Welcome everyone to the latest preview of the Louisiana Ragin Cajuns next game! This week, we look at their game against the Idaho Vandals.
Last Week: Both teams had last weekend off, but both teams were involved in some overtime battles the last time they took the field. The Vandals edged out South Alabama in double overtime after Isaiah Saunders took it in from two yards out to win their conference opener by the score of 29-23.
The Cajuns rallied back down 21 points against UL Monroe to force overtime, but wound up losing in double overtime 56-50.
Last Meeting: The last time these two teams faced off, Idaho was able to spoil the Cajuns homecoming festivities with a 23-13 victory. The Cajuns still hold a 3-2 series lead, but the Vandals have won the last two matchups.
Storylines to Watch:
Nunez Starting: After a rough start for junior quarterback Jordan Davis, head coach Mark Hudspeth put in Andre Nunez to try and give the offense a much-needed spark. He was a driving force in the Cajuns rallying back down 21. While Hudspeth stated after the game that there was no controversy at the position, one has to think that there’s a solid case to put Nunez in as the starter after what he did two weeks ago.
He will be getting the start this Saturday due to Davis not being 100 percent for the road game. If he can do what he did against UL Monroe, he has a legitimate chance of grabbing that brass ring and becoming the starter. That and winning wouldn’t hurt his chances either.
Can This Defense Turn the Corner? This may be the worst defense since Hudspeth took over as the head coach, allowing 50 points on a regular basis. That being said, there have been some changes with former defensive coordinator James Willis coming back as an analyst for the rest of the season.
During Willis’ time as the defensive coordinator the Cajuns were towards the middle of the pack in the Sun Belt Conference defensively and allowed about half of the points per game the Cajuns have allowed at this point of the season. Anytime you get someone new in during the season, it’s interesting to see how they do in their first game.
However, with Willis only able to help in terms of film room and assisting the coaches, it’ll be interesting to see how Mike Lucas will take what Willis is telling him and execute it on the field.
Another Overtime Game? As mentioned earlier, both teams had their games go past regulation and what’s interesting is that the last time the Cajuns went to overtime was against New Mexico State. That was right after a four-overtime loss to the Tulane Green Wave and ended up being the low point of the 2016 campaign.
Could we see another game like that on Saturday in Moscow? There’s a good chance of it happening, but if the Cajuns defense doesn’t step up against a Vandals offense led by Matt Linehan, it could end in regulation
Louisiana Will Win If:
The Cajuns can get off the schneid if their defense can markedly improve coming off the bye week. Lucas will need to get this defense back to where it was in the first half against Texas A&M if they want to win more than one game this season.
Idaho Will Win If:
The Vandals can get over .500 on Saturday if Linehan can shred the Cajuns secondary up. He did it in 2016 with some okay receivers on the road. Imagine what he can do being back home.
-Clint Domingue