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Football – Brown: Bustle, UL beat heat with winBruce Brown The Daily Advertiser, Sept. 12, 2010 Rickey Bustle looked like he’d gone 10 rounds with Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. For one thing, the temperature on the Cajun Field turf for Saturday’s home opener against Arkansas State was well over 100 degrees for most of the afternoon. For another, Bustle had just seen his UL Ragin’ Cajuns hang on for dear life for a 31-24 shootout victory, watching a 31-7 fourth-quarter advantage melt like an ice cube on that field before Maurice Rolle’s interception of Ryan Aplin finally sealed the victory with 1:59 to play. A team that played one of the best halves of football during Bustle’s reign at the school in the first half had missed a pair of field goals to keep the visiting Red Wolves in the contest, inviting disaster. It’s hard to imagine what the athletic complex would be like for the next two weeks waiting for a Sept. 25 visit from Sun Belt Conference "Ever since I’ve been here, it’s been a dadgummed dogfight with them," said Bustle, whose team held on for a 21-18 win at ASU last year in a rare road victory in the series. "It’s not bittersweet at all," he added of turning a one-sided game into a nail-biter. "It’s a win." Bustle was battered, but unbowed, sort of like his team. Four times in eight seasons at the helm, his teams have won six games. That compares favorably with any UL coach in the past 40 years. Nelson Stokley achieved 6 or more victories seven times in 13 seasons, pulling it off when the quarterback was either NFL-bound Brian Mitchell or Jake Delhomme Augie Tammariello and Sam Robertson each turned the trick three times in six seasons, while Russ Faulkinberry hit the mark five times in 13 tries. For nine of those years, though, Faulkinberry played 10 or fewer games, so it was harder to do. Simply put, winning consistently in football at UL is not an easy task. Yet more is always asked of those who take up the challenge. Bustle is under pressure to keep the wins coming, so Saturday’s Sun Belt-opening victory was enormous. Rolle’s interception may have saved a season. "That interception was awesome, huge," Bustle said. "I just wanted Maurice to get to the ground. They had scored twice and had time on the clock."
The missed field goals could have made it easier. But the defense also took its foot off the pedal after Chris Masson dashed 60 yards for the score that made it 31-7. "I think we relaxed a little bit when it was 31-7," UL defensive coordinator Kevin Fouquier said. "But, that’s part of growing up. Give credit to Arkansas State. They stayed fighting." The Cajuns played without defensive leader Grant Fleming, as well as Dwight Bentley and LeMarcus Gibson, so others had to step forward. "Those are three of our playmakers," Fouquier said. "We talk about living on the edge. We gave up some big plays, but we blitzed a lot. We come with pressure from all sorts of angles. We came with four-man pressure, and got sacks with the blitz. It’s what we do. We’ve got to be more disciplined with our eye." ASU’s Aplin equaled a Cajun Field opponent record of 438 yards passing, first set by Daunte Culpepper, but the Cajuns outrushed the visitors 242-18 and struck a 242-214 run-pass balance. They were the better team Saturday; it just took all 60 minutes to assure it. They were also ready for the sauna-like day. "I talked to some of their coaches, and they said they had to work inside a lot during the week because of weather up there," Fouquier said. "Down here, we’re used to this." The heat is on for Bustle and the Cajuns, but they’ve survived to fight another day. Athletic Network Footnote: Click here for Athletic Network Tailgating Pictures
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