The Book: 2002-03 Louisiana Football season

[NOCajun]

LOOKS GREAT!! The only thing I would add is LOUISIANA in black or red letters in that white strip that goes across the top of the facemask(if you know what I mean).

UNIVERSITY OF LOUISIANA
GEAUX CAJUNS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[OregonCajun]

You can see, by looking at the redshirts who are wearing duplicate numbers, just how much better and more readable the new jersey numbers are.

I also like the change to the helmet logo. I wish we used the circular logo or the gray fluer, but this new incarnation of the linear "Ragin' Cajuns" is definitely an improvement.

Great work with this site, Turbine. Can we expect tailgating and/or game photos from the Minn game?

[Cajun97]

I guess I am getting older, these guys look very young to me. Great signature OregonCajun.

[OregonCajun]

Originally posted by Cajun97
I guess I am getting older, these guys look very young to me. Great signature OregonCajun.

Credit for my sig has to go to Turbine (I assume he is the one who bestowed it upon me). It's in reference to my pleading signature on VictoryCajuns.

I know what you mean about starting to feel older, by the way...

[1stTake]

Originally posted by Turbine
What do you think of this minor tweek?

Looks major

[NewsCopy]

LOUISIANA Là - Louisiana's football team worked out at their usual time on Tuesday under fair temperatures at the Cajuns athletic complex. As school approaches, the intensity picks up. Less than ten days remain before the opening of college football and less than three weeks remain before the Cajuns open at Texas A&M.

One group primed for the season is the Cajuns running backs. The Ragin’ Cajuns have never had a running back rush for over 1,000 yards in a season. Marcus Prior hit 979 yards in 1995. With Rickey Bustle’s new pro style offense featuring a fullback and the Cajuns commitment to the run, UL Lafayette might see it’s first back top 1,000 yards.

Running backs coach Brian Jenkins has seen his group work very hard so far this fall and is thrilled about their progress. “I have some pretty good running backs,” Jenkins said. “My guys love it when we are in pads. They love to bang. They’re physical players who are willing to get in there and tough it out.”

The Cajuns backs have practiced well as a group. On Tuesday, some of the most important drills featured blitz pressure from the linebackers where the backs had to block to protect each other and their quarterbacks. “Overall we did well as a running back group,” Jenkins added. “Our drills are very competitive. The linebackers are working on avoiding blocks, so we’re doing everything we can to stay in front of them and stop the advancement to the quarterback. We make each other better.”

Jerome Coleman returns at running back after a solid 2001 campaign. Behind him are three excellent players, sophomore Wendall Williams and true freshmen Chester Johnson and Ross Rix. Jenkins believes that if something should happen to Coleman, the Cajuns offense wouldn’t skip a beat with one of the three taking over the running back duties. In addition, he feels the presence of a full back will allow more production and efficiency from the offensive group. “The fullback position is very important to our running game,” said Jenkins. “We need a fullback who is hard nosed and likes to knock people down, but also has athletic ability to catch the ball and make things happen. “If heart and desire is judged in a football player, then I have some of the best players in a league.”

[Louisiana]

The Ragin’ Cajuns football team enjoyed their first intersquad scrimmage on Wednesday. The Cajuns ran a scripted 72-play afternoon set, following a two-hour morning practice under light rain.

The majority of heavy rain fell between the Cajuns two practices. The rain was heavy enough to drench the ground and divert head coach Rickey Bustle’s plans to scrimmage at Cajun Field. Instead the team ran their scrimmage on the practice field.

The team worked 12 of the 72 plays on special teams. Units Bustle refers to as “pride” and “pride and joy”.

The “pride” team is the Cajuns punt unit, while the “pride and joy” team is punt block/return team.

Bustle was pleased with both units, as “pride” looked sharp and “pride and joy” blocked one punt.

“It’s so important not to let a punt get blocked,” said Bustle. “The players on that unit need to take pride in not letting it happen.”

“There is so much pride in both of them. ‘Pride’ takes pride in not allowing a punt to get blocked. On the other side, there is a lot of joy when ‘pride and joy’ blocks a punt.

“Both units’ players are hand picked. It’s both offense and defensive players in there working together.”

The Cajuns scrimmage was a 60-play scripted event. Different sets of offensive and defensive groups battled against one another for six plays, then a different group would take the field on both sides of the ball.

Each half lasted exactly 30 plays.

“I thought it was a good scrimmage,” Bustle added. “There was a lot of intensity and plays were made on both sides of the ball.

“The players have been eagerly waiting for this. I wish it wasn’t so muddy, but it didn’t seem to adversely affect anyone. I saw some good individual plays, but now we need to do that as a team.”

Bustle did point out that the Cajuns fell victim to an unacceptable number of mental mistakes.

“We made some mistakes, missing a few tackles and taking way to many penalties. The number of flags thrown was disappointing.

“Offensively it’s tough to have only six plays and then be out. Hopefully on Saturday we can get a little more rhythm.”

The Cajuns will practice at 4 p.m. on Thursday and have their last two-a-day practice on Friday, working at 8 a.m. and 4 p.m. On Saturday, the team will have a heavy dose of special teams meetings in the morning, followed by a 4 p.m. scrimmage.

Bustle hopes the weather will cooperate enough to allow the team to have Saturday’s scrimmage at Cajun Field. The team will have their final fall scrimmage sometime next week.

[Cajun97]

“We made some mistakes, missing a few tackles and taking way to many penalties. The number of flags thrown was disappointing. "

That is not good news, hope Coach Bustle gets their heads out of their behinds before the first game. Good news is so far no major injuries.

[Turbine]

[NewsCopy]

LAFAYETTE - What did the Ragin' Cajun football team do to deserve this fate?

The UL squad has been trying to get in a scrimmage for the better part of two days, only to have Mother Nature come up with two straight defensive stops.

If possible, Sunday's aborted scrimmage activity was more frustrating than the Cajuns' Saturday attempt, which was canceled due to rain and saturated fields.

The squad was actually on the field Sunday, going through warm-ups in anticipation of an extensive 3 p.m. scrimmage. The 100-plus-play workout was going to answer a lot of questions for the UL Lafayette coaching staff heading into the final two weeks of preseason drills.

At approximately 2:50 p.m., the skies opened over Cajun Field, and 30 minutes later head coach Rickey Bustle reluctantly made the call to move practice indoors to Bourgeois Hall.

"The football gods have not been good to us," Bustle said after the rains washed out his second attempt at the team's second full-scale scrimmage. "It's really frustrating."

The rest of the Story

[Turbine]

HELP

The University of Louisiana has a Cajun Dome with an Arena II padded carpet. Hash marks and all.

I don't care if this isn't one of the "FREE" days set up for basketball. Hasn't Bustle enabled a lot more money to flow into the coffers since his arrival?

USE the assets we have.
NOW

[Turbine]

GREAT BLUE NORTH Pre-season College Football

DRAFT REPORT

"After several years in the college football wilderness, UL appears to be a program on a bit of a rise; CB Tillman, for example, is one of the best cover corners in the country no one has ever heard of, while the DT pairing of Sampson and Smith is very active, combining for 13 tackls for loss and 8 sacks last fall; Sampson, at 6-4, 290, is particularly intriguing to NFL scouts; neither MLB Brupbacher nor WR Dugas is overly big or fast, but both are very productive nonetheless."

Potential Louisiana draftees for 2003

CB Carl Tillman Charles
DT Walter Sampson
DT Charley Smith
WR Nick Dugas
MLB Ross Brupbacher
OT Jonathon Raush
RB Jerome Coleman
CB Ivan Taylor

The rest of the 117 D1 teams