Hudspeth sees positives in all bowl options
There is talk about going back to the New Orleans Bowl for a third straight time, this time against an opponent that could come from a pool of Conference USA candidates that includes Tulane, Rice, North Texas, Middle Tennessee and Marshall.
There is talk about going to the AdvoCare V100 (formerly Independence) Bowl in Shreveport to play an ACC program.
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There is talk about going back to the New Orleans Bowl for a third straight time, this time against an opponent that could come from a pool of Conference USA candidates that includes Tulane, Rice, North Texas, Middle Tennessee and Marshall.
There is talk about going to the AdvoCare V100 (formerly Independence) Bowl in Shreveport to play an ACC program.
There has even been talk about going to the GoDaddy Bowl in Mobile, matched up against a MAC team.
But talk to coach Mark Hudspeth about preferences for his 8-2 Ragin’ Cajuns in the upcoming bowl season – specifically whether he thinks matchup trumps destination if it means a chance to play a team from a BCS Automatic Qualifying Conference like the ACC, or if destination trumps matchup if it means going to a proven place like New Orleans where flocks of UL would follow – and he isn’t sure what to say.
“I haven’t really had a chance to even chew on that a whole lot,” Hudspeth, whose Cajuns beat San Diego State in the 2011 New Orleans Bowl and East Carolina in the 2012 New Orleans Bowl, said Monday.
“Don’t know. I think there would plusses to both. Obviously playing a team from one of the five AQ conferences would be very intriguing for our program. Some national exposure. Going to a bowl our fans are able to go to obviously is a plus too.
“I think there’s win-win to both of those,” he added. “We’re just honored that there’s a lot of people wanting our services to come to their bowls, so we’ll sort of let it shake down as it may and see where we end up.”
A bowl bid for the Cajuns is not expected to come any earlier than after their game Saturday night at Cajun Field against UL Monroe, and if the New Orleans Bowl decides to wait before extending a bid to any team it could come as late as Dec. 8.
The New Orleans Bowl will be played Dec. 21, the AdvoCare Bowl on Dec. 31 and the GoDaddy Bowl on Jan. 5.
AP BLUNDER
An error when the Associated Press released its AP Top 25 writers’ poll Sunday resulted in some Cajun fans briefly thinking UL had been ranked No. 21, when in fact it was Louisville.
Hudspeth said he even received a text from someone saying, “Coach, did you see we’re ranked in the Top 25?”
As proud of his Cajuns as he is for riding an eight-game win streak, however, Hudspeth knew better.
“I knew he must have made a mistake,” he said. “As much as we would like to be … I knew we’re not there yet.
“Just to know they made the mistake lets you know that, ‘You know what? Man, they may be thinking it might have been okay.’ … Because if it would have been somebody that was 2-8 they would have never let that slip past.
“So just that they made the mistake,” Hudspeth added, “lets you know we may be closer than people think.”
In fact, he does not rule out the possibility – should UL close with wins over ULM, at South Alabama and in whatever bowl it goes to – of the Cajuns cracking the AP poll and/or the USA Today Top 25 coaches’ poll by season’s end.
“Hopefully,” he said, “we can finish out strong and see what happens.”
BARKSDALE DOUBTFUL
Hudspeth said Monday that starting linebacker Tig Barksdale (hand) is “doubtful” for Saturday’s game vs. UL Monroe.
With Barksdale missing a Nov. 16 win at Georgia State, junior Trae Johnson made his first start of the season and finished with a team-high and career-high 12 totals including 10 solo stops.
RILES TO START
Hudspeth said that with outside linebacker Chris Hill serving an automatic half-game targeting suspension for a penalty incurred in the fourth quarter of the Georgia State game, Al Riles will start Saturday against ULM.
Riles started at the same position in wins earlier this season at Arkansas State and over New Mexico State and Troy.
START TIME
UL learned Monday that its Dec. 7 regular-season finale at South Alabama will start at 7 p.m.
The game will be played in the evening so it does not conflict with the SEC championship game that will be held that afternoon.
SBC HONORS
Sun Belt Players of the Week as announced Monday are Western Kentucky running back Antonio Andrews on offense (204 yards and three touchdowns in a win over Texas State), WKU LB Cam Thomas on defense (two interceptions) and Arkansas State’s Brock Barnhill on special teams (blocked punt recovered in end zone for a TD in win over Georgia State).
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