Late Saturday afternoon, the Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns closed the doors on the original iteration of Cajun Field, the football team’s home since 1971.
They did it with a victory over in-state rival ULM, beating the Warhawks 52-21 to get their sixth win of the season and become bowl eligible. While it seemed in doubt at times, there are enough bowl slots to accommodate the eligible teams, meaning Louisiana will take part in postseason play.
The bowl appearance is always a nice accolade for the program, but this one feels especially important. After overcoming tremendous adversity in coach Michael Desormeaux’s first season at the helm, they defeated Texas State to earn a bowl trip where they lost to Houston. Despite similar adversity in which the Cajuns lost their top two quarterbacks at different points this season, a loss to ULM and a 5-7 finish after a 5-3 start would have felt like a step in the wrong direction.
While a bowl win would add to the progression, simply getting there ensures that the program was able to at least remain steady in the first two seasons under Coach Des. That stability is even more crucial given the surrounding elements that the program is working on.
On December 11th, a $65 million renovation will begin to transform Cajun Field into Our Lady of Lourdes Stadium. The upper deck on the west side of the facility will be torn down and transformed, with several other key changes that aim to modernize and improve the fan experience. Plenty of premium seating options, suites, and club-level seats will all be apart of the new look.
The renovations come as a welcome jolt of life into the fan experience. It is no secret that attendance for the Cajuns has struggled in recent memory. After a record average attendance of over 29,000 in 2011, numbers continued to decrease. Even the record-breaking teams of the Billy Napier era failed to cause a break-through in regards to bringing people out to the stadium.
While there are many factors that lead to poor attendance, the fan experience and stadium amenities are certainly a big factor. These renovations aim to improve that aspect, which has surely been lacking in recent memory. The decreased capacity also aims to create a better home-field advantage and intimate feel within the facility.
With all of these factors, it makes the Cajuns’ on-field success important in the next few seasons. If Coach Des can create more momentum in the program, the opening of the renovated stadium could drive Ragin’ Cajuns’ football to new heights. However, a struggling in-transition program would certainly sour the grand opening.
With all that being said, the Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns are going bowling, and searching for those moments that stack into positive program momentum.
Dawson Eiserloh is the co-host of “RP3, D-Loh & Meche” which is broadcast weekdays (11-1) on ESPN 103.7 Lafayette and 104.1 Lake Charles — Southwest Louisiana’s Sports Station.