Grass is greener: Cajuns’ new field nearly completed – (view live progress on webcam)

Joshua Parrott • jparrott@theadvertiser.com • July 4, 2008  

A crew laying new turf at UL’s Cajun Field could complete the project by early today. 

(Athletic Network Footnote:  click on www.ragincajuns.com and view the progress on live webcam.)

Even if it is not finished, enough work has been done to still allow the field to be used this weekend for the Ragin’ Cajun football prospect camp on Sunday.

The new turf, from ProGrass Synthetic Turf Systems, brings eye-popping color to the field. At midfield the words "Ragin’ Cajuns" appear in white lettering surrounded by red and black trim. The end zones are black with "Louisiana" in red lettering. A black Sun Belt Conference logo is located on the 25-yard line at opposite ends of the field, as are two red fleurs de lis with black shadowing.

"That is a beautiful field," said Scott Farmer, UL’s senior associate athletics director. "The color scheme is simply gorgeous. That’s as pretty of a fleur de lis as I’ve ever seen."

Another interesting note: Instead of laying rubber pellets on the turf, the crew is using sand. That will make for a cooler and softer playing surface.

"I think this has surpassed whatever our expectations were for this field," Farmer said. "I think this is going to help change the perception of our athletic department."

The turf installation comes almost one year after Cajun athletic teams began practicing in the newly constructed Leon Moncla Indoor Practice Facility.

Last year the Cajuns went 3-9 but won two of their last three games. They are expected to return two 1,000-yard rushers in quarterback Michael Desormeaux and running back Tyrell Fenroy.

The Cajuns get five games to show off their new turf in the upcoming season. Their home opener is set for Sept. 20 against Kent State in the 8th annual Herbert Heymann Football Classic. They also play host to Arkansas State on Oct. 18, Florida International on Nov. 1 for homecoming, UTEP on Nov. 8 and Middle Tennessee on Dec. 3 for Senior Day.

A television audience will see the new field in UL’s regular-season finale against Middle Tennessee. The Wednesday night game will be televised on regional and/or national networks.

A memorable night

Former UL pitcher Hunter Moody picked up his first victory as a pro player in a 4-2 win by Toronto’s rookie-level Gulf Coast Blue Jays against the Phillies on Tuesday. Drafted by Toronto in the 35th round on June 6, the side-armed lefty tossed three scoreless innings in relief for the victory, allowing one hit and striking out six batters.

Moody, who earned no-decisions in his first two pro outings, has been stellar so far for the Blue Jays. In 10.2 innings he’s allowed six hits and two runs – both unearned – to go with 12 strikeouts and only two walks.

The Silliman Institute graduate capped his Cajun career by going 9-2 with a 3.26 ERA as a senior, earning first team all-conference, all-Louisiana and all-South Central region honors. He finished as the program’s winningest pitcher with a 31-7 career record.

On the move

After one year as UL’s assistant sports information director, Chris Yandle recently made the move to Big 12 country.

Yandle, a 2004 graduate of UL, accepted the men’s basketball sports information director position at Baylor in Waco, Texas. He’s expected to start his new job on Monday.

At 7:25 Thursday morning, Yandle became a father after wife Ashleigh gave birth to a 6-pound, 14-ounce girl named Addison Elizabeth Yandle.

Going camping

The Cajun football program is holding multiple camps starting Sunday.

High school football players entering their junior or senior year in the fall can attend the program’s prospect camp on Sunday from 2-6 p.m. There will be individual instruction at the skill positions and the offensive and defensive lines. For questions call (337) 482-6380.

There will also be a youth football camp running Monday-Wednesday from 8:30-11:30 a.m. for those ages 8-14. Pre-registrants should arrive about 30 minutes before the start time on Monday. Late-registrants need to arrive an hour early for registration. For more questions, call camp director Troy Wingerter at (337) 482-6318.

The football program will also hold a 16-team 7-on-7 passing tournament and offensive line/defensive line camp running Monday-Wednesday from 5-8 p.m. For more information contact Kevin Fouquier at (337) 654-9144.

According to Scout.com, St. Thomas More’s Jordan James and Matt Degraauw, Acadiana’s D.J. St. Julien and Louis Hollier and Carencro’s Ricky Johnson are some of the area athletes scheduled to attend the 7-on-7 tournament.

All the football camps will be held on UL’s campus. Campers should wear a T-shirt, shorts, socks and football cleats. Water and Gatorade will be provided, but you can bring a water bottle.

Playing the field

 

UL’s new field will host five games this fall.

Here is a look at the Cajuns’ 2008 home schedule:

Date Opponent Time

Sep 20 Kent State 6 p.m. Oct 18 Arkansas State* 6 p.m. Nov 1 Florida International* 4 p.m. Nov 8 UTEP* TBA

Dec 3 Middle Tennessee* TBA

 

– Sun Belt Conference game