Offense |
Defense |
Depth Chart |
Further Analysis
The program hadn't come up with a winning season since 1995 and only
had never been bowling. After a rough 1-5 start with two losses
coming on last second field goals against UCF and Arkansas State,
there was a five game winning streak with three straight three point
wins thanks to freshman RB Tyrell Fenroy and an unstoppable running
game.
The loss to Arkansas State turned out to be the difference between
the Sun Belt's berth in the New Orleans Bowl and an also-ran season,
and there was an inexcusable loss to Florida Atlantic that didn't
help matters. Now the team appears motivated and ready to finish
off what was started late last year.
Most of the credit has to go to head coach Rickey Bustle, who has
carved out a tremendous ground game and has drilled into his team
the importance of keeping mistakes to a minimum. ULL only committed
72 penalties, 21 fewer than its opponents, and only 12 fumbles in
531 rushing attempts with freshmen often handling the ball.
Head coach: Rickey Bustle
4th year: 17-29
Returning Lettermen:
Off. 19, Def. 20, ST 2
Lettermen Lost: 13 |
Ten
Best ULL Players
1. OT Brandon Cox, Sr.
2. RB Tyrell Fenroy, Soph.
3. CB Michael Adams, Sr.
4. QB Jerry Babb, Sr.
5. DE Anthony Hills, Sr.
6. OT Jesse Newman, Jr.
7. LB Mark Risher, Jr.
8. QB Michael Desormeaux, So.
9. DT Korey Raymond, Jr.
10. SS Johnny Felders, Sr.
|
|
2006
Schedule
CFN
Prediction: coming |
| 9/2 |
at LSU |
| 9/9 |
at Texas A&M |
| 9/23 |
North Carolina A&T |
|
9/30 |
Eastern Michigan |
| 10/7 |
at Houston |
| 10/18 |
at Florida Atlantic |
| 10/28 |
MTSU |
| 11/4 |
at Troy |
| 11/11 |
North Texas |
| 11/18 |
at FIU |
| 11/25 |
Arkansas State |
| 12/2 |
UL Monroe |
|
|
2005 Schedule
CFN
Prediction: 3-8
2005 Record: 6-5
Preview
2005 predicted wins
|
| 9/3 |
at Texas L 60-3 |
| 9/10 |
at Eastern Mich L 31-10 |
| 9/17 |
Nwestern St
W 49-28 |
|
10/1 |
UCF L 24-21 |
| 10/8 |
Florida Atlantic
L 28-10 |
| 10/15 |
at Arkansas St L 39-36 |
| 10/22 |
at MTSU W 13-10 |
| 10/29 |
Troy W 31-28 OT |
| 11/5 |
at North Texas W 31-28 |
| 11/12 |
Florida Intl
W 28-7 |
| 11/26 |
at UL Monroe W 54-21 |
|
There are more than enough returning starters to hope to
be the preseason favorites for the title. Jerry Babb is back at
quarterback after missing most of last season, but if
he can't go, speedy Michael Desormeaux is more than good enough to run
things. The backfield is loaded with rushing talent, the line is big and
strong, and the defense should be better with several all-star
candidates.
However, this is a flawed team with a complete overhaul needed on the
special teams and a passing game that only threw three touchdown passes
last season. Even though the end of last season was strong, it took a
late comeback to get by MTSU and UL Monroe turned out to be the only
decent win of the six.
The talent and experience is there for this to be the Sun Belt's best
team, and now it has to show it can handle expectations. If nothing
else, the ground attack will be worth the price of admission. The goal
has to be Sun Belt title or bust since ...
The Schedule: ...
MTSU, North Texas, Arkansas State, and UL Monroe all come to Cajun
Field. The Sun Belt road games are at Florida Atlantic, Troy and
FIU; ULL has to win at least two of three. The non-conference
schedule isn't awful outside of road trips to LSU and Texas A&M. If
this is a good enough team to think about the New Orleans Bowl, it's
a good enough team to honestly dream about beating Houston at
Houston. McNeese State and Eastern Michigan have to be must-wins.
Best
Offensive Player: Senior OT Brandon Cox. Either QB Jerry Babb or
RB Tyrell Fenroy could end up being the Sun Belt Player of the Year,
but it's Cox who's the main cog who makes the offense fire. The 6-7,
330-pound senior will be in an NFL camp next year and could be the
team's most indispensable player considering all the depth in the
backfield.
Best
Defensive Player: Senior CB Michael Adams. He might only be 5-8
and 170 pounds, but he tackles like a much bigger defender and has
the speed to make up for his lack of height. He's one of the Sun
Belt's best all-around corners and should be in for a big season if
Kyle Ward and Torres Kingsby get the job done on the other side.
Key
player to a successful season: Sophomore PK Drew Edminston and/or
freshman PK Tyler Albrecht. Five Ragin' Cajun games were decided by
three points last season, and things should be just as tight in the
dead-even Sun Belt. Edminston and Albrecht are looking to replace
Sean Comiskey and could be the difference between a Sun Belt title
and a losing season.
The
season will be a success if ... UL Lafayette wins eight games and
the Sun Belt title. No one will stop a ground game that has to be
good enough to overcome the rest of the team's holes. This appears
to be a program about to come of age.
Key
game: November 25th vs. Arkansas State. There might not be a
closer contested series of games over the last ten years than the
ones played by the Indians and the Ragin' Cajuns. Since 1997, these
two have played seven times with ULL holding a 4-3 advantage with
the four wins coming by three, two, three and three. ASU's wins have
been by four, six and three. The winner of this year's showdown will
likely win the conference title.
2005
Fun Stats:
- Touchdown passes: Opponents 21 - UL Lafayette 3
- Penalties: Opponents 93 for 774 yards - UL Lafayette 72 for 623
yards
- Sacks: UL Lafayette 23 for 175 yards - Opponents 9 for 47 yards
The Last Time UL-Lafayette…
…played in a bowl game…1970 (Grantland Rice Bowl vs. Tennessee
State)
…missed a bowl game…2005
…pitched a shutout…2002 (UAB)
…was shutout…2002 (North Texas)
…scored 50 points…2005 (UL-Monroe)
…went undefeated…1943
…won a conference title…1994 (Big West)
…had a 3,000-yard passer…never
…had a 1,000-yard rusher…2005 (Tyrell Fenroy)
…had a 1,000-yard receiver…2002 (Fred Stamps)
…had a first-round draft choice…never