To be a fan of the Ragin' Cajuns last year meant you had a lot of heartburn. A 3-9 season is never an easy pill to swallow but with the sixth youngest team in the NCAA, this was expected. With eight of the University of Louisiana's nine losses coming from teams with winning records, the Ragin' Cajuns faced tough competition. This should have added much needed experience for the current version of UL's football team.
Led by senior quarterback Michael Desormeaux, the UL offense looks to guide the Ragin' Cajun's into conference title contention. The Ragin' Cajun's led the conference in rushing offense last season while finishing the season seventh in the nation in that same category. Much of the reason for this can be accredited to Desormeaux, who was the nation's leading rushing quarterback.
Analysts agree that the biggest notions that are associated with a running quarterback are a lack of a dependable running back and lack of a strong passing game. Those have been proven to be misconceptions in Desormeaux's case.
In the backfield, senior running back Tyrell Forney carries a lot of the load for the Cajun offense. Forney has already made history by becoming the first Sun Belt player to record three consecutive 1,000-yard seasons. His first carry next season could put his name in record books once again as he is only 49 yard away from breaking the school record for the most rushing yards in a career.
In the Sun Belt this season, defense will be the key to stopping many of these new high-powered offenses. One of the best linebacking corps in the conference belongs to UL. Junior Antwyne Zanders and freshman Grant Fleming are both All-Sun Belt team members and should anchor a defense that is looking to improve upon their stats from last season. They had the third-worst defense in the conference.
The biggest issue for the Ragin' Cajun's this season seems to be depth. Key starters have returned to "the Swamp" but if anything were to happen to them, then the hopes for a Sun Belt crown will end quickly. This team can finish 8-4 or 4-8; it just depends on their health as the season progresses.