Cajuns Host Troy For A "White Out" Night On Thursday

Contact: Brian McCann

Complete Game Notes

Game 9: Troy (5-4, 3-2) at Louisiana (6-2, 3-0)
When: Thursday, Nov. 7, 2013, 6:30 p.m. CST
Site: Cajun Field (ProGrass, 31,000)
Sponsor: Cypress Bayou Casino
TV: ESPNU (Mark Neely & Jay Walker)
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)
Series: Louisiana leads, 9-7
Last Meeting: Louisiana 37, Troy 24 (9/8/12, Troy, Ala.)
Tickets: $25 Reserved, $20 General Admission (Troy & ULM)

Coaches:
Louisiana
Mark Hudspeth (Delta State, '92)
Record at Louisiana: 24-10 (3rd year)
Overall Record: 90-31 (10th year)

Troy
Larry Blakeney (Auburn, '80)
Record at Troy: 174-102-1 (23rd year)
Overall Record: 174-102-1 (23rd year)

THE STORYLINE: The Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns return to Sun Belt play this week, putting their six-game win streak on the line when they host Troy on Thursday, Nov. 7 beginning at 6:30 p.m. in Cajun Field. . . the game will be televised nationally on ESPNU with Mark Neely and Jay Walker providing the commentary. . . the game will feature a "White Out" in the stands with Cajuns fans being encouraged to wear white to the contest. . . Louisiana received five votes in this week's USA Today Coaches Poll, good for 34th place. . . Louisiana rallied from 21 points down in the second quarter to register a 49-35 win over New Mexico State on Saturday. . . Alonzo Harris turned in his third straight 100-yard rushing game, carrying 16 times for 106 yards and tying a school-record with five touchdowns. . . senior Darryl Surgent caught a 68-yard touchdown pass to become the 11th receiver to go over the 1,500-yard mark for his career (1,553). . . senior Justin Anderson made 14 tackles, his fourth game of 14 or more tackles this year, to continue leading the Sun Belt averaging 10.6 tackles a game. . . Louisiana holds a 9-7 lead all-time against Troy, including a 37-24 win last year at Troy. . .
Troy (5-4, 3-2 SBC) saw its three-game win streak snapped last Thursday by ULM, 49-37.

WHITE OUT AHEAD: Thursday night's game against Troy has been designated a White Out game with Ragin' Cajuns fans who attend the game being encouraged to wear white.

WE ARE LOUISIANA: There is confusion among the national sports organizations as how to refer to the Ragin' Cajuns. Our official name is the University of Louisiana at Lafayette, but much like our opponents around the country, we simply go by Louisiana when referring to our athletic programs. It is the same situation at the Universities of Texas (at Austin), Tennessee (at Knoxville) and California (at Berkeley), but years of use and understanding by the sports media has led to each of those schools to have their athletic monikers being simplified and accepted nationally. Although we proudly refer to our University with its full title for academic purposes, we ask that you use Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns or some combination of those terms, when talking about our athletic teams.

HUDSPETH RANKED SIXTH AMONG FBS COACHES: Third-year Louisiana head coach Mark Hudspeth has made his mark nationally in a short time coaching, entering the week ranked sixth among active FBS coaches with a .744 winning percentage (90-31).

SERIES VS. TROY: Thursday's game will be the 17th series meeting with the Ragin' Cajuns owning a 9-7 lead all-time. The series began in 1946 with Louisiana claiming the first six contests through 1952. The two teams met just once over the next 52 years -- a 39-20 Troy win in 1994 -- and the series resumed in earnest in 2004 when Troy joined the Sun Belt Conference. Since that time, the Trojans have claimed seven of the last 10 meetings. Louisiana is 2-0 under Mark Hudspeth,winning 31-17 in Lafayette in 2011 and 37-24 in Troy last season.

CAJUNS EXCEL AT CAJUN FIELD: The win over New Mexico State on Saturday extended its current win streak in the facility to five straight and improved the Cajuns to 13-1 at home in three seasons under head coach Mark Hudspeth. Included in that record were wins in Hudspeth's first eight games, the third-longest in facility history.

SETTING A STANDARD: In addition to the first-ever back-to-back seasons appearing in a bowl game, Mark Hudspeth has helped Louisiana to tie the school record for wins in a season with nine. Prior to the 9-4 mark in 2011, the Cajuns set the school record for wins with a 9-2 record in both 1921 and 1976. The 18 wins in Hudspeth's first two years is the most in a two-year period in school history.

. . . AND CAJUNS ARE BOWL ELIGIBLE AGAIN: The win over New Mexico State gave the Cajuns their sixth victory of the year, making them eligible to receive a bowl bid for the third straight year. The last time that Louisiana had six or more wins in three straight seasons came from 1993-95 when Nelson Stokley guided the Cajuns to three straight winning seasons, including a pair of Big West Conference titles.

STREAKING: The Ragin' Cajuns will put a couple of modest win streaks on the line against Troy. Louisiana enters the game having won six straight games, the longest win streak since the Cajuns won the first eight games of the 1976 season. The Ragin' Cajuns have also won seven straight Sun Belt victories going back to last year, a streak that started following a 50-27 home loss to Arkansas State.

SENIORS GO FOR A RECORD: With a 27-19 record over their Ragin' Cajuns career, this years class of seniors need just one more win to equal the school record for wins over a four-year period. This will allow the seniors to lay claim to being the winningest senior class in school history. The 1970 seniors currently hold the mantra, going 28-14 over their four seasons.

HARRIS HAS A RECORD DAY: When Alonzo Harris broke free for a 30-yard touchdown run with 52 seconds left against New Mexico State, it allowed the junior to equal the school record with five rushing touchdowns in the game. Brian Mitchell originally set the record vs. Lamar in 1989. Harris now leads the Sun Belt with 12 touchdowns this year and he has 30 rushing touchdowns in his career. He ranks fifth on the single season rushing touchdowns list and third for his career.

. . . AND HARRIS CHASES 100-YARD RUSHING RECORDS: With more than 100 yards rushing in each of his last three games, junior Alonzo Harris has come within one game of equalling the school record of four straight held by Brian Mitchell (1985), Tyrell Fenroy (2005 & 2007) and Marcus Prier (1995). In addition, Harris now has nine career 100-yard games, ranking him fourth in school history behind Fenroy (22), Mitchell (15) and Michael Desormeaux (13).

McGUIRE VIES FOR SUN BELT FRESHMAN OF THE YEAR: Running back Elijah McGuire is making a strong case for Sun Belt Freshman of the Year honors this season. The only non-kicker freshman ranked in the top 10 in any of the major Sun Belt stat categories, McGuire enters the week ranked fourth in the conference averaging 62.1 rushing yards per game. The Houma, La. native has carried 57 times for 497 yards, a league-best 8.7 average and five touchdowns. He gained a career-high 137 yards with three touchdowns against Nicholls State and added 110 yards, including a career-long 70 yard rush, on 10 carries at Arkansas State. In Sun Belt games, McGuire has rushed 26 times for 239 yards, a 9.2 average and 79.7 yards per game.

. . . AND McGUIRE BOASTS HIS AVERAGE: The statistic that stands out the most about Elijah McGuire's season is that the freshman is averaging 8.7 yards per carry, the third highest average in the country this year. McGuire trails only Oregon's Marcus Mariota (56-511-9.29) and Baylor's Lache Seastruck (96-869-9.05). McGuire has carried 57 times for 497 yards this year and his average is ahead of the current school record of 7.7 yards per carry, which was set by F.G. Mixon in 1951. The modern record is 7.2 yards per carry set by Michael Desormeaux (144-1,035-7.2) in 2008.

. . . AND McGUIRE LIKES CAJUN FIELD: Elijah McGuire is especially comfortable playing at Cajun Field, carrying 22 times for 267 yards, a 12.1 average and five touchdowns in the three games to date. He wowed the Cajun Field crowd against Nicholls State (Sept. 14), becoming the ninth true-freshman in school history to rush for 100 yards in a game. He carried nine times for 137 yards and three touchdowns, including a scintillating 42-yard scamper on which he dragged Nicholls defensive back Treavon Evans for almost 10 yards and then had to fight off another defender to get into the endzone. McGuire came back to carry seven times for 58 yards and a touchdown against Texas State and six times for 72 yards, including a 51-yard touchdown, against New Mexico State.

CAJUNS GET WIN #500: The 70-7 win over Nicholls State on Sept. 14 was the 500th in the 113-year history of the Louisiana football program. The Cajuns have gone to win five more to begin the week with a 505-523-34 record.

DOING MORE WITH MORE: After years of achieving athletic success with less resources than some of its competitors, the Cajuns will finally get the opportunity to do more with more when construction begins later this fall on the first tier of projects in the $115 million Athletic Facilities Master Plan. All 16 sports will be impacted with the addition of the Athletic Performance Center, a 71,000 square-foot facility that will more than double the current existing space for athletic training (10,000 square feet), equipment (6,000) and two complete weight rooms (12,000 & 6,800). The facility will also include a new football locker room, an auditorium capable of seating 150 people and house the coaching staff.

THURSDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL: The Troy game will mark the 39th time in program history that the Ragin' Cajuns will play a game on a Thursday night and the first since 2005. The Cajuns are 15-20-3 all-time on Thursday night with the first game being a 42-0 loss to LSU on Oct. 16, 1902. Northwestern State is the most common opponent on a Thursday night, playing the Cajuns 26 times on Thanksgiving Day from 1909-46 with the teams each going 12-12-2. The last three Thursday night games have been Sun Belt contests, playing New Mexico State in 2003 (W, 26-24) and losing 2005 games against Florida Atlantic (28-10) and Arkansas State (39-36).

GETTING BACK TO SATURDAY: Thursday's game will mark the third time in the last four games that the Ragin' Cajuns will play a mid-week game with Louisiana owning wins in each of the first two, a 37-20 win at WKU on Oct. 15 and a 23-7 victory at Arkansas State on Oct. 22. You have to go back to the 1946 season, when Louisiana played four games on Friday, to find a year when the Ragin' Cajuns played three or more games on days other than Saturday.

IMPROVED RUNNING: One of the strengths of the Cajuns offense in 2012 was their improvement in the running game. In 2011, Louisiana ranked seventh in the Sun Belt and 88th nationally averaging 125.2 yards per game. In 2012, using a running attack featuring two sophomores and two freshmen, the Cajuns ranked second in the Sun Belt and 34th in the nation averaging 193.5 yards per game.

. . . AND THE CAJUNS MOVE UP TO 18th IN RUSHING: With the majority of the rushing attack back this year, the Cajuns have taken another jump in the rushing stats. Through eight games, Louisiana has gained 1,814 yards on 360 carries for a healthy 5.0 yards per carry. The Cajuns lead the Sun Belt and rank 18th in the nation averaging 226.8 yards per game. (and 243.7 in three Sun Belt games) Those numbers were expected this season as the Cajuns returned every player who gained rushing yards last year except quarterback Blaine Gautier (17 carries, 93 yards) and wide receiver Harry Peoples (14-72).

CAJUN FIELD SCORING RECORD FALLS: The 70-point explosion against Nicholls State on Sept. 14 shattered the Cajun Field record of 56 points set by the Cajuns in a 56-21 win over UAB on Sept. 9, 1995.

. . . AND SO DOES THE CONSECUTIVE HOME GAME MARK: When you add the 70 points scored against Nicholls State to the 52 points put on the scoreboard in the 2012 home finale vs. South Alabama, the Cajuns broke the Cajun Field record for consecutive home games with 122. The previous best came in 1995 when Louisiana scored 99 points in back-to-back games against UAB (56) and New Mexico State (43). The 122 points fell just shy of the program record of 128 set when the Cajuns shutout Lake Charles (75-0) in the 1943 season finale and came back to knock off LaGarde GH (53-0) to open the 1944 season.

. . . AND HOW ABOUT THE LAST FOUR: The Cajuns are averaging 54.8 points a game (219 total) over its last four games at Cajun Field, scoring 52 last year vs. South Alabama, 70 against Nicholls State on Sept. 14, 48 vs. Texas State on Oct. 5 and 49 last week vs. New Mexico State.

. . . AND MORE SCORING: The 10 touchdowns against Nicholls State tied the school record, originally set against Troy in 1946. The 70 points was the most by Louisiana since a 75-0 win over Lake Charles AAF on Nov. 3, 1943 and the 63-point margin of victory was the highest since topping Troy, 64-0 on Nov. 8, 1946.

BRAUCHLE SETTLES IN: It hasn't been easy for sophomore Stephen Brauchle to replace Cajuns legend Brett Baer, but he has done a good job this season. Brauchle has had a pair of double-figure scoring games, including an 11-point game at Arkansas State on Oct. 22, his third double-figure scoring game of the year, posting his first career three field goal game. He ranks second in the Sun Belt in kick scoring with 61 points and with at least four games to go, already ranks fourth in both extra points made (37) and attempted (39). He is eight-for-11 on field goal attempts.

McGUIRE'S LONG RUN: When Elijah McGuire broke free for a career-long 70-yard run to set up a three-yard touchdown run by Alnzo Harris in the second quarter at Arkansas State on Oct. 22, it marked the longest non-scoring play of the season for the Cajuns and the longest since Jamal Robinson and Blaine Gautier teamed up on an 86-yard pass in the 2012 season opener. Although the Louisiana records are incomplete, they do show that there have been at least three non-scoring runs of 80 yards or more, including a record 90-yard effort by Reggie Dupre at Southeastern Louisiana in 1971.

HARRIS & McGUIRE TOPPLE 100 YARD MARK: The Oct. 22 win at Arkansas State featured a unique accomplishment by the Cajuns backfield as running backs Alonzo Harris and Elijah McGuire became just the seventh running back duo, and first since 1998, to rush for 100 yards in the same game. Harris was the work horse, carrying 29 times for 105 yards and two touchdowns while McGuire was aided by a 70-yard burst, rushing just 10 times for a game-high 110 yards. It was the 21st time in program history that two runners each had 100 yards rushing in the game, but in 13 of those games, a quarterback was one of the two. John Bernard (129 yards) and Darren Brister (106) were the last running back duo to accomplish the feat, doing it at ULM in 1998.

A WORTHY DEFENDER: When Rodney Gillis went down with a season-ending leg injury against Texas State, it created an opportunity for T.J. Worthy to return to the starting lineup, which the sophomore has taken advantage of. He has averaged 9.0 tackles in the three games since. He started the stretch with seven tackles (five solo) and an interception at WKU on Oct. 15 and came back to match his career-high with 11 tackles (6 solo) at Arkansas State. Against New Mexico State, five of his nine tackles were solo. He begins the week tied for second on the team with 40 tackles and leading the squad with a pair of interceptions. A starter at safety in three games last year, Worthy finished sixth on the team with 47 tackles.

ANDERSON STARTS SENIOR CAMPAIGN OUT RIGHT: Justin Anderson has made a strong case for Sun Belt Conference Defensive Player of the Year this year, entering the week leading the league and ranking 11th in the nation averaging 10.6 tackles a game. He also shares the league lead in fumbles recovered (2), is second in fumbles caused (3) and 12th in tackles for loss (7). Anderson has had four games of 14 tackles or more, including 15 vs. Kansas State (Sept. 7) and 14 vs. both Arkansas (Aug. 30) and New Mexico State (Nov. 2). He was named the SBC Defensive Player of the Week after the WKU game, a career-high 16 tackle effort that saw him force and receover two fumbles and make two TFL. Anderson now has 10 double-figure tackle games in his career.

RILES TURNS IN THE PLAY OF THE YEAR: With the Cajuns trailing WKU 10-0 and the Hilltoppers facing a fourth-and-goal from the 1 that could have put them ahead 17-0 in the Oct. 15 meeting, sophomore safety Al Riles turned in the biggest play of the year to date. Riles intercepted a Brandon Doughty pass just outside the goal line and returned it 99 yards for a touchdown to turn the Cajuns fortunes around. The interception, the first of Riles career, was the second returned for a touchdown by the Cajuns this year (Justin Anderson vs. Nicholls State).

THE TURNOVER TALE: Mark Hudspeth has preached the importance of taking care of the football since he first stepped on the Louisiana campus in 2010 and the 2013 Cajuns have definitely paid attention to his words. The Cajuns enter the week ranked eighth nationally in turnover margin, averaging 1.0 turnovers more than their opponents each game. In eight games, the Louisiana defense ranks 21st in the nation with 18 takeaways (8 fumbles & 10 interceptions) and 20th with just 10 give-aways (4 fumbles & 6 interceptions).

10 CAJUNS EARN MID-SEASON ALL-SBC HONORS: Ten Louisiana players received mention when Phil Steele released his mid-season All-Sun Belt Conference team on Oct. 14. The Cajuns placed five players on the first team, Jamal Robinson (WR), Andre Huval (C), Daniel Quave (RG), Mykhael Quave (LT) and Justin Anderson (LB), while Terrance Broadway (QB), Alonzo Harris (RB), Jacob Maxwell (TE), Sean Thomas (FS), Dominique Tovell (DL) earned second team mention. Louisiana and Arkansas State shared the lead with 10 players honored.

4TH DOWN EXPLOITS: New Mexico State converted its only fourth down attempt to snap Louisiana's string of successful fourth down stops at six going back to the Texas State game. Louisiana begins the week ranked 11th nationally in fourth down defense this season. In eight games, Cajuns opponents have converted just four of the 14 times that they have attempted to convert a fourth down play (.286). This is nothing new to Louisiana. In 2012, the Cajuns stopped their opponents on 11 of their 14 attempts to rank second behind Syracuse (2-10, .200) with a .214 defense rate.

SURGENT EYES SECOND KICKOFF RECORD: Senior Darryl Surgent begins the week needing just 32 yards to break the Louisiana career record for kickoff return yards in a career. Surgent, who already owns the school mark with 117 career kickoff returns, has 2,611 kickoff yards in his career. Joe Redding, who played from 1985-88, returned 114 kicks of a school-best 2,642 yards. Earlier in the year, Surgent set a record by returning a kickoff 100 yards for a touchdown at Kansas State, the longest return in school history.

NEXT UP: After playing two games in six days, the Cajuns will have another long week, enjoying two extra days to prepare for their game at Georgia State on Saturday, Nov. 16 beginning at 1:00 p.m. in the Georgia Dome.

Cajuns Host Troy For A "White Out" Night On Thursday

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