Welcome everyone to the latest edition of #4Downs where I break down what went right and what went wrong for the Louisiana Ragin Cajuns! This week, it’s the Cajuns win over UL Monroe.
1st Down: Defense Dominates
Heading into this game, the Cajuns only had one defensive touchdown and that happened last week against Arkansas State with a pick six that turned the momentum early on. Add two more touchdowns to it with a pair of scoop and scores from Trev Miller and Otha Peters. The Cajuns wound up with 24 points off of five turnovers on the afternoon. It was an extremely good showing by a defense that has turned it around after a poor showing against Boise State to start the year.
2nd Down: Passing Game Virtually Nonexistent
The combination of rain and cold weather usually leads to both teams running the ball more instead of airing it out. This game was almost absurd with how poor the passing game was for both teams. There were a total of 31 yards through the air and it all came from one QB in Caleb Evans. Both quarterbacks did throw a pair of interceptions, but only one of those really amounted to anything that would affect the end result. You can take the passingstats from this game and consider them an anomaly because the weather conditions affected how the game was played.
3rd Down: Eli Does It Again
The book of Eli will get a final chapter in a bowl game, but the regular season ends on a high note with another 1,000 yard season after rushing for 110 yards on 28 carries. After what seemed like a lost season for the senior after suffering injuries during the Tulane game, he has slowly returned to his old self in a must-win game against their in-state rival. It would have been nice for the Cajuns to sit him earlier in the game because it was already in hand, but when you have a chance to get to 4,000 career rushing yards you have to try and do it.
4th Down: Finish Strong
This has been the weirdest season for the Ragin Cajuns that I can remember. You have a former LSU Tiger transfer over to the Cajuns, the defensive coordinator fired after a loss to Boise State, a pair of overtime losses midway through the season, and tons of other things that happened on and off the field. With all of this happening, the Cajuns were still able to achieve their goal of becoming bowl eligible after having a 4-8 season in 2015. Even after having a tough three game stretch with losses to Tulane, New Mexico State, and Appalachian State, this team never gave up and got what they deserve: a bowl game. It seemed like this team was destined for another sub .500 year, but this team turned it around at the right time, winning three of their last four against some tough teams like Georgia Southern and Arkansas State. Despite some controversies, how can you not be proud of what this team has done?
-Clint Domingue