FRISCO, Texas — A third of the 2026 Southland Football season is complete, meaning all 10 teams are looking at mostly intra-conference action from now until November. With a few exceptions still to come the jousting for positioning in the conference table has become the primary focus. Four more conference games await on Saturday as Week 5 kicks off across the Southland.
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Week 5 Southland Football Report
The Word Looks to Spoil SFA's Rise
No. 7/5 SFA has mowed its way through its first five games, establishing itself as a consensus Top 10 team in FCS and even earning a No. 5 ranking in the AFCA Coaches Poll. The Lumberjacks have garnered that respect after bludgeoning their non-conference slate over the last three weeks with the help of a potent offense led by quarterback Gavin Rutherford. Rutherford has shined through the air (1,197 passing yards on 85 completions with 12 touchdowns) but the ground game has been equally impressive led by Jaylen Jenkins, averaging 5.6 yards per carry.
They host UIW who will be looking for a momentous road win with an offense capable of its own fireworks. Quarterback Emmett Brown ranks only behind Rutherford in passing yards with 1,054 and leads the Southland with 92 completions. Granted a small sample size, the teams enter the game as two of the SLC's final three unbeaten teams.
Red Hot Cardinals Host the Demons
The third unbeaten team in the SLC, the No. 14/13 Lamar Cardinals, return to Beaumont on Saturday, hosting Northwestern State. Lamar opened SLC play with a 49-18 demolition of Nicholls, posting 28 points in the first quarter and 42 points through the first 30 minutes in a statement performance. That outing helped Big Red maintain its placement within the Top 15 nationally. Meanwhile, the Demons enter this contest searching for momentum after an 0-5 start and a loss to Southeastern last week.
Colonels and Huskies Looking to End Losing Skids in H-Town
Both Nicholls and HCU enter Saturday's matchup trying to snap two-game losing skids, each licking the wounds from recent conference losses. The Huskies showed their ability to compete with the top contenders in the Southland in a Week 0 win at Southeastern but faltered late in an overtime loss to UIW two weeks back. On the other hand, Nicholls' offense impressed against UTRGV but had no answers for Lamar last week.
HCU is only 2-10 all-time against Nicholls, but one of those wins came in the Colonels' most recent appearance at Husky Stadium, a 24-21 result for HCU in 2024.
Vaqueros Make First Visit to East Texas
UTRGV enjoyed a bye week to close out September, but the Vaqueros are back into the thick of conference action Saturday, visiting East Texas A&M. The Lions come off a hard-fought defeat to McNeese where they rallied in the fourth quarter but ultimately fell 27-24. The matchup pits one of the SLC's top passing offenses in UTRGV (271.5 yards per game) against the conference's best passing defense in the Lions (167.6 yards allowed per game).
Week 5 Schedule