Ragin' Cajun Football Opens Spring Practice Today
Louisiana Is Fresh Off School Record Nine Wins & New Orleans Bowl Title In 2011
LAFAYETTE, La. -- After equaling a school record with nine wins in 2011, the Ragin' Cajun football team will take to the field for the first time in 2012 when second-year head coach Mark Hudspeth welcomes as many as 90 players to the first of 15 spring practice opportunities on Tuesday, February 28.
The practice season will conclude with the annual Spring game, which will be held on Saturday, March 31 beginning at 5:00 p.m. at Cajun Field.
The Ragin' Cajuns will practice every Tuesday, Friday and Saturday during the next five weeks, with Tuesday and Friday practices scheduled to start at 3:25 p.m. and the Saturday practices opening at 10:25 a.m.
Hudspeth will welcome 49 lettermen, including 12 starters, from the 2011 squad that went 9-4 and defeated San Diego State, 32-30, on a last-second 50-yard Brett Baer field goal in the R+L Carriers New Orleans Bowl.
"It will be good to get back out on the field this week because we definitely have some questions that we need to find an answer for", Hudspeth said.
"Defensively, we need to determine which players are going to step up to replace our leading tackler (LB Lance Kelley) along with the two starters we lost in the secondary and three along the defensive line. I don't think that we will leave spring drills with a set starting unit, but these practices will go a long way in helping us to make some decisions.
On offense, our focus is going to be on taking better care of the ball and improving our running game. We also have to develop our depth, especially on the offensive line.
Even though all of our specialists return, it is imperative that we do a better job of improving our coverage teams and limiting opponents return opportunities this year."
Nine starters return on offense, including quarterback Blaine Gautier, who set the UL single season record with 2,958 yards and 23 touchdowns to earn first team All-Louisiana and second team All-Sun Belt honors.
Also returning on offense are first team All-Sun Belt receiver Javone Lawson (63 catches, 1,092 yards, 8 TD), second team offensive guard Leonardo Bates and running back Alonzo Harris, who rushed for 700 yards and eight TD's to earn Sun Belt Freshman of the Year honors last season.
Just four starters are back on defense, but the Ragin' Cajuns will be boosted by the return of nine additional members of the 2011 defensive two-deep. Leading the defensive returners are safety Jemarlous Moten (80 tackles, 3 Int.), cornerback Melvin White (64 tackles, 2 INT) and linebackers Jake Molbert (65 tackles, 5 TFL) and LeMarcus Gibson (45 tackles).
Special teams should be a strength of Louisiana this year as Baer returns for his senior year after earning second team All-Sun Belt honors as both a kicker (18-20 FG) and punter (40.3 avg) while also being a semi-finalist for the 2011 Lou Groza Award, which goes to the nations top kicker.
The first three spring practices (Feb. 28, March 2 & 3) will be open to all RCAF members and UL students. Eligible individuals will be required to show either a RCAF membership card or valid student ID before entering the practice facility.
Tickets should be at a premium this fall for games at Cajun Field after Louisiana led the nation with an increase of 11,788 fans per game at home. UL averaged a school-record 29,171 fans per game in the 31,000 seat facility. Tickets are available for the 2012 season by visiting the Ragin Cajuns Ticket Central online at www.RaginCajuns.com or by calling (337) 851-2011.
Brian McCann
UL Sports Information Director
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Originally Posted by Turbine
