He may not be the sexiest pick, but Tony Pecoraro looks good to many people who play for him.

On Monday, Pecararo was named the McNeese State interim football coach after Gary Goff was fired after three seasons leading the Cowboys.

“Coach Pec” as he is known to his players, came to McNeese with Goff as defensive coordinator and is currently guiding the remaining staff through a transition period that includes heavy recruiting. It is not an easy time.

“It is definitely a strange period,” Pecoraro said. “We have a lot going on right now and you have to worry about players, families, and everything. I just want to do the best job I can for the program and the players and we will see what happens.”

While few at the time thought he might be a candidate for the job long-term, those who know him best think the veteran college coach would be a perfect fit as the next Cowboy leader.

All-American linebacker Micah Davey and others took to social media to make their views public. Davey wrote on the planform X “Perfect fit is on the staff” Monday after the team was informed of the change.

He was not alone as other members of the defense followed the junior’s lead. Keeping Davey and others is a big need for McNeese, which improved by six wins this season but not enough to keep the head coach.

“Sure that makes me feel good, I love my players and I love this school,” Pecoraro said. “My family loves it here and this place has been great to us.

“But what matters most is we do the best thing for the program while we are here. We have to get back to work, it’s all we can do.”

Pecoraro’s defense had a major part in turning around the Cowboys this season, as they went from 0-10 in 2023 to 6-6 this fall. That was despite injuries to Davey and other key players.

“I’m proud with what we have done this season and with what we had to go through adversity-wise,” Pecoraro said. “It was a long year and I was hoping we had done enough to get another season together. But it is a business and I understand that and now we have to be professional and finish up this semester and this season the right way.”

Pecoraro said he is hoping to interview for the top job but would love to stay on even if Athletic Director Heath Schroyer goes in a different direction.

“Sure, I would love the opportunity to be the next head coach, I feel I am ready for that,” Pecoraro said. “It’s not my decision though, that is up to others. The good news for us is that we have a lot of experience up here and most of us have been through this before.

“What makes it tough is you are dealing with families and the holidays. That always adds to the pressures but it’s the nature of the business.”

When reached for comment Schroyer said he is expecting to move quickly on finding a new coach and that he would likely give Pecoraro an interview soon.

Pecoraro came to McNeese in 2022 after spending the 2021 season at South Alabama and has had stops at Kansas, Florida Atlantic, Southern Mississippi, Alcorn State, North Alabama, Webber International, and Florida State, where he earned his bachelor’s degree.

Twice during his time at Southern Mississippi, his defenses finished in the Top 20 nationally. After all sorts of issues in 2023, Pecoraro changed up his defense and turned it into a solid group that was much more aggressive and attacking.

Right now Pecoraro is concentrating on the job at hand, keeping the Cowboys on their upward track. That means retaining the roster as best he can with the transfer portal opening up Dec. 9.

“We have a good amount of talent on this roster right now that we have to try as best we can to retain,” Pecoraro said. “No matter what happens, it is important that McNeese keeps this group together and doesn’t start over once again.

“What we need to do now is make sure we keep what we have and add what we need to keep moving forward and get to nine wins and championships in the future.”

That is a future Pecararo would love to be a part of.