Photograph: A Louisiana wide receiver catches a pass earlier this season. (Photograph by Mike Curley)
BOBBY ARDOIN
Editor/Consulting Writer
The Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns football team brushed regular season adversity aside and entered the postseason bowl lottery Saturday with a convincing Sun Belt Conference victory.
A 41-13 victory over Texas State in San Marcos, Texas, enables Louisiana became one of 79 current qualifiers for bowl bids which will be formally decided beginning Dec. 4.
It marks a school-record fifth time in as many years that the Cajuns (6-6, 4-4) have become bowl eligible and the second straight season that Louisiana head football Coach Mike Desormeaux will be scheduled to prepare the football program for a postseason game.
Louisiana was 2-3 at one point in 2022 with a 0-2 SBC record. The Cajuns however won three of the next five games after that before closing out the regular season with the win over Texas State (4-8, 2-6).
Along the way the Cajuns at different points of the season, lost two starting quarterbacks due to injuries.
Quarterback Chandler Fields, who did not play for six straight games after beginning the season as the quarterback starter before an injury, completed 16-of-26 passes for 187 yards and a pair of touchdowns against Texas State, who before Saturday had a 4-1 record at home.
After the victory Desomeaux, in his first full season as head coach, reflected on how his players battled through 2022 and overcame the obstacles to earn postseason consideration.
“I couldn’t be more proud of a team than I am of this one. After all that they have gone through, they proved that they want to play one more game together. It means a lot for our seniors who have provided good leadership for this team,” said Desormeaux.
The Cajuns outgained the Bobcats 436-356 in total yards, but allowed Texas State to rush for 223.
All but two of those yards belonged to TSU running back Lincoln Pare, who scored on a 64-yard touchdown run that sliced a Louisiana lead to 14 points (27-13) with 10:23 remaining in the third period.
Pare and Texas State quarterback Layne Hatcher, who transferred to TSU from Arkansas State, provided much of the offense for the Bobcats, who started the game without five of their wide receivers due to injuries.
Hatcher threw for 133 yards against the Cajuns after entering the game with 2,350 passing yards.
Defensively the win highlighted linebacker Jourdan Quibodeaux, whose eight tackles gave him 101 for the season.
Desormeaux complimented Fields, who became the starter again after Ben Wooldridge, now out for the season with an injury, had started five straight games.
“(Fields) was placed in a tough spot, but he still came to practice every week as though he was the starter and (on Saturday) he did the job for us. He’s a tough kid, but you have to be a tough guy at quarterback,” said Desormeaux.
The first Cajuns’ touchdown came on an 18-yard pass from Fields to running back Chris Smith with 5:35 in the initial period. The TD gave Louisiana a 7-3 lead.
A second field goal by Texas State placekicker Seth Keller cut the Louisiana lead to 7-6 early in the second period, but the Cajuns kept the lead (10-6) on the first of two Kenneth Almendares field goals.
An Eric Garror interception – the 12th of the year for the Cajuns’ secondary – set up the second Louisiana touchdown. Running back Dre’Lyn Washington ended the three –play, 11-yard drive with an eight-yard touchdown run.
Fields expanded the Cajuns’ advantage with another touchdown throw to Smith as Louisiana entered halftime ahead 20-6.
Smith ended the first possession of the third quarter with a three-yard touchdown run (12:19) before the Pare run which provided the only TD of the game for the Bobcats.
In the fourth quarter Peter LeBlanc caught his first touchdown pass of the season from Fields. The three-yard reception ended a 56-yard, seven play drive.
Freshman quarterback Zeon Chriss threw his first TD pass of the season when he completed a 37-yard throw to Lance Legendre with 2:58 remaining in the game. Chriss was five-of-six passing on the 84-yard scoring drive.
