Glantz out, 3 in for Cowboys

Published 3:59 pm Wednesday, March 27, 2024

Nate Glantz will not be a part of the McNeese State roster next fall.

Glantz informed coaches that he intends to put his name in the transfer portal after playing just one year with the Cowboys.

After transferring from Iowa State in January of 2023, Glantz arrived on campus with high expectations. However, after winning the starting job late in training camp, things didn’t work out for the former junior college All-American.

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Glantz fell to third string while also dealing with injuries and was third on the depth chart this spring once again. Now he is back looking for a place to play.

Glantz becomes the latest quarterback to spend time at McNeese and leave for the portal in the last three years, a sure sign of the changing times of college football.

In his six games with the Cowboys Glantz connected on just 71 of 144 (49 percent) passes for 861 yards. He had only three TD throws with five interceptions. 

Glantz’s longest throw of the season was for only 39 yards but he was also sacked 20 times.

With Glantz’s exit, the Cowboys are left with just two main contenders for the starting quarterback job currently on the roster. 

Redshirt freshman Kamden Sixkiller, who played at the end of last season, starting the final two games of the year but is coming off an injury to his non-throwing shoulder, and Alex Flores, a junior college transfer from Mt. San Antonio College in Walnut, California.

Flores threw for 1,844 yards along with 22 touchdowns last season. In three games last fall Sixkiller was 44 of 82 for 585 yards with five touchdowns and four interceptions.

“At quarterback, we’ve had a heck of a battle to be honest,” McNeese head coach Gary Goff said. “Sixkiller and Alex have had a great spring. Alex is a really smart football player and those two have pushed each other.”

A leg injury will keep Sixkiller from the final workouts of the spring, leaving only Flores to take snaps in the scrimmage.

McNeese is likely looking in both the portal and at junior college quarterbacks as possible additions to the roster before summer workouts begin.

Goff said Monday that the Cowboys were “still actively looking at adding talent” to the team. 

Last week the Cowboys signed three junior college players from California – safety Julian “JuJu” Smith out of Bakersfield College, running back Jaylen Thompson from Ventura College, and tight end Joey Garza out of Allan Hancock College.

“These are three key additions that will help us right away,” said Goff. “We probably have four to five more guys that we’re actively recruiting. We don’t know how the roster is going to change here in the upcoming weeks so we’re actively recruiting.”

Smith (6-1, 190) had 55 tackles for Bakersfield last season. Thompson (5-8, 190) ran for 1,136 yards and a 94.7 per game average at Ventura College last fall while 

Garza (6-3, 240) began his collegiate career as a defensive end before moving to the offensive side of the ball midway through his freshman campaign when he earned second-team all-league honors at tight end.

The Cowboys had originally scheduled a spring game, but that was changed with several players came down with the flu last week, slowing camp a little. So instead the offenses will battle the defenses.

The starting time is still set for 6:30 p.m.