Acadiana High Athletes

[BayouTeche]

Hopefully the new staff pops in the local schools and meets the coaches in high school. One downfall under Bustle was that he did not do that. There was a kid from Acadiana not offered by the Cajuns until Auburn made him an offer. He never got a look before then. He plays against West Monroe at Cajun Field and got an offer from Auburn the same week. Then the kids pops up on the Cajun site as being a recruit and offered. This should never happen with local talent. Evaluation of talent has hurt the program in the past as well. Just like the kid from Erath QB who was told he would only play DB for the Cajuns then he goes to McNeese and plays against the Cajuns as the starting QB for McNeese and wins in a lop sided games a few years ago. No problem recruiting out of state to recruit if the kids are better than the local ones, but I know what they have been bringing in is no better than the ones within 30 miles of Lafayette.

[SlappyCajun]

_ Hopefully the new staff pops in the local schools and meets the coaches in high school. One downfall under Bustle was that he did not do that. There was a kid from Acadiana not offered by the Cajuns until Auburn made him an offer. He never got a look before then. He plays against West Monroe at Cajun Field and got an offer from Auburn the same week. Then the kids pops up on the Cajun site as being a recruit and offered. This should never happen with local talent. Evaluation of talent has hurt the program in the past as well. Just like the kid from Erath QB who was told he would only play DB for the Cajuns then he goes to McNeese and plays against the Cajuns as the starting QB for McNeese and wins in a lop sided games a few years ago. No problem recruiting out of state to recruit if the kids are better than the local ones, but I know what they have been bringing in is no better than the ones within 30 miles of Lafayette. _

Congrats. I think this is a fair criticism.

[DaddyCajun]

_ I think Coach Hud will change our inferiority complex when it comes to LSU and compete head to head with them. When he wins those battles, look out. _

Ditto, been banging that drum for years. The answer to UL is definitely NO if you do not ask/try/recruit a player. Hell yeah, geaux get em coach Hud!!!

[zephyr]

_ LSU may have better facilities than us, a better conference and other things that work in there favor, but not every kid is drawn in by this. This Eugene kid has a personal family connection to this University and maybe that means more to him than going to the purple mess up the road. Maybe he doesn't want to get buried in a large schools depth chart. Maybe he really wants to play closer to home and be as close as possible to his family. Maybe im wrong on all of these accounts, but I do know that if we never even attempt to offer these kids we will never get any of them.

Im tired of people telling this university that we need to know our place. Screw that!! I think our place is to try and push as hard as we can for any kid that we really like. I know we have budget restrictions that may prevent us from going all over the nation to try and pick up great kids, but that shouldn't stop us from driving across town and trying to get our local talent.

If we keep pushing we WILL get some of these kids, and once we get a few that will help us get a few more, then a few more. Its a cycle and we have to get it started some time, and that time is now! _

Absolutely. Plus, LSU does get a lot of the 3 star type of athletes if you will, that other schools recruit. The blue chip type guys will likely not make UL a serious option but the kids that are borderline BCS guys are those that we should certainly be able to compete with LSU and other BCS programs for. Josh Johns is one of those guys a few years ago where we were seriously considered before he was grayshirted at LSU. I'm not even sure if he's still there but we can and should expect to compete for those types of players.

[CajunT]

_ Hopefully the new staff pops in the local schools and meets the coaches in high school. One downfall under Bustle was that he did not do that. There was a kid from Acadiana not offered by the Cajuns until Auburn made him an offer. He never got a look before then. He plays against West Monroe at Cajun Field and got an offer from Auburn the same week. Then the kids pops up on the Cajun site as being a recruit and offered. This should never happen with local talent. Evaluation of talent has hurt the program in the past as well. Just like the kid from Erath QB who was told he would only play DB for the Cajuns then he goes to McNeese and plays against the Cajuns as the starting QB for McNeese and wins in a lop sided games a few years ago. No problem recruiting out of state to recruit if the kids are better than the local ones, but I know what they have been bringing in is no better than the ones within 30 miles of Lafayette. _

I think Hudspeth will get out and visit high schools as he is doing so this week. You will also see more of an effort to get local athletes to Junior Day and Camps.

Now let me help you with Wilfred Journet from Acadiana. First, he didn't graduate with his class on time in high school and Auburn knew that from day one. He had to take summer school to get his diploma and they placed him in JC. He never made it out of JC, left after getting into an altercation with a coach. He tried to transfer in, but UL couldn't take him because his transcripts were incomplete. In fact, no one took him as a transfer in Louisiana. Unfortunately he was arrested the same week he approached UL about transfering in.

[ATXCajun]

_ I'm going to have to respectfully disagree. LSU is in too prestigious of a conference, and really, light years ahead of us in every aspect of football. We aren't going to be competing for 5 star recruits anytime soon. With that said, coach Hud may compete for some LSU recruits that are lower down on LSU's list.
But he is bringing that kind of attitude to the university that we aren't inferior to anyone even though we are. Which is good, b/c the first step to being the best, is believing you are the best. _

So you respectfully disagree but kinda agree. Has it ever occurred to anyone that a recruit may want to stay home, may want to make certain that they will have playing time, may have grown up with a dislike of LSU or Alabama, may be a little intimidated by the SEC, may be more interested in the coach or a particular program than the athletic conference, etc.? Probably not. That's why we never asked them. All I know is that Coach Hud is talking to them and that is a good thing. He's not making assumptions about what they want. He's asking them.

[RagnCajunRebel]

For the most part, 5* blue chippers will take LSU over UL every day. I'd be willing to say that 9 times out of 10 this would be the case. However, it's worth it to go after all 10 on the off chance you get that one.

The bigger issue to me is what many of you are also saying. You HAVE to go after and try. You never know which kid may not have the grades, so a bigger school backs off. Or they may get hurt before their senior year, and spots get filled and they're left out. There are many different scenarios where the Cajuns could have improved on talent except they never tried to get in the game in the first place.

I think that Hud will do a great job of competing against the other schools in Louisiana and hopefully Texas, and will also continue to build relationships with the local schools. Because you never know when that one special kid will come along and change a program.

[RaisingCajun08]

_ This is key IMO. Players that go there and never see the field. 4 star guys that got bad breaks or their position was overrecruited.

To me, those are the guys we need here. Also, many players go there knowing that they will never see the field. Coach Hud has to convince those guys that UL is the right place for them.

[cajunhawk]

_ To me, those are the guys we need here. Also, many players go there knowing that they will never see the field. Coach Hud has to convince those guys that UL is the right place for them. _

All it would take is to remind them that perpetually sitting the bench for LSU means being down wind from Les Miles after his pregame Bean Burrito ritual.

[Hammer58]

_ I think Hudspeth will get out and visit high schools as he is doing so this week. You will also see more of an effort to get local athletes to Junior Day and Camps.

Now let me help you with Wilfred Journet from Acadiana. First, he didn't graduate with his class on time in high school and Auburn knew that from day one. He had to take summer school to get his diploma and they placed him in JC. He never made it out of JC, left after getting into an altercation with a coach. He tried to transfer in, but UL couldn't take him because his transcripts were incomplete. In fact, no one took him as a transfer in Louisiana. Unfortunately he was arrested the same week he approached UL about transfering in. _

Oh no, CajunT, you're presenting this _______ with facts that fly in the face of his fantasies.