That number 15 makes it so much easier to stack as much luggage as a communications department can possibly fit on it between now and the Sept. 4 season opener against Texas Longhorns.

Yes, there will also be naysayers as a program strives to reach unprecedented heights, but that No. 15 quiets a lot of them.

Saying your football program won the LendingTree Bowl or the First Responder Bowl is nice, but being ranked No. 15 in the final poll is so much better.

It’s no longer about how significant it was to beat Miami of Ohio or UTSA, for the entire offseason, you’re now No. 15 overall.

Had the Big 10 and Pac 12 not played this season, it might not have meant as much, but they did. Some predicted UL’s days in the poll were gone the minute those leagues returned to play.

Not even close. The consistency of winning 10 of 11 games won out and the Cajuns actually reached their highest ranking to date by the final poll.

Having played two of the 14 teams and three of the top 26 – with wins over two of them including No. 9 Iowa State – adds a little extra shine to that nice block numeral.

Somehow the empty hole in the heart of Cajuns everywhere left by not being able to play for the Sun Belt Conference championship got a sliver smaller once looking at that No. 15 final ranking.

So much of what’s going on right now in college football is about appearance and about attractive options. No longer do you have to simply recruit players, you have to recruit them two and three times.

You even have to re-recruit your own players these days because the freedom to jump ship in college athletics these days makes NFL free agency look like Major League Baseball before Curt Flood.

Imagine the potential impact of that No. 15 for a former recruit that chose a power five program instead of the Cajuns and things didn’t quite work out as planned. Suddenly that Ragin’ Cajuns program is ranked No. 15.

UL coach Billy Napier made it very clear during the recruiting process that he wants UL to be a desired destination for Louisiana players who sign abroad and later yearn to return home.

That’s already happened with former TCU wide receiver John Stephens of Logansport, former Kansas State defensive back Tyrone Lewis of Hammond and former Nebraska offensive lineman Mathew Anderson of Leeville.

It can work outside the state lines as well. Former Iowa State defensive lineman Latrell Bankston from Georgia and former Kansas outside linebacker Clinton Anokwuru from Texas are headed this way as well.

It also doesn’t hurt when it comes to coaching hires. Sure, it’s possible a coach like former Alabama player and coach Wes Neighbors might have come to UL anyway to fill a vacancy on the Cajuns’ defensive staff, but that No. 15 must help in pulling the trigger.