Welcome everyone to the latest edition of #4Downs where I break down what went right or what went wrong for the Ragin Cajuns. This week, it’s the Cajuns loss to Georgia.
1st Down: Better Than Expected
Heading into this game, I expected it to be incredibly one-sided and the Cajuns to be inefficient in all three phases. We got some of that but not all of it. The Cajuns actually had more yards offensively than the Bulldogs and outside of a pairof big plays, the score would’ve been a little more competitive throughout.
2nd Down: Awful Day for Jennings
If Anthony Jennings had the opportunity to wipe one game from his collegiate record, it would probably be this one. Jennings ended the day with three picks, only 189 yards through the air and sacked twice. He did have a couple of shining moments such as the Al Riles deep pass that led to him keeping it for the Cajuns first score, but that one pass accounted for one-third of the passing game. It was a struggle for the grad transfer all afternoon to get it going, but was able to get things going with his legs.
3rd Down: Poor Defensive Effort Early
I mentioned earlier that big plays were the big difference in this one. It’s very obvious that’s what happened, but the defense just looked lost when it came to those big plays Things looked bad from the start with Isaiah McKenzie putting on the jets for a touchdown. He also had a punt return for a touchdown that really showed his ability to evade tacklers, but overall his performance made the typically good run defense look like a joke.
4th Down: Eli Reloaded?
It took until the Georgia game, but Elijah McGuire looks to be near 100 percent. The senior running back, who hasn’t been the same since the loss to Tulane, had 132 yards on the ground on 19 attempts. He hasn’t looked like the McGuire of old but seeing him have a good performance on Saturday between the hedges was a good sign for the final two games of the season. They’ll need him a lot in the next couple of weeks and if he can have that kind of performance against Sun Belt teams, a bowl game might not be so out of reach. It’s a very volatile situation because they probably still won’t be able to use him to the level that they used them in earlier in the season.
-Clint Domingue