The Book: 2007 Football

[ShowDog]

_ Yes, Clearly, Gary Laney is wrong. You guys are doing just fine in your Louisiana recruiting. I'd pay him no mind. Obviously the UL football program is superior to McNeese and the UL athletes are superior to the athletes that McNeese has. Its very clearly some sort of bias issue he has.

I doubt any of the players from McNeese could crack the two-deep roster at UL. _

Ha ha yeah right!

[AstroCajun]

_ Yes, Clearly, Gary Laney is wrong. You guys are doing just fine in your Louisiana recruiting. I'd pay him no mind. Obviously the UL football program is superior to McNeese and the UL athletes are superior to the athletes that McNeese has. Its very clearly some sort of bias issue he has.

I doubt any of the players from McNeese could crack the two-deep roster at UL. _

Ok, you've had your win. You've had you fun. Time for you to move on.

I wouldn't want you to suffer a let down this weekend.

And before you get all in a tizzy, your board is running our people on the "time to move on" bit too.

[Kal]

_ Fans in the area know about the local talent and often times know them personally or their families, have watched them play and swear they are the second coming of Walter Peyton and Reggie White. They do not know who else is outside of the immediate area (Louisiana) that is accessible to our program. The "headliner talent" is not very accessible to UL. Therefore, any time we are in a slump or there is unhappiness in the results, there are going to be people that say "we should have recruited so and so from Lafayette High or Crowley or Opelousas, look how good he's been at x D1AA school."

You are going to hear this from us (and I will include myself) bellyaching fans, because we have an itch and just don't know how else to scratch it. Sometimes, the local recruit that we passed on, would have made a fine addition. I personally leave it to the coaching staff, who get paid to spend a lot of time evaluating talent, specifically for their program. And although I am a certified paying fan and have every right to blather... I think they know better.

Some folks on here, like everyone else who finds themselves in our boat, are searching for answers. The "local recruiting" issue has always been a hot button to push. The only way that is going to stop is if we start having undefeated seasons.

I do understand your frustration... it appears as though the local talent criticism is directed at the out of area team members... not the case. It is just a bellyaching tool. We love everyone who contributes to the success of this program, and even those who only wish they could. _

You're totally right. Plus it's not always about how good a player is... but will he fit into our system? One guy might be a great pocket passer, but he doesn't fit our offensive style...mainly because we have a younger, smaller offensive line that won't block as well for a pocket passer. Therefore we may have to pass on him and pick up a decent scrambler instead.

[RealCajun70]

When your child has trouble in school do you give up on them? When a loved one is in trouble do you ignore them? When some one makes a mistake you hold a grudge or do you forgive them. Last week was last week, this week is this week. Sometimes sports are like a bad dream or movie that you cant control. If all you ever do is focus on the negative that is all you will get. The Troy game is the most important game now because it is the next game. Athletes are taught the 24 hour rule. You get 24 hours to celebrate a win and 24 hours to grieve over a loss. Pack the Stands and Support The Cajuns. We are Lafayette's Team.......2005 start season 1-5...result Sunbelt Champions! Remember and Believe

[Shammy]

_ When your child has trouble in school do you give up on them? When a loved one is in trouble do you ignore them? When some one makes a mistake you hold a grudge or do you forgive them. Last week was last week, this week is this week. Sometimes sports are like a bad dream or movie that you cant control. If all you ever do is focus on the negative that is all you will get. The Troy game is the most important game now because it is the next game. Athletes are taught the 24 hour rule. You get 24 hours to celebrate a win and 24 hours to grieve over a loss. Pack the Stands and Support The Cajuns. We are Lafayette's Team.......2005 start season 1-5...result Sunbelt Champions! Remember and Believe _

The True Fans will Be out There. So go out there and show Troy what the real Cajuns Are.

[MissingMandy]

_ When your child has trouble in school do you give up on them? When a loved one is in trouble do you ignore them? When some one makes a mistake you hold a grudge or do you forgive them. Last week was last week, this week is this week. Sometimes sports are like a bad dream or movie that you cant control. If all you ever do is focus on the negative that is all you will get. The Troy game is the most important game now because it is the next game. Athletes are taught the 24 hour rule. You get 24 hours to celebrate a win and 24 hours to grieve over a loss. Pack the Stands and Support The Cajuns. We are Lafayette's Team.......2005 start season 1-5...result Sunbelt Champions! Remember and Believe _

It is so great to read something positive and really accurate. Thanks for a great post..I feel my depression lifting!!!!! You made my day. Good luck to UL on Saturday.

[RedBug58]

Hey, we're averaging approx 28,500 per game so far this year! We're on a record pace & have not even won a game yet. I think this makes Cajun fans some of the best in the nation! Just think what wins would do. Stay positive, the potential here is fantastic.

[good2geaux]

"I press on toward the goal, to win..." - Philippians 3:14

[shasta]

so i heard some interesting stats about troy so i decided to do some comparisons, here goes

Rushing offense:
UL, national ranking:21, 228 ypg, 685 total, 4.77 yards per carry, but only 3 rushing tds
Troy, national rank: 79, 129 ypg, 389 total, 3.7 ypc, 7 tds

passing offense:
UL, national rank: 99(t), 160.7 ypg, 482 yards total, 4tds
Troy, national rank: 22, 295 ypg, 885 total, 5 tds

Rush Defense:
UL, National rank: 98, 207 ypg, 623 total, 8 tds
Troy, national rank: 119, 285 ypg, 855 total, 10tds

Pass defense:
UL, national rank: 55, 217 ypg, 653 total, 4tds
troy, national rank: 43, 194 ypg, 584 total, 5tds

troy stands 1-2 losing to arkansas and florida, but winning against oklahoma state.

UL stands 0-3 losing to South Carolina, Ohio, and Mcneese

troy's schedule is definitely tougher, but we have played close games against south carolina and ohio

arkansas beat troy but lost to alabama, florida has beat WKU, troy and tennessee, oklahoma state beat FAU but lost to troy and georgia

south carolina has beat UL, georgia, and south carolina state, ohio has beat UL, gardner-webb, but lost to virginia tech

arkansas has the number 4 ranked rush offense, 104 pass offense, 63 rush defense, 96 pass defense

florida has the number 15 rush offense, 24 pass offense, 6 rushing defense, 71 pass defense

oklahoma state has the 42 rush offense, 68 pass offense, 40 rush defense, 93 pass defense

south carolina has the 39 rush offense, 77 pass offense, 92 rush defense, 6 pass defense

ohio has the 76 rush offense, 84 pass offense, 78 rush defense, 97(t) pass defense

so what do i make of all these numbers? troy has the worse run defense in the country to date, that works in our favor, our pass offense is near the bottom that works in troys favor. looks like it may rain saturday, that would definitely give us an advantage. while we sit at 0-3, troy is only a game better at 1-2. the spread on the game is less than 10 last time i heard, in troys favor but the line has moved in our favor nearer the end of the week. while we are 0-3, we can still win 6 games or better so long as we dont fall apart. This week will be the test, i think we may upset troy this week and start us down the right path into sun belt play. anybody else wish to share any interesting numbers please feel free.

[NewsCopy]

The radio talk shows, the Internet chat rooms, and the calls and letters to the newspaper offices have been in overdrive mode since last Saturday. Even before the final horn at Cajun Field, one that mercifully ended UL's 38-17 loss to McNeese State, head coach Rickey Bustle, the Ragin' Cajun football staff and the UL players were being called out by legions of fans with access to phones or keyboards. Fortunately for the under-siege UL family, athletic director David Walker isn't one for knee-jerk reactions. "We're only three games into the season," Walker said Tuesday. "I haven't even talked to Rickey. You don't do that at this point." The Cajun football squad is 0-3, but they've been here before. To be exact, six times in the last 10 seasons. This is, however, the first time in four years that UL has opened a season with three straight losses. The rest of the story Dan McDonald dmcdonald@theadvertiser.com