Louisiana Announces Its 2004 Football Schedule
Ragin' Cajuns will play five home games and a total of eight Sun Belt games
LOUISIANA La. - The University of Louisiana released its 2004 football schedule on Saturday.
The 11-game slate marks the first time since the 2001 season that the Cajuns will play 11 games.
During the last two seasons, the Ragin' Cajuns played a 12-game schedule. Under current NCAA rules, Louisiana will not be able play a 12-game regular season schedule again until 2008.
Game times have not been set and will be released at a later date.
Louisiana will welcome five foes to Cajun Field, playing four of the five as Sun Belt Conference games.
The Cajuns will not play Sun Belt-member Utah State, but will designate the non-conference match-up against Louisiana Tech to count toward the SBC standings.
The 2004 campaign and third season under head coach Rickey Bustle will begin in front of the home crowd as the Cajuns host Northwestern State for the 4th annual Herbert Heymann Football Classic on Sept. 4 at Cajun Field.
Louisiana is opening the season at home for the first time under Bustle and since 2001.
The Cajuns will then embark on a two-game road trip, beginning in Ruston to face Louisiana Tech on Sept. 11, in a designated Sun Belt Conference game.
The following week, the Cajuns travel to Manhattan, Kan., to face perennial powerhouse and 2003 Big 12 Conference champion Kansas State on Sept. 11.
Sun Belt Conference play "officially" begins on Sept. 25, when UL faces Middle Tennessee at Cajun Field for the first time since 2001. The Cajuns and Blue Raiders ended the 2003 season with UL winning a 57-51 shootout in four overtimes.
Following a brief trip home to "The Swamp", the Cajuns will hit the road for three-straight games against Florida International (Oct. 2) and Sun Belt Conference opponents New Mexico State (Oct. 9) and Idaho (Oct. 16). It will be the Cajuns first trip to Idaho since the 2001 season.
The Cajuns then return to "The Swamp" for three straight home games, including an open week - something the Cajuns did without last season.
The homestand includes a visit from three-time defending SBC champion North Texas on Nov. 6.
Louisiana will play three of its final four games of the season on its home turf as the Sun Belt Conference race hits the stretch run.
Sun Belt-newcomer Troy State serves as the opposition for Senior Day on Nov. 13.
"I'm excited about playing eight conference games," said head coach Rickey Bustle who will be entering his third season as head boss of the Ragin' Cajuns. "I think our schedule is very competitive and I am pleased that we will have four of our final five conference games here at Cajun Field."
"I think this schedule gives our team a chance to be competitive, to have a winning season and to accomplish our goal of winning a conference championship," Bustle added.
Twelve weeks after it begins, the 2004 regular season will end on Nov. 20 at in-state rival Louisiana-Monroe.
"We are extremely excited about the opportunity to continue building upon the strong finish we had last season in the Sun Belt Conference," said University of Louisiana Director of Athletics Nelson Schexnayder. "We hope to begin with a good start and expect to be challenged by some of the best programs in the nation."
Of the Cajuns 11 opponents, only two (Kansas State and North Texas) had winning seasons in 2003. Both the Wildcats and Mean Green advanced to bowl games, playing in the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl and New Orleans Bowl respectively.
Louisiana's 2004 opponents were a combined 55-81 in 2003. The Cajuns are 122-128-10 all-time versus their 2004 opponents.
LOUISIANA SI
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