University of Louisiana at Lafayette Athletics
Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns
Louisiana-Monroe
Cajuns Claim Share of Sun Belt Conference Championship with 54-21 Rout of Indians
11/26/2005 12:00:00 AM | Football
Tyrell Fenroy became the first running back in school history to rush for 1,000 yards; Cajuns record six wins and a winning season for the first time since 1995.
Saturday, Nov. 26, 2005
Statistical Recap
MONROE, La?Louisiana's Ragin' Cajuns extended their winning streak to five games to claim a share of the 2005 Sun Belt Conference Championship. The Cajuns defeated in-state rival Louisiana-Monroe, 54-21, here at Malone Stadium on Saturday to give UL their first winning season since 1995.
With the win the Cajuns improve to 6-5 on the season and 5-2 in the Sun Belt Conference. Louisiana-Monroe fell to 5-6 overall and 5-2 in the SBC. At 5-2 in conference, UL and ULM will share Sun Belt Conference Championship honors with Arkansas State ? the Cajuns' first conference championship since claiming a share of the Big West Conference crown in 1994.
Freshman running back Tyrell Fenroy rushed for 164 yards on 20 carries to lead the Cajuns. For the season, Fenroy has rushed for 1,053 yards on 179 carries. His 1,053 yards makes the freshman the first running back in Louisiana-Lafayette history to rush for over 1,000 yards. He joins Brian Mitchell as one of only two players in Cajuns history to eclipse 1,000 yards in a season. Fenroy finished the game with three rushing touchdowns, his third three-touchdown performance of the year.
Offensively for the Cajuns, UL managed 425 yards of total offense for the game, including 343 rushing yards and 82 passing yards. Fenroy led the team in rushing with 164 yards, while quarterback Jerry Babb rushed for 100 yards on 11 carries and one touchdown. To go along with his rushing performance, Babb was 8-for-14 for 82 yards in the air.
On the defensive side of the ball, UL managed to keep ULM to just 202 yards for the game. The Cajuns defense allowed 153 yards of total offense in the first quarter, but made some mid-game adjustments to limit the Indians to just 49 yards of total offense for the final three quarters. The Cajuns forced two turnovers including a 53-yard interception return for a touchdown by Kyle Ward.
UL Monroe took the opening kickoff and proceeded to drive down the field 81 yards for a touchdown. The 13-play drive was capped off by a Steven Jyles pass to Drouzon Quillen for eight yards and the score.
The Cajuns offense was unable to get the equalizer, but relied upon their defense to tie the game.
On the Indians next possession, the Ward picked off a Jyles pass on third-and-five and returned it 53 yards for a touchdown to knot the score at seven apiece with 6:11 left to play in the first quarter.
ULM regained the lead before the end of the first quarter. The Indians used a 34-yard kickoff return to set up the 10-play drive. After a pass interference call against the Cajuns put the ULM on the 2-yard line, Jyles wasted no time pushing the ball into the end zone giving ULM the 14-7 advantage.
The Ragin' Cajuns answered on their ensuing drive. Fenroy took the handoff from Babb and rumbled into the end zone for a 16-yard score. Following the extra point by kicker Sean Comiskey, the score was tied 14-14 with 13:42 remaining in the first half.
The Cajuns held strong on defense forcing the Indians into a punting situation on fourth-and-12. An errant snap sailed over the head of the ULM punter Joel Stelly. The ball rolled into the end zone and Stelly kicked the ball out of the back of the end zone for the safety.
After a short kick by the Indians, the Cajuns took over the ball on the Cajuns' 41 yardline. Babb opened the drive with a 32-yard quarterback keeper. Two plays later, Fenroy took the ball around the left side for 13-yards for a touchdown. The Cajuns used four rushes in the drive to cover 59 yards in just 90-seconds.
The defense flexed their muscles once again to force ULM into a punting situation deep in their own territory. On the punt, Erik Jones burst through the line and forced Stelly to abort his kick. The Cajuns took over the ball on the 13-yardline.
Comiskey added a 24-yard field goal, giving the Cajuns a 26-14 advantage with just over six minutes remaining in the half.
The Cajuns increased their lead to 33-14 just before halftime. Babb completed a 23-yard pass to Sampy to put the Ragin' Cajuns on the eight yard-line, but a roughing the passer penalty moved the ball down to the four yard-line. On the ensuing play, Babb rushed up the middle and walked into the end zone for the score.
ULM cut the score to 33-21 very quickly in the third quarter. Babb completed a pass to Kevin Robbins, but the Indians managed to strip the ball to take over possession on the Cajuns' 11-yardline. On ULM's first play from scrimmage, Calvin Dawson rush around the left side for the 11-yard score.
Following the Indians' touchdown, the Cajuns used a hefty dose of Fenroy for another touchdown. After an eight yard Fenroy rush and a five yard penalty, the Cajuns lined up for second and seven at the 38-yard line. Fenroy took the handoff on the next play and rushed for 61-yards down to the one-inch line. On the next play, Fenroy scored his third touchdown of the night to extend the Cajuns lead to 40-21.
On the drive, Fenroy topped the 1,000-yard mark for the season. On the 61-yard jaunt, the native of LaPlace, La., raised his total rushing for the season to 1,014 yards etching his name into the record books. The true freshman became the first Cajuns running back to ever gain 1,000 yards in a season.
The Cajuns used a 15-play drive to eat up 8:03 off the clock. The Ragin' Cajuns stuck primarily to the run, rushing on 14-of-15 plays. The lone pass was a 25-yard completion on third down and 10 from Babb to Robbins. Josh Harrison punched the ball in from the one yard-line to make the score 47-21 with 2:15 left in the third quarter.
Towards the end of the third quarter, the ULM defense forced the Cajuns to punt. On the punt, punter Brit Framel boomed the kick deep into Monroe territory. The ULM punt returner J.J. McCoy muffed the catch and the ball bounced into the hands of UL's Jason Chery giving the Cajuns the ball on the 28-yardline of Monroe.
Senior running back Booker Jenkins powered the ball in from the one-yard-line to extend the Cajuns lead to 54-21 with 13:22 remaining in the game. The touchdown capped a five play, 28-yard drive that took 1:45 off the clock.
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