CBS Sports ranks Cajuns as 34th-best college sports program in 2013-14

[CajunRage]

You can ask the question in another way and get a different answer. Would more fans come out to Cajun Field to watch UL play Rice, Southern Miss and Louisiana Tech or App. State, Georgia State or Georgia Southern since we are winning now? My answer would be yes because these were the programs we were playing in the late 80’s to early 90’s and left us behind. And while both Louisiana Tech and Southern Miss have fallen on hard times, it wasn’t long ago Southern Miss played in their 15th straight bowl game and Louisiana Tech was celebrating an outstanding season before ending it with the bowl debacle. And Rice has been bowling the last few years. You see, I have no problem playing Ark. State, Troy, Texas State and even ULM at times, I can’t get excited about playing the rest. We may come out lucky in our current scenario as you have stated, but it will be more blind luck than anything else. While CUSA has been down the past few seasons with its own departures and FCS transition programs, they will conceivably finish ahead of the Sun Belt for the next two seasons as the pendulum will swing back in their favor.

But my point is, they come out to see us play rice and we get throttled. That 'fan' decides we are the same old joke and never comes back. I'm not arguing that we should have stayed in the sunbelt. I'm saying that the screwup may turn out to be a better deal for us in the long run. I think we would have fared well in cusa but what if we didn't. One step forward and two steps back. We can't change the past. We can though see the silver lining in some past mishaps.

[CajunT]

But my point is, they come out to see us play rice and we get throttled. That 'fan' decides we are the same old joke and never comes back. I'm not arguing that we should have stayed in the sunbelt. I'm saying that the screwup may turn out to be a better deal for us in the long run. I think we would have fared well in cusa but what if we didn't. One step forward and two steps back. We can't change the past. We can though see the silver lining in some past mishaps.

Well if CUSA is as close to the Sun Belt as many think, why would you think UL would get throttled? You see I don't buy that beating lesser programs is better for UL or that maybe we lucked off because we could have been playing in a better conference. You see, that is exactly how many view UL's accomplishments in the Sun Belt today. No matter how successful UL will be in this conference for the foreseeable future, our accomplishments will be questioned.

I don't think about what if we weren't successful, that's just backwards thinking in my book. We shouldn't be scared to be challenged if you actually believe in your coaches and program. No, we can't change the past. But we certainly shouldn't use fear or being comfortable with the status-quo to accept paralysis any longer. We are way beyond that period at this time. There are no guarantees of success once we spend millions of dollars on Phase I or Phase II either, maybe we shouldn't build it? We could fail!

Sorry, I'm not slamming you but I thought we left that kind of thinking behind after our recent success in football and fundraising. Maybe I'm wrong to think that some still do not suffer from CDS.

[Turbine]

But my point is, they come out to see us play rice and we get throttled. That 'fan' decides we are the same old joke and never comes back. I'm not arguing that we should have stayed in the sunbelt. I'm saying that the screwup may turn out to be a better deal for us in the long run. I think we would have fared well in cusa but what if we didn't. One step forward and two steps back. We can't change the past. We can though see the silver lining in some past mishaps.

Losing to a better opponent has never kept fans away.

Losing to a perceived lesser opponent has.

jmo

[CajunT]

Losing to a better opponent has never kept fans away.

Losing to a perceived lesser opponent has.

jmo

+1

[CajunRage]

Well if CUSA is as close to the Sun Belt as many think, why would you think UL would get throttled? You see I don't buy that beating lesser programs is better for UL or that maybe we lucked off because we could have been playing in a better conference. You see, that is exactly how many view UL's accomplishments in the Sun Belt today. No matter how successful UL will be in this conference for the foreseeable future, our accomplishments will be questioned.

I don't think about what if we weren't successful, that's just backwards thinking in my book. We shouldn't be scared to be challenged if you actually believe in your coaches and program. No, we can't change the past. But we certainly shouldn't use fear or being comfortable with the status-quo to accept paralysis any longer. We are way beyond that period at this time. There are no guarantees of success once we spend millions of dollars on Phase I or Phase II either, maybe we shouldn't build it? We could fail!

Sorry, I'm not slamming you but I thought we left that kind of thinking behind after our recent success in football and fundraising. Maybe I'm wrong to think that some still do not suffer from CDS.

I agree with everything you say. I'm just taking a situation that people constantly complain about and try to see some positive out of it.

I will tell you though that a large portion of our growing fanbase was looking for a winner. Didn't matter who we beat. Just wanted to cheer for a team that wins.

[BirdofParadise]

Recently, UL supporter Glen Raggio released his annual report on the winning percentage of the top five sports (football, men’s and women’s basketball, baseball and softball) that UL participates in. The results, called the Pentathlam ...

http://bit.ly/VRn0U0

[Turbine]

Lam Jay, not lum, as in beating ones opponent.

Pent (as in 5 *) ath (as in athletics) lam (as in beating opponents aka winning)

lam /læm/ 

verb
2.give a thrashing to; beat hard


* also closely confined as in fans witnessing the ordeal.

[CajunRed]

What we accomplished this year would be impressive for a program with a $120million budget...much less one with $100million less.

[moorecajun]

I agree with everything you say. I'm just taking a situation that people constantly complain about and try to see some positive out of it.

I will tell you though that a large portion of our growing fanbase was looking for a winner. Didn't matter who we beat. Just wanted to cheer for a team that wins.

I understand what you are saying. The BIGGEST problem (IMO) that we still face TODAY, is that our budget does not meet cusa's minimum entry level of $20M. I think everybody can talk to they are blue in the face that our administration is not doing everything they can to get us into a "better" conference and they are right. When you have MINIMAL resources like we still do, you fight the battles you have a chance to win; you have to be as efficient as you can to maximize your resources.

I believe we are pretty much all in agreement we would like to be in a "better" (I have this in quotes because we do have differing opinions on what conferences are better) conference, but UNTIL we get to $20M, which I feel will be this year, we are going to be relegated to the back poker room.

Laturd lied to get in to cusa; we should be better than that.

[cajun_lannister]

What we accomplished this year would be impressive for a program with a $120million budget...much less one with $100million less.

120 million -100 million = 20 million the math checks out