The college basketball offseason is here, and we decided to have some fun over the next few months, ranking ALL 364 teams in D1. Number 291 is Nicholls State basketball.
Before you say we’re crazy – or that all of this is up for debate, let’s go over the very intricate process of how we came to this conclusion. We took a very statistical approach – with the help of Chat GPT – taking into consideration everything from March Madness wins and finishes, to AP Poll appearances, to conference players of the year. And then, a good friend of ours, Scott Blanchard, took our approach to the MAX.
Click here to visit the FIRST article, which explains how the formula works!
Here’s the breakdown of Nicholls State basketball!
NCAA Tournament Success
- Championships: 0
- Finals appearances: 0
- Final Fours: 0
- Elite Eights: 0
- Sweet 16s: 0
- NCAA wins: 0
- Bids: 2
Consistency Over Time
- Wins per season: 12.5
- Bids per season: 0.04
- AP Polls: 0
Player Quality & Talent
- All-Americans: 0
- NBA players drafted & played: 0
- Conference Players of the Year: 2
Conference & Other Success
- Conference regular season titles: 5
- Conference tournament titles: 2
- NIT titles: 0
- Other tournament titles: 0
Overall scoop on Nicholls State basketball
The Colonels joined the DI scene in 1980, and after a few seasons of bouncing around conferences and independent, joined the Southland in 1991.
That proved to be a good decision right off the bat. Head coach Rickey Broussard brought them to the NCAA Tournament in 1995 and 1998 thanks to winning the Southland tourney. Broussard’s reign ended with a 2-win season, but during its height, it was the best era of the program as a DI school.
However, the program would soon fizzle out and go through some stretches of very few wins. Richie Riley and Austin Claunch helped to revive it just recently, with Tevon Saddler taking over in 2023 and guiding the Colonels to back-to-back 20-win seasons. Last year, they dropped down to a 14-19 record.
Two Nicholls State basketball players have been named Southland POY, with Reggie Jackson in 1995 and Ty Gordon in 2022. However, no players have ever been drafted and gone on to play in the NBA.
Overall, the Colonels have had their fair share of success coming from a conference that, up until recently, with McNeese, hadn’t been known for having high-end mid-major programs.