Welcome everyone to the latest game preview for the Louisiana Ragin Cajuns! This week, we break down the Cajuns matchup against the Arkansas State Red Wolves.
Last Week: Arkansas State continued their path of dominance in Sun Belt Conference play with a 51-17 victory over Coastal Carolina. The Cajuns got things done last week in a Thursday night matchup against Texas State by the score of 24-7.
Last Meeting: The last time these two teams faced off, it was a wild one that ended in controversy as it looked like Justice Hansen had fumbled the ball on 4th down and an offensive lineman was able to run it in for what seemed to be the game-winner for the Red Wolves. However, after review it was clear that it was an incomplete pass. The Cajuns hold a 23-19-1 series lead over Arkansas State.
Storylines to Watch:
Can Defense Hold Off Red Wolves? From what we’ve seen in the last two games, the Cajuns defense is starting to click based off of the numbers. However, the teams that they have faced since the bye week aren’t exactly the best offenses in the Sun Belt.
Thursday night will be huge when it comes to how the Cajuns defense looks the rest of the way. The Red Wolves offense looked great last week against Coastal Carolina with almost 500 yards of total offense. Justice Hansen could be giving the Cajuns a hard time defensively with his ability to get it done both through the air and on the ground. Look back at what happened against UL Monroe with a dual-threat quarterback and if the Cajuns can hold down Hansen, that could be a huge factor.
Can Nunez Continue to Solidify Spot? After the Cajuns win over Texas State, Mark Hudspeth waited until looking at the film to make a decision on a starter for this big game against the Red Wolves. Nunez has been named the starter for Thursday’s game and has another chance to solidify his spot.
If he can have a pretty clean game, that could lead to him taking over the spot on a permanent basis. While Jordan Davis had a solid start to the 2017 season, the injury that he suffered in Kyle Field hampered his ability. The decision needs to be made on a true starter this week if the Cajuns want to make a splash in the second half of the season.
Turnover Battle: Going back to the defense, the Cajuns were able to cause some chaos throughout last Thursday’s matchup with three turnovers on the evening. That kind of defensive effort usually wins ballgames and with a strong offense like the Red Wolves, that could be easier said than done.
However, Tracy Walker mentioned what’s been done since the hiring of James Willis to improve the offense with changes to how the defensive line is set up, making sure that they can make these crucial plays and bring some pressure to the quarterback.
Louisiana Will Win If:
The Cajuns can come away with a win if the combined score can stay below 55. It’s hard for a team on the road to win shootouts like the Cajuns have had to early on in the season. Look at what happened in Tulsa and in the second half against Texas A&M and you’ll see that the end result was less than ideal.
Arkansas State Will Win If:
The Red Wolves can move to 3-0 in conference play if Justice Hansen can duplicate his five-touchdown performance from last weekend. The junior quarterback has shown a lot of ability early on in conference play and if the Red Wolves want to avoid the same fate that Troy suffered last Wednesday, they’ll need him to be at his best.
-Clint Domingue