LGT Final: Louisiana 31, USM 34

[Big Buds]

Ticket prices are about to skyrocket for football. You would think with such financial commitment for the new stadium, add pressure would be put on MH to make changes with the coaching staff.

[Big Buds]

If he was the guy, billy would have taken him to Florida. Obviously he ain’t.

No doubt.

Last night I wasn’t sure if I would be able to make the ULM game, so I decided to walk to the very top of Cajun Field and soak everything in one more time before they tear things down. I should have reached out while walking the stadium so we could’ve had a couple beers.

[RaginScotsman]

Not sure what the "martin hall hates success" talk is about. Sure, they do some infuriating and head scratching things to alienate fans, but it's 2023 and they know athletic success lends itself directly to university success. I know winning is important to Dr. Maggard, to the teams and they have had success in several sports for some time. Maybe I'm missing something and just like I didn't want to buy into the "Dez isn't the guy" talk, I can be swayed.

Back to the game. Man, it was tough to watch. Unenjoyable. Actually, thought it was a win to get 15k, and that's sad.

Needed to stop Gore. He was all they had. Didn't do that.

Needed to score when you had the opportunity. 3 times inside the 7, counting the fumble recovery, 0 point. A good team turns that into a 21-point lead and the game is done.

Needed a couple of breaks. Got a couple of fumbles and South Miss got them back. They missed 2 straight field goals from the same distance in back to back drives.

Officiating. You knew it would be rough when "Lafayette" got a side line warning.

Fields was actually pretty good. Through a few balls behind receivers, but they should have been caught. I didn't see the throw, but he missed a receiver on the final driver with a high throw that could have put us closer to a walk off field goal. I thought we'd win when we had the ball with a minute and change to go.

Losing the center was a huge game changer. The multiple botched snaps (1 TO) and running up the middle on the goal line with a backup and not scoring made a big difference in the game. I might not be remembering this right, but did they move Gillie to Center then move to the actual backup on the depth chart and all problems were solved? If so, why wait so long to make the change?

[JamesTheJeweler]

Louie Cook would have been a great hire following Stokley. That would have been a home run IMO. One of the best offensive minds in football.

LoL! Homerun, huh? As evidenced by all those big schools hiring him away?
Hollywood should make a movie. "One of the best offensive minds in all of football goes completely unnoticed and his greatness never realized." I swear, on days like today, I want what some of yall are smoking.

[ULvictory]

Not sure what the "martin hall hates success" talk is about. Sure, they do some infuriating and head scratching things to alienate fans, but it's 2023 and they know athletic success lends itself directly to university success. I know winning is important to Dr. Maggard, to the teams and they have had success in several sports for some time. Maybe I'm missing something and just like I didn't want to buy into the "Dez isn't the guy" talk, I can be swayed.

Take a look at how this game was promoted. First time hosting a new rival since 2001, and they send out a massive email to fans and offer $10 tickets to a faculty that barely knows we have a football team. And let's not get started on the ticky tack back-and-forth between the administration and students/Greeks.

[RaginScotsman]

Take a look at how this game was promoted. First time hosting a new rival since 2001, and they send out a massive email to fans and offer $10 tickets to a faculty that barely knows we have a football team. And let's not get started on the ticky tack back-and-forth between the administration and students/Greeks.

I get that. Was more talking about one the field success.

The lack of promotion, total game day experience, all of it, is awful. Yes.

I do think the goal is to win on the field, though. It would be crazy not to and as much as UL feels like the Twilight zone, I can't buy into the notion that the admin a whole is ____ed when we win championships and thrilled when we tank.

....although, they've never recognized that the 2021 football season ever happened

[JamesTheJeweler]

And honestly I feel terrible for Des. The university did the greatest disservice to him possible. He should've been released to go coach at other places. Gain more experience. Create a bigger and better circle of qualified connections. Become a coordinator somewhere. THEN....maybe at some future juncture, the time is right and he is actually qualified to coach here. Ask yourself. Napier took the qualified coaches he wanted to Florida. If Des was truly ready and qualified, why didn't he take him with him also? He didn't. So, now.....where does Des go after this? You think he gets another shot at head coach somewhere? They put him in a bad spot. I can't blame him for taking the shot and the money, but......
I promise, the University wasn't thinking of Des' best interest. Hell, without them knowing, they weren't even putting themselves in the best position. But as we all know and have learned.....they never do. If you're expecting something to change....you're insane. And I wonder how many people here complaining are the same ones that applauded the hire and calling everyone else, bad negative fans.

[CharlieK]

Just like you can like Dez, and not like the hire….you can also refrain from immediately negative public reaction while also being privately concerned. The lack of loud negative immediate response does not equal applauding the hire.

Once he was hired, do any of you actually think the administration cared one bit what the reaction from a few posters in ragin pagin was? Do y’all think we could have changed their minds? Come on.

[JAB]

Ask yourself. Napier took the qualified coaches he wanted to Florida. If Des was truly ready and qualified, why didn't he take him with him also? He didn't.

This simply doesn't make sense. If Napier took Des with him to be an assistant at Florida, how would that mean that Des would make a good head coach? If anything, it only means that Des was a really good assistant. And in that sense, Des was clearly a pretty good assistance at UL because he was part of Napier's success. Yet, to everyone's point, he's clearly falling short as a head coach.

The logic simply doesn't connect.

[JamesTheJeweler]

Just like you can like Dez, and not like the hire….you can also refrain from immediately negative public reaction while also being privately concerned. The lack of loud negative immediate response does not equal applauding the hire.

Once he was hired, do any of you actually think the administration cared one bit what the reaction from a few posters in ragin pagin was? Do y’all think we could have changed their minds? Come on.

Once again. This wasn't directed at you peesonally

[cajun4life]

And honestly I feel terrible for Des. The university did the greatest disservice to him possible. He should've been released to go coach at other places. Gain more experience. Create a bigger and better circle of qualified connections. Become a coordinator somewhere. THEN....maybe at some future juncture, the time is right and he is actually qualified to coach here. Ask yourself. Napier took the qualified coaches he wanted to Florida. If Des was truly ready and qualified, why didn't he take him with him also? He didn't. So, now.....where does Des go after this? You think he gets another shot at head coach somewhere? They put him in a bad spot. I can't blame him for taking the shot and the money, but......
I promise, the University wasn't thinking of Des' best interest. Hell, without them knowing, they weren't even putting themselves in the best position. But as we all know and have learned.....they never do. If you're expecting something to change....you're insane. And I wonder how many people here complaining are the same ones that applauded the hire and calling everyone else, bad negative fans.

I liked the hire, it was a big risk that I acknowledged. But, I expected the on field fundamentals and discipline to continue, it has not.

Billy was a crap play caller too. But we were always prepared to play and adjustments were made in a timely fashion. Des and staff have shown glimpses, but the SBC is a drastically better league now than it was under Bustle.

The athletic departments job is to put a winning product the fans want to see. Have enough fans to be as close to self sufficient as possible. We fail in football and basketball. We excel in spring sports and volleyball.

Last night was a total embarrassment and should be viewed as such. Maybe 7k at the game, 5-3 and if you watched on TV you’d have never known we won a game. All in all it was a pathetic and embarrassing statement by the staff and admin.

We cannot continue to operate this way. It’s not sustainable. New stadium will not change anything until the university figures out how to connect to Acadiana.

We’ve already seen the blueprint. We shuttered that strategy and have gone the opposite direction.

Regardless, something needs to be done.

[ULvictory]

I get that. Was more talking about one the field success.

The lack of promotion, total game day experience, all of it, is awful. Yes.

I do think the goal is to win on the field, though. It would be crazy not to and as much as UL feels like the Twilight zone, I can't buy into the notion that the admin a whole is ____ed when we win championships and thrilled when we tank.

....although, they've never recognized that the 2021 football season ever happened

It’s not the winning that is the problem. It’s the reaction to the winning that causes havoc.