2011-2012 Football Previews – Sun Belt Conference – Louisiana-Lafayette Ragin’ Cajuns
Rickey Bustle was the head man at Louisiana-Lafayette for nine years, but last year’s disappointing season was enough to push him out of that job. Bustle’s team never won more than six games in a season.
Sun Belt Conference 2011-2012 Football Previews: Louisiana-Lafayette
Head Coach: Mark Hudspeth
2010 Record: 3-9
Louisiana-Lafayette Gambling Odds from JustBet to win BCS: +1,500 (Part of Field)
Louisiana-Lafayette Odds from 5Dimes to win Sun Belt Conference: +1,500
ULL Team Page – Players Stats – Roster – 2011 Schedule –>
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Mark Hudspeth was brought in to take over the head coaching position beginning this year.
Hudspeth was extremely successful as a Division II head coach (66-21 in 7 years at North Alabama), and he has been working as an assistant for Dan Mullen at Mississippi State.
Hudspeth will have his work cut out for him this year. The Ragin’ Cajuns lost 24 lettermen, more than any other team in the Sun Belt. The team returns just 13 starters from last year’s team, which started 2-2 but won only one game the rest of the way.
It will be tough to judge Hudspeth on this year’s results, but he will certainly look to start making an impression on this team.
Team Strengths:
Hudspeth has to be happy with the depth he has at the quarterback position. Chris Masson is assumed to be the starter, but Brad McGuire and Blaine Gautier are very capable signal callers as well. Masson has a big arm and he tends to make good decisions with the football.
The other two quarterbacks are both mobile, and they might be used in running situations.
The Ragin’ Cajuns have a lot of talent in the secondary heading into 2011. Dwight Bentley and Melvin White both have the skills to be lockdown corners. Strong safety Lionel Stokes is a senior leader for this defense. I expect this unit to be much better than they were last season.
LaDarius Green is Louisiana-Lafayette’s best player at the tight end position.
He creates a very difficult cover for the opposition. Green is one of best play makers in the Sun Belt, and I think Hudspeth will do his best to get him the ball consistently this year.
Team Weaknesses:
The Ragin’ Cajuns have a glaring weakness on the front line of their offense. Center Andre Huval should be a good one, but the rest of the offensive line is one big question mark. This is a group that has struggled to keep the opposition off the starting quarterback, and they haven’t been good at all in run blocking. [soliloquy id=”82219″]
It will be difficult for the offense to reach its full potential if this unit is terrible in 2011.
The front line of the defense is a real problem as well. This is a group that simply doesn’t put pressure on the opposing quarterback. It’s hard to find anyone on the defensive line who could be a leader for this team. The lack of a push from the front line of the defense puts a lot more pressure on the rest of the defensive unit.
Green is a great pass catching tight end, but the Ragin’ Cajuns could really use some weapons on the outside. The team’s top wide receiver last year had just 19 catches.
Without a wideout to stretch the defense it will cause the defense to key in on Green.
2011-2012 Louisiana-Lafayette Football Prediction: 2-10
The Ragin’ Cajuns are in for a long season. The weakness in the trenches will definitely be a major problem. The non-conference schedule includes an easy matchup against Nicholls State, but they also must travel to Kent State and Oklahoma State. The defense must be much better if the Ragin’ Cajuns are going to surprise in 2011.
It’s hard to picture this team being favored more than a couple times this season.
Louisiana-Lafayette will likely be in a fight to stay out of the cellar in the Sun Belt.
2011 Louisiana-Lafayette Ragin’ Cajuns Schedule
9/3/11 7:00 PM ET @OKLST
9/10/11 7:00 PM ET @KENST
9/17/11 12:00 PM ET NICST
9/24/11 12:00 PM ET @FLINT
10/1/11 12:00 PM ET FLATL
10/8/11 12:00 PM ET TROY
10/15/11 5:00 PM ET NOTEX
10/22/11 4:00 PM ET @WKEN
10/29/11 12:00 PM ET @MTENN
11/5/11 12:00 PM ET ULMON
11/12/11 12:00 PM ET @ARKST
11/26/11 12:00 PM ET @ARZ
