The Book: 2003 Football

[BrockMeaux]

Hey Turbine, I'm in the band and get what you're saying, but have to defend the band a little.

We're doing a job, same as the football team, cheerleaders, and the Ragin Jazz. If we don't play in those last minutes, people start to call us dispondent and say that we're not doing what we're supposed to do. The band director gets an earful which is passed to us even though we had nothing to do with playing/not playing and we eventually start to lose our already non-existent funding because University higher-ups are displeased with us. It's happened before and I think we'd like to prevent it from happening again.

I know that seems a little extreme for playing in the last 3 or 4 minutes in a big game, but we played the same in those last minutes as we did for the rest of the game and that's what we're there to do. When they make a 1st, we play the Fight Song. Time-out or quarter change, we play a longer song to entertain the crowd.

Like I said earlier, though, I understand what you're saying and can't really disagree with it. Thanks for the kind remarks and criticisms. I'll make sure that it's passed on to someone that can fix the problem and find the balance between playing too much and not enough in critical moments!

[TuffGuy84]

Originally posted by CajunKate
Amen! I must say I was completely shocked at the end of the first half, ____ed off, and ready to leave, but barring a life threatening emergency, I never leave a game early. I thought we were losing because of the level of talent we were playing on our schedule up to this point, but after tonight I wonder if some of those losses would have been a lot closer if we'd had more talent on the field. I thought the team was also outcoached at some points. I'm proud of the team for not giving up, but did anyone see those poor guys after the game? I have never in my life seen a more dejected looking group of young men. I fear an 0-12 season. Say it ain't so!

I dont fear an 0-12 season, though I do fear a 1-11 season. If we cant beat FIU, then we should not be playing at this level. Regardless, after such a hopeful start, we may end up with 1 or 2 wins because if you look at the rest of the schedule, this is what Im seeing. A NMSU team who has caught alot of bad breaks, they run all over you and just cough up the ball and shoot themselves in the foot, any game they could hold onto it a little better and get a win. An Idaho team who finnally started Brian Lindgren and came back to beat NMSU, and nearly pulled off an upset of UNT. A good Southern Miss team, and a MTSU team thats finnally found itself when they trounced NMSU, and thats besides the FIU game. The chances of even having a 3 win season arent even looking good to me.

Tuffguy

[Turbine]

What an exciting game.

We lost we didn't get beat.

Thanks for such an exciting comeback.

[RealCajun70]

Hey,
Look at the bottom of the screen on the last play from the video clip 3 WIDE OPEN RECIEVERS!!!!!!!!!!!

OH YEA the band might have a job to play but they also have the job of knowing not when to play!!!!

[Turbine]

Originally posted by Sanchez
Did you record from the upper deck? It was probably much louder down on the field.

I had the camera rolling from up in the press box.

[RaginCajun77]

My belief is it has to do with the NCAA requirments and the university not giving away freebies to pad their attendence.

[Turbine]

Originally posted by brockmeaux
..Like I said earlier, though, I understand what you're saying and can't really disagree with it. Thanks for the kind remarks and criticisms. I'll make sure that it's passed on to someone that can fix the problem and find the balance between playing too much and not enough in critical moments!

I don't know how you walk the tight rope in a game with no huddle.

I doubt we have ever had full no huddle half like that before at UL. Certainly never a half where the offense brought us all the way back single handedly.

[NewsCopy]

Two-minute offense runs out of time, downs in thriller.

LOUISIANA La. — If they didn’t have bad luck,

Louisiana’s Ragin’ Cajuns might not have any luck at all.

Coach Rickey Bustle’s squad suffered its seventh loss of the season on Saturday, this one the most frustrating yet, as UL Monroe held off two furious Cajun rallies to escape Cajun Field with a 45-42 win.

It was a game that wasted a record-setting day for senior quarterback Eric Rekieta and a dazzling show by senior Fred Stamps, a game in which the Cajuns piled up 524 yards but couldn’t grasp that elusive first triumph.

Hitting 10 different receivers, Rekieta completed 33-of-54 passes for a school-record 474 yards and four touchdowns against the visiting Indians.

“I’m sure Eric would trade that record for a win,” Bustle said. “He played a tremendous football game. I don’t know of but one ill throw, an interception in the first half that eventually led to a Monroe touchdown.

“He really competed. He’s a good leader out there and the players have a lot of confidence in him.”

Stamps finished with 198 yards and a pair of scores on eight catches, the second-most yardage in a game in Cajun history, while Carencro’s Bill Sampy had six catches, 102 yards and a leaping 21-yard touchdown that tied the game at 42-42 with 5:23 to play.

The rest of the story
Bruce Brown
bbrown@theadvertiser.com

[NewsCopy]

LOUISIANA La. — There’s no time for Louisiana’s Ragin’ Cajuns to lick their wounds.

Just hours after Saturday’s gut-wrenching 45-42 homecoming loss to UL Monroe, coach Rickey Bustle’s staff was turning its focus to a televised Thursday night home game against New Mexico State.

The Cajuns fell to 0-7 and 0-3 in Sun Belt Conference play despite a 524-yard offensive explosion keyed by Eric Rekieta and Fred Stamps, and it might be good to jump back into action rather than dwell on their latest disappointment.

“I don’t know if its a plus,” Bustle said of the short week. “We’ve never done it before.

“Sometimes you want to get right back in the saddle and go.”

The Cajuns, accustomed to an off day on Sundays, practiced instead on Sunday as if on Monday and moved the week ahead from there.

Bustle put his team through a 3 p.m. video session, practice and evening meetings.

“It doesn’t make any difference to us if we play tomorrow,” Stamps said.

“A lot of it is mental,” Rekieta said. “Everything is stepped up. We’ve worked hard every week. We need to get the chip back on our shoulder like we had at South Carolina, like we have in practice.

The rest of the story

Bruce Brown
bbrown@theadvertiser.com

[NewsCopy]

LOUISIANA La. -- Rickey Bustle didn't plan to use a no-huddle offense Saturday, but after watching what his University of Louisiana at Lafayette Ragin' Cajuns did in that formation in their 45-42 loss to the University of Louisiana at Monroe, he may use it on a regular basis.

"We kinda did it (at first) to bounce in and out of it a little bit, but we ended up doing it the whole night and having good success with it," said Bustle, whose team rallied back in the attack to tie the game after falling behind 28-7 and 42-28.

"I think it changes the pace of that game; that's what that no-huddle does. And I think our kids felt good in it."

Quarterback Eric Rekieta certainly felt good in the no-huddle attack, completing 33 of 54 passing attempts for a school-record 474 yards and four touchdowns. Prior to Saturday's game, the Cajuns, who had pursued a balanced offense through the first six games, were averaging only 169.5 yards a game through the air and a total offense of just 255.7 yards a game. Their total offense Saturday was 524 yards.

Rekieta was impressive, completing passes to 10 different receivers in a game that, for once, kept the ULL fans on the edge of their seats until the final minute. Wide receiver Fred Stamps was Rekieta's favorite target, catching eight passes for 198 yards and two touchdowns and Bill Sampy had six catches for 102 yards, including a leaping 21-yard touchdown grab that tied the game at 42-42 with 5:23 to play.

"We always had the capability to do that (no-huddle)," said Bustle, whose team fell to 0-7 with the loss. "We talk about it sometimes, about changing up the pace. All of a sudden, we did it at the end of the second quarter and came in at the half and said 'let's just go back and keep doing it.'

"Obviously it worked out well. We can go no-huddle at any time; we do it in practice all the time."

The rest of the story

By GLENN QUEBEDEAUX
Special to The Advocate

[mickzat]

Saturday night was a great football night! I'm enjoying this week and the buildup for Thursday's ESPN victory. I saw tons of great play by the Cajuns even with a hobbled and wounded defense.

[Turbine]

That was an incredible game against Monroe. I am so geeked with the no-huddle offense; in fact the only drawback I saw on Saturday was that it only leaves time for the band to play after touchdown, after touchdown, after touchdown, after touchdown.

Coach Bustle and staff having the Ragin’ Cajuns so ready to go no-huddle for more than a half is a testament to how well prepared the players are.

A no-huddle offense that scores is of course by design, but it can never just happen. It takes a lot of hard work. This is true even if implemented for just a single series, you not only expect to score, but you try to throw new things at the opponent that keep the defense off balance. This gets harder and harder to do.

When it works the likely hood of it working again and again is lessened because the defense starts to recognize what you are doing. Unless you have a concept of how to maintain a no-huddle offense. On Saturday the team looked completely comfortable out there in no-huddle land.

I mean it was used for an entire half and scored more points in that half than the Cajuns had scored in any 60 minute period all year, you got to believe the player and coaches know they are on to something.