Cajuns Host ASU In Tuesday Night Showdown Live on ESPN2

Contact: Brian McCann

Complete Football Game Notes (PDF Format)

Game 7: Arkansas State (4-3, 2-1) at Louisiana (4-2, 2-1)
When: Tuesday, Oct. 23, 2012, 7:00 p.m. CDT
Site: Cajun Field (ProGrass, 31,000)
Sponsor        Coca-Cola Bottlers of Lafayette
Promo: White-Out (All Cajun fans are encouraged to wear white. 10,000 Cheer Sticks passed out to fans, courtesy of McDonalds.).
Series: UL Leads, 21-18-1
Last Meeting: ASU 30, UL 21 (at ASU, Nov. 12, 2011)
TV: ESPN2 (Joe Tessitore & Desmond Howard)
Radio: Ragin' Cajuns Radio Network
(Jay Walker, Gerald Broussard & Steve Peloquin)
Participating Stations: KPEL (1420 AM, Lafayette) Flagship, KXHT (107.9 FM, Lafayette), WGSO (990 AM, New Orleans), KTUX (98.9 FM, Shreveport), KLCL (1470 AM, Lake Charles), KJEF (1290 AM, Jennings), KRJO (1680 AM, Monroe)

The Storyline:
The Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns football team attempts to bounce back from their first Sun Belt Conference loss of the season when the Cajuns host defending SBC champion Arkansas State on Tuesday, Oct. 23 beginning at 7:00 p.m. in Cajun Field. . . the game is dubbed a White-Out as all Cajun fans are encouraged to wear white to the contest. . . the game will be televised live on ESPN2 with Joe Tessitore and Desmond Howard providing the commentary. . . UL (4-2, 2-1 SBC) is coming off a disappointing 30-23 loss at North Texas on Tuesday (Oct. 16), a game in which the Cajuns could not hold a 20-6 early third quarter lead. . . UL puts its eight-game Cajun Field win streak on the line, the third-longest in facility history. . . sophomore Terrance Broadway accounted for a season-high 349 yards of total offense against UNT, completing 26-of-41 passes for 265 yards and gaining 84 yards rushing, including a 75-yard touchdown run. . . Brett Baer continued his stellar senior campaign, connecting on a 47-yard field goal to tie the game late in the game and scored six points to raise his career scoring total to 206 points. . . after opening league play with a 26-13 loss at home to WKU, Arkansas State (4-3, 2-1) has posted SBC wins at FIU (34-20) and vs. South Alabama (36-29). . . UL holds a 21-18-1 lead in the all-time series, including eight straight wins in Cajun Field going back to the 1992 season. . . the Cajuns have won 15 of the last 21 meetings but the Red Wolves claimed a 30-21 decision in Jonesboro last year.

Series vs. Arkansas State:
Tuesday's game marks the 41st series meeting between Louisiana and Arkansas State with the Cajuns owning a 21-18-1 series lead. The series began in 1953 and the Red Wolves dominated the early years, going 11-6-1 over the first 18 meetings through 1982. After a short break, the series resumed in 1988 and the two teams have met every year since, except 2000, with UL going 15-7 since. Louisiana is 13-7 at home in the series, including eight straight wins going back to the 1992 season.

Home Sweet Home:
The Cajuns put their eight game Cajun Field winning streak on the line against Arkansas State, the third-longest in school history. The Cajuns started the current streak by going 5-0 at home in 2011, the third undefeated season in Cajun Field history and first since 1987. UL has added to it with wins over Lamar (Sept. 1), FIU (Sept. 29) and Tulane (Oct. 6) this season. The record win streak is 11 games, set from 1976-77, and there is also a nine-game streak (1987-88).

Tuesday With The Cajuns:
After not playing a game on a Tuesday in 49 years, UL plays its second straight Tuesday night contest when the Cajuns host the Red Wolves. The Arkansas State game will be the 1,048th game in Ragin' Cajuns football history, but it will be just the sixth time that UL has played on Tuesday, owning a 2-3 mark, and the first at home. The Cajuns won 26-0 over Louisiana Tech on Nov. 14, 1916 and 13-0 over Southeastern Louisiana on Nov. 11, 1930. The first Tuesday game came on Nov. 5, 1912 when the Cajuns fell to LSU, 85-3. Until last week, the most recent Tuesday contest was a 14-0 loss to Southeastern Louisiana on Sept. 10, 1963.

Baer Named To Mid-Season All-America Teams:
With the second half of the season underway, the national publications each released their mid-season All-America teams and senior kicker Brett Baer fared well. Baer was named a first team selection by ESPN.com, a second team choice by SI.com and a third team honoree by Phil Steele. Baer is the only Sun Belt athlete on any of the mid-season teams. Baer is second in the nation having made 13-of-16 field goals and ranks 16th with 63 points in six games. Having made 38 of his 43 career attempts (.884), Baer is two field goal attempts away from qualifying for the NCAA record for career field goal accuracy, which is held by Florida State's Bobby Raymond (.878, 43-49 in 1983-84).

Baer Dominates As Punter:
One thing lost in the kicking exploits of Brett Baer has been his improvement as a punter. Baer, who was sixth in the SBC by averaging 40.3 yards on 79 punts in 2011, ranks 27th nationally (and first in the SBC) with a 42.7 average this year. More importantly, just seven of his 29 punts have been returned for a total of 34 yards, allowing UL to rank 10th nationally in net punting with a 41.7 average.

. . . And No Touch Backs:
As a junior, Brett Baer punted 79 times with 27 kicks downed inside the 20. Even more impressive was that Baer had just five touchbacks. He has been even better in 2012, punting 29 times with 15 downed inside the 20 and no touchbacks. In the fourth quarter at UNT last week, he had successive kicks of 38 yards that were downed inside the 2 and 58 yards downed inside the 1.

Run Defense A Key:
One statistic that has proven important this year has been run defense. In the four Louisiana wins, Ragin' Cajuns opponents have rushed 120 times for 206 yards with no team gaining more than 60 yards. The opposite is true in the two UL losses as opponents have gained 572 yards rushing on 111 carries. The Cajuns opened the year by giving up a season-low 38 yards on 37 carries against Lamar and then limited Troy to 60 yards on 27 attempts. In the recent homestand, UL kept FIU to just 55 yards in 34 attempts and Tulane to 53 yards on 22 carries.

Protecting The QB:
Through six games, the Cajun offensive line ranks ninthth nationally, allowing only four quarterback sacks this year. That is considerable improvement over the 2011 numbers when the Cajuns allowed 25 sacks totalling 169 yards lost in 13 games.

4th Down Exploits:
The Cajun defense has successfully stopped its opponents on seven of its eight fourth down conversion attempts. Four of the stops have come within the 25 and have figured prominently in a pair of UL wins. At Troy, the Cajuns had stops at their 9 and 25 yard lines when the game was still close. The third stop came last week vs. FIU when UL held on downs at their own 12 in the fourth quarter. Last week at North Texas, the Cajun defense held on a fourth-and-goal at the 1. The lone fourth down conversion came on a 4th-and-1 at Oklahoma State. Last year, Louisiana opponents were 8-for-21 (.381) on fourth down.

Harris Passes 1,000 Yard Mark:
A 123-yard rushing effort against Tulane allowed sophomore running back Alonzo Harris to surpass the 1,000 yard mark in his short Cajun career. In 17 career games, Harris has carried 237 times for 1,087 yards and 11 touchdowns with three 100-yard rushing games. A preseason All-Sun Belt choice this year, he has moved up to fifth in the league in rushing averaging 74.8 yards per game. He sat out the North Texas game after being sick in the days leading up to the game.

A Turnover Tale:
The Cajuns continue to excel at one of Mark Hudspeth's preseason goals of taking better care of the ball and being more opportunistic defensively. UL ranks 18th nationally with a +6 turnover margin. In the four UL wins, the Cajuns are +8 in turnover margin, forcing 12 turnovers (6 fumbles, 6 interceptions) while committing just four (3 fumbles, one INT). In the two losses, UL has forced just one turnover while committing three. For the year, the Cajuns have turned those 13 miscues into 53 points (5 TDs & 6 FGs) while the six UL turnovers have led to just 13 points.

. . . And Cajuns Throw Their First Picks:
It took 136 passes, but the Cajuns finally threw their first interception of the season against Tulane when a Terrance Broadway pass went off the hands of a UL receiver. Broadway was also intercepted once at North Texas, giving the Cajuns two interceptions in 185 pass attempts this year. Louisiana is now one of 10 teams tied for seventh nationally by throwing two interceptions this year. Last year, UL threw 10 interceptions in 13 games.

Baer Closes In on 5th Place On Career Scoring Chart:
With five points against North Texas, senior kicker Brett Baer has raised his career scoring total to 206 points, good for sixth on the UL career scoring chart. Baer begins the week having made 38 field goals and 92 extra points in his career, needs two points to catch Patrick Broussard (1984-87), who is fifth with 208 points. Baer has scored 63 points this year to lead the Sun Belt and rank 7th nationally (and second among kickers).

Baer Kicks Way To The UL Record Book:
Senior kicker Brett Baer has started his senior season out on the right foot, connecting on 13 of his 16 field goal attempts and 22-of-23 extra points this year. Baer. . .
. . . made his first seven field goal attempts to extend his streak of consecutive field goals made to 18 dating back to last year, breaking the Sun Belt record of 17 consecutive field goals made by La.-Monroe's Cole Wilson (2006-07) and besting Mike Shafer's UL school record of 14 consecutive field goals made, which was set in 1994.
. . . tied the school mark for points in a game by a kicker with 16 in the win over Lamar on Sept. 1. He equalled the record of 16 points by Rafael Septien (vs. San Jose State in 1974) and Mike Lemoine (vs. Central Michigan in 1989). Baer's 52-yard field goal to open the scoring was the longest of his career and tied for the seventh longest in school history.
. . . set a career high for field goals made in a game against Lamar, coming one field goal short of the UL school record of five shared by Rafael Septien (vs. San Jose State in 1974) and Mike Lemoine (vs. CMU in 1989).

Brown Breaks In:
Junior receiver Bradley Brown saw the most significant action of his UL career against North Texas, making six catches for 40 yards to raise his season totals to nine catches for 111 yards. Brown, a transfer from Northwestern State, saw minimal action in the first three games before making two catches for 68 yards against FIU and one grab for three yards vs. Tulane. In two seasons at NSU, Brown made 75 catches for 810 yards and four touchdowns, twice earning honorable mention all-league honors.

The Defense Gets On The Board:
It took five games, but linebacker Justin Anderson recorded the first “Pick Six” by the Cajuns this year when he stepped in front of a D.J. Ponder pass and returned it 38 yards for a touchdown in the second quarter against Tulane on Oct. 6. It was the second score by the defense this year, the first coming when Jemarlous Moten returned a fumble 56 yards for a touchdown against Troy on Sept. 8. Anderson's touchdown marked the 10th time under Mark Hudspeth that the Cajuns defense scored a touchdown. Last year, UL defenders ranked second nationally with seven interception returns for scores and also added one fumble recovery on a blocked field goal for a TD. Moten leads the defense with three career defensive scores (2 INT, 1 Fumble return). Melvin White had two scores last year, returning an interception 89 yards for a score against Troy and bringing back a blocked field goal 68 yards vs. Nicholls State.

The Wait Has Been Worth It For Gillis:
It took fifth-year senior Rodney Gillis more than four years to break into the starting lineup, but since earning his first start in the season opener, he has made the most of his playing opportunities. He is second in the Sun Belt with three interceptions and is third on the team with 35 tackles this year, including a career-high 12 tackles against both Oklahoma State and North Texas. In the season opener against Lamar, he made his first career interception to end one drive and recovered a fumble on the next. He came back to make interceptions in each of the last two games. Gillis joined the program in 2008 and redshirted. He did not play during the 2009 campaign and then tore an ACL in his knee the following spring and missed the 2010 season. Gillis came back to play in 11 games as a reserve last season, making nine tackles.

. . . And Gillis Picks Cajun Field:
When Rodney Gillis intercepted a D.J. Ponder pass in the second quarter against Tulane on Oct.6, it marked the third straight home game in which he has made an interception.

Good Beginning For Reed:
The improved Cajun running game has been helped this year by the play of redshirt freshman Effrem Reed. In six games, Reed has rushed 56 times for 283 yards and three touchdowns. He set career highs for carries (11) and yards (85) in the win over Tulane on Oct. 6, opening the game with a career-best 48-yard gain on the first play from scrimmage.

Griffin Makes Most Of Position Change:
After rushing 69 times for 210 yards and three touchdowns in the first 11 games as a true-freshman in 2011, Qyendarius Griffin made the move to the secondary in order to get more time on the field. Already one of the team's best special teams performers — he was third on the team with nine special teams tackles last year — Griffin has taken to the move. In his first start at linebacker, he led the Cajuns with seven tackles and a pair of tackles for loss against Tulane and he came back last week to record a career-high nine stops at UNT. In six games, he is second on the team with 36 tackles.

The Baer Foot:
Senior kicker Brett Baer is quickly moving towards being the most accurate kicker in NCAA FBS history. In three seasons as UL's regular kicker, he has made 38-of-43 field goal attempts (.884), which is ahead of the NCAA field goal accuracy mark of .878 by Florida State's Bobby Raymond (43-49 in 1983-84). Baer will need to attempt two more field goals this year to meet the NCAA minimum of 45 career attempts. Baer made all seven attempts in 2010 and was 18-for-20 last year to lead the country in field goal percentage (.900). He is 13-for-16 this year to lead the nation in field goals.

. . . And The Baer Truth:
Brett Baer turned in one of the best all-around kicking performances in UL history in 2011, earning second team All-Sun Belt honors as both a kicker and punter while also being a semifinalist for the Groza Award, which is given to the nation's top kicker. Baer. . .
. . . led the nation in field goal accuracy, making 18-of-20 attempts (.900).
. . . ended the season making his final 11 attempts, leaving him three short of Mike Shafer's school record of 14 straight field goals made set in 1994.
. . . recorded the second-highest field goal total in school history (18), one short of the record 19 by John Roveto.
. . . was 46-for-50 in extra points, four short of Drew Edmiston's record of extra points in 2008.
. . . led the team with 100 points, the third-highest total ever and the most by a kicker. He trailed only the 114 points by Tyrell Fenroy (2008) and Brian Mitchell (1988).
. . . won two games with field goals as time expired, a 26-yard kick vs. Florida Atlantic and a career-long 50-yard effort vs. San Diego State in the New Orleans Bowl.

A Comeback For Stover:
Another feel good moment this season has been the return to the lineup of sophomore Hunter Stover, who has shared the kickoff chores with Brett Baer. Stover kicked off 47 times in the first eight games for the Cajuns last year before suffering a torn ACL in his right knee at Western Kentucky, requiring season-ending surgery. The surgery was nothing new to Stover. In high school, he tore the ACL in his left knee and a post-surgery infection required a second ACL replacement. The surgeries must have worked as Stover kicked off 16 times this year, recording five touchbacks and a 62.8 average. Last year, he averaged 60.3 yards with only one touchback.

. . . And He Does More Than Just Kick:
A kicker who has linebacker instincts is exactly what Hunter Stover brings to the field and it has shown results. Stover has kicked off 16 times, producing five touchbacks. Of the 11 kicks that have been returned, Stover has three solo and two unassisted tackles to share the team lead with five special teams tackles.

Lawson Continues Climb Up Receiving Charts:
Javone Lawson made five catches for 78 yards against North Texas last week, allowing the senior to continue his climb up the UL career receiving charts. He begins the week ranked seventh with 110 career receptions and 13 touchdowns and eighth with 1,798 career yards. Last year, Lawson became only fifth Cajun to catch passes for more than 1,000 yards in a season, making 63 catches for 1,092 yards and eight touchdowns.

Coaching Continuity:
UL is one of only 16 FBS schools to return the head coach and all nine assistant coaches from the previous season, according to research by Coachingsearch.com. To take things even further, the Cajuns also bring back the four graduate and administrative assistants on the coaching staff and all three weight room staff members. The other 15 schools with their entire coaching staff back are BYU, Colorado, Florida State, Georgia, Louisiana Tech, Miami (FL), Michigan, Michigan State, Minnesota, Mississippi State, Northwestern, Oregon, San Diego State, Texas, Virginia and Virginia Tech.

Impact Freshmen:
Despite the increased number of players seeing action this year, one number that is down significantly is the number of true-freshmen to see the field. Last year, UL used nine different first-year freshmen during the season. That number dropped to just three to date this season as linebackers Christian Hill and Tyren Alexander and safety Al-Damien Riles are the only first-year freshmen to see playing time. Alexander has made 10 tackles, including a pair of tackles for loss (-5 yards), in the three contests while Hill has made seven stops and Riles four.

Remembering Mickey:
The UL football team is honored to include on their helmets in 2012 a decal in memory of 21-year old UL student Mickey Shunick, who was kidnapped while riding her bicycle and later murdered in the early morning hours on May 19. The football staff worked with the Shunick family to come up with the design of the decal. It features a drawing of a woman riding a bicycle with her hands in the air with the name Mickey underneath, a design that has become popular among the friends and family of Shunick. “We're just honored to do this for Mickey and her family,” head coach Mark Hudspeth said. “Obviously, what we do on the field doesn't even come close to the kind of courage and fight that she showed. We just want to remember one of our own in a way that would make her proud.”

The Line That Plays Together, Stays Together:
Terrance Broadway should feel comfortable under center this year as four of the five starters on the offensive line return, each of whom played in almost 95-percent of the snaps last year. The quartet of seniors Leonardo Bates (LT) and Jaron Odom (RT), junior Andre Huval (C) and sophomore Daniel Quave (RG). The foursome combine to have made 92 career starts, including all the last 19 games together. Odom and Huval each played 925 of the 936 offensive snaps last year with Quave (890) and Bates (887) being not far behind. The fifth starter on the unit this year is Mykhael Quave, the younger brother of Daniel.

. . .And The Line Features Size:
The offensive line not only features experience, but size as well. The five starters average 6-4, 308 pounds, giving UL one of the biggest offensive lines in the SBC. The left side of the line features tackle Leonardo Bates (6-5, 296) and Mykhael Quave (6-5, 300) with Andre Huval (6-1, 290) at center. The right side of the line starts tackle Jaron Odom (6-6, 330) and guard Daniel Quave (6-3, 324).

A Little Of This. . .A Little Of That:
• The wins over Lamar and Troy to open the season allowed the Cajuns to start with a 2-0 record for only the second time since 1990 and the first since 2009.
• The 40-point halftime spread against Lamar allowed Mark Hudspeth to use 68 players in the game, the most since he took over the program (58 was old high vs. North Texas and Middle Tennessee in 2011).
•        The 40-0 victory over Lamar on Sept. 1 marked the first shutout for the Cajuns since a 6-0 win at Florida Atlantic on Oct. 18, 2006, a span covering 69 games. Going even further back, the last shutout by a UL squad at Cajun Field came 54 home games prior in a 34-0 win over UAB on Sept. 21, 2002.
• The longest play of the season resulted in no points when Jamal Robinson caught an 86-yard pass from Blaine Gautier vs. Lamar. It was the longest non-scoring pass play in school history, besting the old record of 82 yards of Michael Desormeaux to Richie Falgout vs. FIU in 2008. It was also tied for the fourth-longest pass play as well.
• The Sept. 8 win at Troy saw a pair of extended streaks come to an end. It was the first victory in a road opener since upending Tulane, 48-6 on Sept. 1, 1990, a streak of 21 straight losses. It also halted Troy's 25-game win streak in home openers.
•        The month of September has proven to be a good one for the Cajuns under head coach Mark Hudspeth as UL is now 6-2 during the month over the last two seasons. The only team to trip the Ragin' Cajuns up in September is Oklahoma State, which has been responsible for both UL losses in the month.
• In five games last year, the Cajuns drew 145,854 fans to set the school and SBC records for average attendance (29,171) and the SBC mark for total attendance. The total was a Cajun Field record for a five-game season, but fell short of the overall record of 163,143 set in 1976 when the Cajuns played seven home games. The 2011 season produced five of the top 15 crowds in Cajun Field history.
• The Cajuns also led all FBS schools in 2011 with an attendance increase of 11,788 fans per game. UL averaged just 17,383 fans per game in 2010 but improved to 29,171 last year to beat out Arizona State, Stanford, Iowa State, Temple, Florida State and Oklahoma State for the top honor.
• Five Cajuns were named to the 2012 Preseason All-Sun Belt Conference team, which was determined by a vote of head coaches and select media throughout the conference. Seniors Melvin White (CB), Brett Baer (K), Leonardo Bates (OT) and Javone Lawson (WR) and sophomore Alonzo Harris (RB) were each honored.

Next Up:
The Cajuns will have a little extra time to prepare before taking to the road to face in-state rival ULM on Saturday, Nov. 3 beginning at 3:00 p.m. CDT.

Brian McCann
Sports Information Director
University of Louisiana
201 Reinhardt Drive
Lafayette, LA 70506-4297
Office: (337) 482-6331
Cell: (216) 798-6376

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