HAMMOND, La. (September 12, 2026) – The University of North Alabama football team took an 18-14 lead into halftime in a battle of two Lions, but slipped in the second half of a 30-25 defeat against Southeastern Louisiana on Saturday in Hammond, La.
North Alabama (1-2) appeared to be the stronger team statistically with over 400 yards of offense and advantages in passing yardage, rushing yardage and first downs, but a second half riddled with tough breaks and untimely penalties helped Southeastern (1-2) come away with its first win of the season.
In a game that had three lead changes, UNA fell behind 7-0 in the first quarter, but rattled off 18 unanswered points in the second. SLU made it a one score game at halftime and scored 16 unanswered in the third quarter to snatch back the lead.
Late in the game, a long fourth quarter drive allowed redshirt sophomore Jalen Fletcher to rush in from two-yards out to make it 30-25. Looking to keep the ball away from UNA, SLU converted a third down and later drew a penalty on second and long that iced the game.
Despite the loss, UNA had another tremendous performance from redshirt freshman wide receiver Xavier Johnson with eight catches for 175 yards and a touchdown. Over three games, Johnson has caught 19 passes for 386 yards and two scores — the most yards by a receiver in the first three games of a season in UNA history.
Quarterback Destin Wade went 19-for-30 passing for 265 yards, a touchdown and an interception. The interception came on a tipped pass into the arms of a defender in the third quarter, which ultimately gave SLU momentum. Wade also rushed for 47 yards.
Redshirt sophomore Roderick Taylor Jr. was the leading rusher with eight carries for 56 yards.
UNA was led defensively by sophomore Tae Martin with 11 tackles, including seven solo stops, a tackle for loss, two breakups and a hurry. Junior transfers Trevion Butler and Kanijal Thomas had six tackles, including a forced fumble from Butler.
After winning the opening coin toss and deferring, UNA got off to a strong start by forcing a punt and hitting on two deep passes to get on the goal line, but a high snap killed the momentum and allowed SLU to take over. The home Lions drove all the way to their goal line, but then Butler popped out the ball with his helmet and Mond Cole made the recovery to give the ball back to UNA.
This set the tone for a competitive first half.
SLU scored first with a 53-yard pass, taking the lead to the second quarter. UNA answered on the second play of the second quarter on a one-yard muscle run by senior running back Chris McMillian on a direct snap. After that, UNA lined up in a swinging gate formation and tricked its way to a two-point conversion with a pass from redshirt freshman quarterback Banks Bowen to sophomore tight end Eli Sisson.
UNA extended the lead with a 17-yard pass from Wade to Johnson to make it 15-7, then redshirt senior Ian Vachon tacked on three more with a 39-yard field goal. This was UNA's first field goal on the first attempt of the season.
SLU scored in the final two minutes of the half and UNA missed a 47-yard field goal to end the half at 18-14.
The lead changed hands for a third straight quarter, as Southeastern tipped a pass and Trace Carter intercepted it. This led to a 52-yard completion from Kyle Lowe to Dkhai Joseph to give SLU a 21-18 lead. A field goal by Drew Talley made it 24-18, then another touchdown throw by Lowe to Lawson Dixon made it 30-18 to end the third quarter.
UNA went nearly six minutes on a 90-yard drive in the fourth quarter, using a mix of conversions and SLU penalties to drive down the field. Fletcher ended the drive with his two-yard touchdown to make it 30-25 with 2:46 to go before SLU ran out the clock.
This marked UNA's first trip to Hammond since 1977.
Tonight's 30-25 score was also a Scorigami — the first time a UNA game has ended in this score in the program's 78 year history.
COMING UP NEXT
UNA will play on campus for the first time in program history next week with the grand opening of Bobby Wallace Field at Bank Independent Stadium. Kickoff against Alcorn State is set for 6 p.m.
For more information on North Alabama Athletics, visit www.roarlions.com and follow UNA Athletics on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
