MONROE – Louisiana’s Ragin’ Cajuns used big play after big play to make sure the team came out on top in its 2008 Sun Belt Conference opener Saturday at Malone Stadium.

 

The biggest of plays came in response to ULM trimming the lead to two points with 5:42 remaining. Tyrell Fenroy took a handoff and rolled 80 yards to pay dirt for the final score in the Cajuns 44-35 triumph.

 

UL (2-3, 1-0 Sun Belt) scored on six plays longer than 50 yards, but needed that one last big play to hold off the Warhawks and Fenroy was able to deliver with his third score of the contest.

 

Fenroy led all players with 297 yards rushing, his third straight game with at least 180 yards on the ground and his first career 200-yard outing. Fenroy broke Brian Mitchell’s school record for rushing in a single game and moved within 30 yards of overtaking Patrick Cobbs as the Sun Belt Conference’s all-time leading rusher. His career rushing total is up to 4,021 – the first player in Cajuns history to surpass 4,000 yards rushing.

 

Michael Desormeaux topped 100 yards rushing for the third time this season, as he ended the night with 149 yards on 10 carries.

 

In a night of offensive explosion for Louisiana, the Ragin’ Cajuns set the school record for team rushing yards with 556 and total offense with 728 total yards on 60 plays. It’s the second time this season (667 vs. Kent State, Sept. 20) UL breaks the school record for total offense.

 

The Cajuns extended their lead in the first four minutes of the second half thanks to a pair of big plays. Jason Chery raced 87 yards for a touchdown on the second play of the half and then Chery caught a 74-yard pass from Desormeaux to give UL a 27-9 lead at the 11:07 mark of the third quarter.

 

The Warhawks wasted no time getting back into the game, traveling 74 yards in just four plays, scoring on a three-yard run from Darrell McNeal.

 

The Cajuns punched back, going 78 yards in five plays, scoring on a 52-yard run by Fenroy.  The key play of the drive came two plays earlier, as Desormeaux hit Richie Falgout with a 15-yard strike on third-and-nine from Cajuns 23-yard line.

 

UL’s defense fed off the scoring barrage, registering sacks by Lanier Coleman and Hall Davis on the next possession to force a ULM punt.

 

After a three-and-out by the Cajuns offense, ULM again made it a game thanks to a four-play, 74-yard scoring drive.  Frank Goodin ended the 1:06 drive with a four-yard score.  Radi Jabour missed the PAT to keep the Cajuns lead at 34-22 with 1:51 to play in the third quarter.

 

ULM grabbed the momentum after Greg James returned Desormeaux’s second interception of the game 55 yards for a touchdown.  The hosts now trailed just 34-29 with 14:49 remaining in the game.

 

After the teams swapped defensive stops, Desormeaux broke free on a 46-yard run on third-and-nine from the Cajuns’ 41-yard line to put UL in scoring position. Edmiston tacked on three points with 7:36 remaining to up the Louisiana advantage to 37-29.

 

A personal foul penalty on the ensuing kickoff set up ULM at their own 45 yard line. Trey Revell and Goodin combined to rush for 55 yards over 1:54 to draw the Warhawks within two points at 5:42. Revell’s pass intended for Zeek Zacharie on the two-point conversion was incomplete.

 

The Ragin’ Cajuns wasted no time, as their next offensive play was the 80-yard Fenroy touchdown rush which upped the lead to 44-35 with 5:20 left to play.  

Fenroy is now just 250 rushing yards from becoming the seventh player in NCAA history with four 1,000-yard seasons.

 

The UL defense forced a three-and-out on the first two ULM possessions of the game, but a specials team’s miscue gave the Warhawks the ball on the UL 34-yard line.  Facing a fourth-and-one, ULM settled for a 42-yard field from Jabour to take a 3-0 lead at 6:48 of the opening quarter.

 

The Cajuns took over on their 11-yard line after a penalty on the ensuing kickoff.  On the first play of the drive, Fenroy broke the longest run from scrimmage in Malone Stadium history and the second longest run in Cajuns history.  His 89-yard touchdown jaunt was the longest scoring run at UL and gave the Cajuns a 6-3 lead.  Drew Edmiston missed the point after.

 

Desormeaux’s 64-yard touchdown run put the Cajuns in front 13-3 nine seconds into the second frame.  The run capped a seven-play, 95-yard scoring drive for the Cajuns in which Desormeaux was 3-for-3 passing for 20 yards, accounting for 84 yards of offense.

 

ULM then came back with an 11-play, 56-yard scoring drive that ended with a 19-yard field goal by Jabour at the 2:48 mark.  The hosts faced a first-and-goal at the Cajuns one-yard line, but the UL defense stuffed three straight rushing plays to hold the Warhawks out of the end zone.

 

After a quick three-and-out by the Cajuns offense, ULM got the ball back on their 27-yard line with 1:15 to play in the first half and two timeouts.  The Warhawks marched 51 yards in 10 plays, adding another Jabour field goal to cut the Cajuns lead to 13-9 at the half.

 

The Ragin’ Cajuns conclude their three-game road swing next Saturday as they visit Fouts Field in Denton, Texas, for a meeting with North Texas at 6 p.m. UL returns to Cajun Field on Oct. 18 for a meeting with Arkansas State at 6 p.m.