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Football: Cajuns Finish Strong at Kent State, 20-12
Louisiana’s Ragin’ Cajuns took a 10-point lead into the third quarter and finished strong in the fourth quarter en route to a 20-12 victory at Kent State. The victory marks the Cajuns first non-conference road win since a 31-28 upset at Houston on Oct. 7, 2006. It also marks the first win for new head coach Mark Hudspeth. UL (1-1) returns home next week to host the first game of the Hudspeth era inside Cajun Field on Saturday, Sept. 17 vs. Nicholls State. The Cajuns came out flat in the third quarter after an extended lightning delay. It allowed the Golden Flashes to enter the fourth frame down by only five points. UL had minus-9 yards of offense in the last 9:13 of the third quarter following the delay. The Cajuns committed three personal fouls over the same span. The fourth quarter, however, belonged to the Cajuns and particularly the defense. UL moved the ball well offensively, recovered a key fumble and stopped KSU on fourth down twice inside the final six minutes. Chris Tucker put an end to another drive with a fumble recovery at the KSU 38-yard line. It was his second fumble recovery of the game. Blaine Gautier entered the game at quarterback and sparked a 10-play, 28-yard scoring drive. Gautier had three rushes for 16 yards and completed a pass for 11 yards on third-and-10 before Brett Baer tacked on a 28-yard field goal to give the Cajuns a 20-12 lead with 6:08 remaining. KSU ran 10 plays over two series the rest of the game, but was stopped on fourth down twice before even reaching midfield. The game experienced a one-hour and twenty-two minute lightning delay during the third quarter. When play resumed, the Cajuns had the ball at their 10-yard, facing a first-and-10 with 9:13 to play in the quarter. The Golden Flashes cut the score to 17-9 thanks to a safety, as Chris Masson was sacked in the end zone. The Cajuns next possession started at their nine-yard line and ended at their eight-yard line before a punt gave KSU the ball at the Cajuns 46-yard line. The Golden Flashes converted the opportunity into three points, trimming their deficit to five points. KSU had 121 yards of total offense after three quarters compared to just 86 yards by the Cajuns. The Cajuns defense helped UL take an early second quarter lead after Tucker recovered a muffed handoff at the KSU one-yard line. Qyen Griffin scored his second career touchdown with a one-yard sprint sweep around the left side, diving with the ball extended to touch the pylon. Heavy rains began to fall during the extra point, but Baer split the uprights to put UL up 14-7. A Yobes Walker fumble handed the Golden Flashes the ball in Cajuns territory, but the UL defense stood tall thanks to a sack by Derreck Dean on third down. The intense rain forced a fumble by Griffin on the next series, but the freshman back was able to fall on the ball. The Cajuns attempted just three passes (all incomplete) after the rain began over the final 12:56 of the second quarter. UL built a 17-7 halftime lead thanks to a pair of 15-yard personal foul penalties during the Cajuns final drive of the second quarter. Robert Walker had two rushes for 14 yards and Griffin added four rushes for 15 yards during the drive. Baer nailed the 35-yard attempt to push the visitors lead to 10 points at the break. The Cajuns defense held the Golden Flashes to 15 yards of total offense in the second quarter. The teams were tied 7-7 after the first quarter thanks to an interception by each team. The Cajuns scored first when Lionel Stokes intercepted a Spencer Keith pass on third-and-25. He used good blocking and a few broken tackles to take the ball 63 yards for a touchdown. The score is the Cajuns third “pick-six” already this season. KSU intercepted Masson two plays later and marched 44 yards in six plays, scoring on a six-yard pass from Keith to Jacquise Terry. — RaginCajuns.com —
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