It seems only fitting that Miss-Lou natives Darryl Daye and Jerry Baldwin would get their first coaching wins on the same day.

Both worked hard to get where they are and deserve any kind of success they get.

Daye’s Nicholls State team defeated Jacksonville State 45-42 in a Southland Football League contest.

Baldwin’s University of Louisiana at Lafayette squad outscored Middle Tennessee State 45-31.

For Daye, Colonel quarterback Brad Smith had 428 total offensive yards and five touchdowns..

Smith, who would be named Southland Player of the Week, hit wide receiver Sullivan Beard with a 97-yard touchdown pass to give the Colonels (1-2, 1-0) an early 14-0 lead in the first quarter, on the way to a 28-21 halftime lead.

Smith hit Beard once again, with an 80-yarder, to make it 35-21 in the third quarter.

Backup quarterback Reggie Stancil had four touchdowns for Jacksonville State (1-2, 0-1), but a fourth-quarter comeback attempt fell short for the Gamecocks.

&uot;We did it in exciting fashion,&uot;&160;Daye said.

Nicholls lost earlier to University of Louisiana-Monroe 27-10 and 14th-ranked Western Illinois 14-13.

Daye spent eight years as an assistant coach at Liberty University, serving as co-defensive coordinator up until last year.

Daye served three years under Bill Arnsparger at LSU as a graduate and student assistant coach.

&uot;People have been patting us on the back and congratulating us on playing them close,&uot; Daye said. &uot;I didn’t come down here to play them close. We’re here to win. If you are playing pool, it doesn’t matter how many balls the other teams knocks in, as long as I shoot the 8-ball.&uot;

Daye credits a wide open four-wide receiver set with the success Nicholls has had.

&uot;A lot of teams just haven’t adjusted to that,&uot; he said. &uot;But we can’t line up and play smash-mouth football with people. And on defense we’re blitzing eight or nine people. But we still made a ton of mistakes and we need to improve.&uot;

Daye said winning needs to become a habit at the Thibodeux, how I was raised by my father (former LSU standout Donnie Daye),&uot; Daye said. &uot;That first win felt good, but I want another one. I want the second one just as much as I wanted the first one.&uot;

Baldwin served as an assistant coach at Louisiana Tech and LSU

&uot;I’m more excited for the kids,&uot; Baldwin said. &uot;Winning is always better than losing, but I’m an old coach who has been to that rodeo. They’ve really been working hard. We’ve played some tough teams and now they’re beginning to get a little confidence. This team has been losing for a while, so we have to build confidence.&uot;

Louisiana-Lafayette’s losses have come to Oklahoma State, Texas Tech and Houston.

Baldwin said the team still has to keep working harder.

&uot;They’ve seen the effort, intensity pay off, but we still have to take them one at a time,&uot; he said. &uot;Winning is always better than losing. We just have to keep going out each week and giving a great effort. It shows we’re headed in the right direction.&uot;

Joey Martin is sports editor of The Natchez Democrat.

He can be reached at joey.martin@natchezdemocrat.com or by calling 446-5172 ext. 232.