Welcome everyone to the latest edition of #4Downs where we break down the good, the bad, and the ugly when it comes to the Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns. This week, we look at their 35-14 victory over the Liberty Flames
1st Down: Cajuns Run Game On Lock
The strength of the Cajuns offense for the last several seasons has been the run game. It should be no surprise that they relied heavily on their stable of backs and it paid off in spades with over 400 total yards on the ground, with 332 coming from Trey Ragas, Raymond Calais, Elijah Mitchell, and T.J Wisham.
The big talking point for the Cajuns in the Billy Napier era has been about the need to find a balance of run and pass and honestly if the run game is working to this extent, they don’t really need to find one if it’s working to this kind of effect.
2nd Down: Cajuns Defense Continues to Grow
That first drive from the Flames offense had many a knee-jerk reaction with how quickly the Cajuns defense was shredded by the Stephen Calvert and Antonio Gandy-Golden combination. That didn’t last long with the Cajuns allowing 125 total yards of offense after the Flames took a 14-7 lead with 9:18 left in the second quarter.
After the game, the defense mentioned that they were frustrated about giving up 14 and motivated each other to not allow that to happen again. Credit to this win has to be given to the defense and what they did after having their backs up against the wall.
3rd Down: Levi’s Growing Pains
The Cajuns offense can’t entirely rely on Levi Lewis being an All-Sun Belt QB with the biggest strength on this team being the run game. Lewis looked great at times, but one of his two touchdowns on the evening was thanks in large part to the nifty moves of Ja’Marcus Bradley in the third quarter.
Two weeks into the season, Lewis needs to get his feet underneath him earlier in ballgames if they want to stay competitive against the elite programs in the Sun Belt Conference.
4th Down: Artigue Struggles with FGs
The Lafayette High product saw more opportunities in week two to show off his leg after missing all of last season with an injury. It wasn’t the best night for him, going 0-for-3 and during certain points in Saturday’s win, there were points where he was visibly frustrated with his performance.
Extra Point: Football Guy Hugh Freeze
One of the more unusual storylines in college football is Hugh Freeze coaching from the pressbox after being hospitalized with a staph infection. Last weekend saw him from a hospital bed while the former Ole Miss head honcho coaching from a medical chair that was sent to Cajun Field overnight. After the game, Freeze showed some love to the university after the loss for their accommodations.
Obviously, I hate to lose but the hospitality and accommodating spirit shown to me by @coach_bnapier , @RaginCajunsFB , their administration, police force and volunteers was above and beyond. You are first class.
— Hugh Freeze (@CoachHughFreeze) September 8, 2019