He doesn’t exactly belong to the club. But he may as well be an honorary member.

So when he’s able to finally award a scholarship to one of his walk-ons at UL, Ragin’ Cajuns head football coach Mark Hudspeth feels a kinship.

"It means a lot — because, in some ways, I was really a walk-on," Hudspeth said. "I signed a scholarship — but it was a book scholarship for 250 bucks. So that’s practically a ‘walk-on scholarship.’

"And I remember working so hard, and seeing everybody else, knowing they were all on full scholarship, and I was doing the same thing. But I loved playing the game."

Hudspeth played his college ball at Delta State in Mississippi, where he worked his way up from the kid with little more than bookstore cash to a starter at safety as a junior and at quarterback as a senior.

"A lot of our guys — sometimes I see myself," he said.

In the Nick Barnfields of the world.

In the Chris Duhons.

In the John Broussards, and the Zach Bourques, and all the rest who either started as, or still are, walk-ons.

"You know — putting in all the hours and not having school paid for," he said. "Those guys work just as hard, and some of them even harder, and they’re very dedicated.

"In the summertime, when all of our guys are getting summer school paid for and eating (for free) all summer, (they’re not). "» Just to be a part of the team. So to be able to reward somebody is pretty special."