To conclude the regular season, the Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns traveled to Monroe to take on their rival, the ULM Warhawks. The Vermilion and White pulled away in the second half to defeat the Warhawks 37-23 to improve their record to 10-2 and become Sun Belt West division champs.
HOW IT HAPPENED:
ULM got the ball first and couldn’t do anything with it after their freshman running back Ahmad Hardy rushed for five yards on 3rd & 2.
The Warhawks punted and the Ragin’ Cajuns started their first drive at their 20-yard line. Quarterback Chandler Fields found receiver Lance LeGendre for a 15-yard pick. Lynard Harris intercepted Fields’ pass two plays later and returned the ball to the 42-yard line of Louisiana.
Jake Godfrey began the next drive with a 22-yard run to set up ULM’s offense in the redzone. A pass from Aidan Armenta to Nate Sullivan Jr set up 1st & GOAL from the six. After Hardy was stuffed for a four-yard loss on second down, Armenta’s pass was high and flew out of the endzone, setting up the field goal unit. Max Larson’s 25-yard kick was good with the Warhawks taking the early three-point lead at the 7:26 mark of the opening quarter.
Louisiana went three-and-out, with Field getting sacked by Kevontay Wells on third down, setting up ULM at their 35-yard line. On 3rd & 17, Armenta was pressured and picked off by Kody Jackson, who returned the ball to the 27. Zylan Perry had a 13-yard run and scored later in the drive from one-yard out to put the Cajuns up. Kenneth Almendares’ PAT was blocked, making it a three-point difference.
The Warhawks reclaimed the lead midway into the second quarter. Hardy carried the ball thrice on the first three plays, two of those touches went for 28 and 15 yards. The drive ended with a seven-yard touchdown catch by Tyler Griffin.
Perry fumbled on the second play from scrimmage and Javon Campbell recovered for ULM at the Louisiana 48-yard line. Armenta gave the football back the next play as Jackson came down with his second interception. The turnover led to a six-yard touchdown catch by LeGendre to put the Cajuns up 13-10.
Right before the half, Armenta found Rylan Green for a gain of 23 yards to midfield. Hardy’s 14-yard carry moved the ball into the redzone but an intentional grounding penalty moved the Warhawk offense back 18 yards. On 4th & 20, Larson knocked through the 47-yard field goal to tie the game with 19 seconds left in the second quarter.
Louisiana was in a 13-13 tie with ULM heading into the half.
The Vermilion and White came out firing to begin the third quarter. Fields connected with Jacob Bernard for the 38-yard pitch-and-catch. Robert Williams then made the 25-yard grab a couple of plays later to set up 1st & GOAL. Tavion Smith capped off the drive with a four-yard touchdown catch to put Louisiana up by seven.
ULM’s first possession lasted eight-and-a-half minutes as they drove 64 yards in 15 plays. Hardy recorded seven touches for 48 to move the Warhawk offense to the five-yard line. Armenta was sacked by Jordan Lawson on 3rd & GOAL and Kadarius Miller and Larson made his third kick of the day.
Louisiana responded and extended their lead early in the fourth quarter. Bill Davis moved the chains on 4th & 1 before Almendares lined up to kick. The attempt was good but an illegal formation on the Warhawks reset the downs for the Cajuns and Perry scored from seven yards out a couple of minutes later to put the Vermilion and White up 27-16 with 11:30 remaining.
Lawson was involved in another sack the following possession, setting up a 3rd & 19. A situation where Amenta’s pass fell incomplete and the Warhawks punted to the Cajuns. Almendares added a 26-yard field goal at the 6:07 mark to make it a two-touchdown difference.
Armenta threw up a prayer on 3rd & 11 and Sullivan Jr came down with the 28-yard grab. Hardy scored on the next play from eight yards out at the 3:52 mark to cut it to within seven.
Perry got the first six carries of the next drive and moved the ball down to the 26-yard line ULM. A couple of plays later on 4th & 1, head coach Michael Desormeaux elected to go for it. Davis bounced outside to the sideline with scored from 24 yards out for the final knockout punch.
K.C. Ossai intercepted Armenta’s pass and the Cajuns drained the rest of the clock to defeat the Warhawks 37-23 to cap off the regular season 10-2 and become the 2024 Sun Belt West division champs.
BIG NUMBER: 48.3
Warhawks quarterback Aidan Armenta was held to a completion percentage of 48.3 on Saturday, connecting on 15/31 attempts for 168 yards. The sophomore signal caller also threw three interceptions, two of which went in the direction of Cajuns cornerback Kody Jackson.
PLAYER OF THE GAME: Zylan Perry
Perry’s touches were limited early on and got better as the game went along, scoring twice on the ground as he recorded 150 yards on 19 carries. As a team, the Cajuns rushed for 223 yards as they defeated the Warhawks 37-23 to improve to 10-2 on the season.
UP NEXT: The Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns (12-2, 9-3) will wait and find out their next opponent. It will be between the Marshall Thundering Herd and the Georgia Southern Eagles. Kickoff for the 2024 Hercules Tires Sun Belt Football Championship will be at 6:30 p.m. on Saturday, December 7th. The game can be seen on ESPN.