.
Welcome everyone to another edition of #4Downs where I break down what went right and what went wrong for the Louisiana Ragin Cajuns! In this edition, we look at their New Orleans Bowl loss to Southern Miss.
1st Down: Offense Knew What to Do Out of the Gate
If there’s been one weak spot on the Cajuns defense all year long, it has to be in the secondary. It was obvious since the Boise State game that if there’s even a slightly good quarterback at the helm of the opposing team, they could be torn apart in a heartbeat. This was that quarterback that could’ve demolished the Ragin Cajuns. Look at what he did with his first two passes: 2-2 for 121 yards. That was just two of his passes and both to the same player in Allenzae Staggers. Nick Mullens has looked great for most of this season, but against this Cajuns defense he looked almost perfect.
2nd Down: Jennings Under Pressure
If this was the last game for Anthony Jennings, this is a game he wants to forget. Eight passes for 95 yards, an interception, and was sacked six times. He made poor decisions all night and it felt like after that interception, almost all faith was lost in him as the number of rushes went up the rest of the way. They still gave him a chance to do his thing especially when they needed to in the final two minutes, but a combination of poor playcalling and poor pocket presence led to another rally falling short. The Cajuns offense looked stagnant and there was no nice way of putting it.
3rd Down: Book of Eli Ends On Sour Note
The final year of the book of Eli was filled with hardships and some triumph. After dealing with injuries for much of the second half of the season, the senior running back ended his career in the vermillion and white on the highest note possible with 99 yards and a nice 25-yard punt return. The tough way the Cajuns lost their first New Orleans Bowl left him extremely emotional. So much so that he actually wouldn’t take questions after the game was over. This is a big surprise because he’s usually a person that likes to talk with the media and be very open but understandable because this was the end of his career as a Ragin Cajun.
4th Down: Southern Miss Shatters Records
The Golden Eagles looked unstoppable on Saturday night and the record book was just another victim. You had Staggers shatter a record previously held by former Cajun Javon Lawson with over 200 yards receiving and ending his night with 11 catches. He wasn’t the only player to rack up records with the defense getting six sacks on the night, three of which came from Ja’Boree Poole both broke the previous records. No one was safe on Saturday night when it came to the Golden Eagles dominance.
-Clint Domingue