Bryce Strong took a handoff, stepped to the left, ran through a tackle and turned on his jets.

Seventy-eight yards later he was in the end zone with the longest run of his McNeese State career.

That sprint came in the first quarter of the Cowboys’ last game, a victory over East Texas A&M before it changed its name. The 31-3 win was fueled by a two-headed running attack that gained 357 yards on 56 attempts.

“We felt going into that game we could have success at running the football against them,” said McNeese head coach Gary Goff. “You have to give our offensive line a lot of credit for what we were able to do.”

McNeese actually picked up 401 yards when you take away the snags, which in college count against the running game.

Still, McNeese’s 357 yards are the most gained on the ground in his three seasons leading the Cowboys. It is also the third-most in program history.

That from a coach who came to town with the reputation of a pass-happy guy.

“We always want to be balanced,” said Goff. “When you can run the ball a lot of things open up.”

Strong would finish that game as one of two rushers with over 100 yards and a score. Sophomore Joshon Barbie, the team’s leading runner, also did it. That was the first time in two years the Cowboys had a pair of rushers finish over the century mark.

Strong, a transfer from Riverside City College in California, had his best game as a Cowboy. He ran for 121 yards on 10 carries, good for a whopping 12.1 average per rush.

Barbie also had his best game of the year, picking up 124 yards on 20 carries. He finished eight yards short of his career-high, which came last year at Lamar.   It was Barbie’s second straight 100-yard performance. He had 121 against Nicholls the previous game.

“We have a lot of talent in our (running backs),” said Strong. “Every week we are capable of that.”

Despite a 5-5 record, McNeese has had a pretty solid running game all season. The Cowboys are second in the Southland Conference averaging 185.6 yards a game.

Against Nicholls two games ago, the Cowboys behind Barbie’s 121 yards, picked up 168 on the Colonels. Before that game, Nicholls was allowing just 64 yards an outing, second in all FCS.

“We can run the football on anybody if we do our job,” Barbie said. 

The former walk-on leads McNeese with 598 yards and seven touchdowns on 103 carries, good for seventh in the league. This despite a very slow start that saw fumbles send him to the bench a few times.

“We never lost confidence in Joshon, he works as hard as anybody,” said Goff. “He has worked to get back to his game. He has it going right now.”

The Cowboys hope the run game is enough to lead them to two more wins, finishing the season on a high note. If McNeese can win out, that would give the Cowboys their first winning season since 2019.

“That would show we are headed in the right direction,” said Goff.

It’s a direction being led by the Cowboy’s two running backs.