you can out of it positively. It's easy to look at what went wrong, but being able to take the positives out of the negative situations and using those as driving forces to propel you into the next season or what's to come (is important). That's really where that hits home for me. Just having the opportunity to play football again as a Northwestern State Demon – that didn't have to be so. That's a blessing you have to take advantage of every day."
 
Hines is one of 53 returning Demons, which accounts for roughly half of the 2024 roster.
 
As one of the team's elder statesmen despite spending just one season in Natchitoches, Hines' role as a leader has come further into focus.
 
"Leadership is something we've talked about a lot the last couple of weeks," first-year head coach Blaine McCorkle said. "It's something we're searching to find. I can't say we have really great overall leadership on our team right now. It's something we're lacking, something we're trying to grow, something we're trying to teach. Twon is one of those rare individuals who has a knack for great leadership. He's not scared to stand up and speak his mind. He doesn't care what people think about him, and that's what a great leader has to do. He's a really good football player who works as hard as he can to back that up. I'm really excited about what he's given us there and hope more guys will follow his example of leadership and step up and grow, because that's an area we are desperately lacking now and we have to grow and mature in. Part of the process of a brand-new program getting started is people being man enough, being brave enough to speak up and do that."
 
Hines' journey toward excellence features a daily reminder – one that simply takes a look down at his practice or game jersey.
 
Since Bobby Chan-Chan switched his jersey to the No. 1 for the 2016 season, the digit has grown in importance to the Demons' receiving group with each passing player.
 
Jazz Ferguson wore it while becoming the 2018 Southland Conference Offensive Player of the Year. A year later, Quan Shorts set the school single-season reception record, hauling in 100 passes. Kendrick Price Jr. donned it next and finished his career in the top 10 in school history in touchdown receptions in style – pulling in a pair of scoring passes as the 2021 Demons defeated McNeese in Lake Charles for the first time in 33 years.
 
Javon Antonio extended the legacy in 2022, helping the Demons end another long drought with a last-minute victory against Nicholls.
 
Even as a relative newcomer to Natchitoches, Hines holds a clear understanding of the symbolism of the jersey and of other Demon traditions.
 
"The No. 1 has been a staple of excellence," he said. "People who have come before me and come before us and paved the way, it's what really makes NSU mean something. That means a lot to me. When we tap The Link every day, you're reminded there were people who were in this same position and went through the same things. That makes it mean a little more. You feel it a little more when you look on the wall and see certain things. I just want to be the best I can be."