Football: McGuire, Green keys to huge win over ULM

Joshua Parrott • jparrott@theadvertiser.com • November 23, 2009

Wondering where the UL team that showed up and beat UL Monroe, 21-17, on Saturday at Cajun Field has been for the past month. Here are some other thoughts and observations from the win amid rainy conditions.

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Anyone wondering exactly how much the Ragin’ Cajuns (6-5, 4-3 Sun Belt) had missed quarterback Brad McGuire and tight end Ladarius Green over the past three games got a definitive answer Saturday.

McGuire, a run-first quarterback, ran seven times for only 11 yards, but had a pair of rushing touchdowns and three fourth-down conversions. The sophomore had been out since hurting his right foot after rushing for three scores against Florida Atlantic.

Green, who had been out with a neck injury suffered against FAU and was one of 22 players on the John Mackey Award midseason watch list, set career highs with seven catches for 131 yards.

It was the top receiving performance by a Cajun since Bill Sampy had 143 yards against Arkansas State in 2004.

McGuire brings a valuable physical presence for short-yardage situations and in the red zone, while Green brings a playmaking element to the passing game that’s been inconsistent all season.

Sun Belt leader Troy (8-3, 7-0) stands between the Cajuns and any dreams of a seventh win and bowl bid, but the Trojans aren’t as dominant as they have been defensively in the past.

Going into last week, Troy was third in the league in rush defense but was fourth in scoring offense, fifth in total defense and last in pass defense.

Beating the Trojans will be a definite challenge for the Cajuns, but it’s far from an impossible task.

The Cajuns, who have won six games in four of the past five years, haven’t won seven games since going 8-3 in 1993. They haven’t played in a bowl game since losing to Tennessee State, 26-25, in the Grantland Rice Bowl back in 1970.

UL needs to win Saturday for the program to take an all-important step forward in terms of regional and statewide perception and to finish near the top of the league standings for the second consecutive year.

It would also likely extend the stay for coach Rickey Bustle, whose current contract expires following the 2010 season.

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The Cajuns came up big on defense against ULM, forcing three turnovers (two interceptions) and allowing only 303 yards.

It was the sixth time this season that UL got at least three takeaways. The Cajuns are 5-1 in those games. The 303 yards were the second-fewest allowed, behind only the 239 yards given up against Arkansas State on Nov. 7.

Linebacker Grant Fleming recovered a muffed punt by ULM’s Luther Ambrose — a former UL recruit — with 1:26 left.

For the season, the Cajuns now have 15 interceptions. That’s the most by the program since getting 15 in 2000. The 1994 team had 19 picks.

The Cajuns, though, had better show up against Troy, which clinched at least a share of the conference title Saturday with a 47-21 win over Florida Atlantic.

Troy quarterback Levi Brown, a legit NFL prospect, set a single-game school record by passing for 477 yards against the Owls to go with three touchdown passes. On the season, the senior is the league leader in total offense, passing yards and passing efficiency.

Brown has thrown for 3,575 yards and 19 touchdowns to only eight interceptions. He will be the best quarterback that the Cajuns have played this season. Yes, even better than FAU’s Rusty Smith.

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Interested in how much the Cajuns could use tailback Undrea Sails right now? Or even former Mamou all-state back Robert Walker, who was declared ineligible in the preseason after the NCAA flagged and later threw out his ACT score?

Sails, a senior who was lost for the season with an injury on Oct. 17 against Western Kentucky, still leads the team in rushing this season with 432 yards.

Yobes Walker has 401 rushing yards in nine games, although the redshirt freshman got only 19 carries for 69 yards in the season’s first five games.

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Linebacker Jezreel Washington was strong in his second straight start of the season in place of injured starter Daylon McCoy.

Washington recorded a game-high 10 tackles and his first sack of the year. That came after logging a career-high 11 stops in a loss at Middle Tennessee the previous week.

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What’s amazing to see is that UL’s top running threat is a quarterback (McGuire), its top tailback is a converted receiver (Marlin Miller) and its top receiving threat is a tight end (Green).

The coaches have caught some heat from the fans, but right now they’re doing what they can with what they have.

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The second half had been a problem for the Cajuns this season, but it wasn’t against ULM.

UL got out-gained 139-118 in the second half, but both teams scored seven points.

Going into the weekend, the Cajuns had been out-scored in the second half this season by a 142-64 margin. That included a 69-23 margin in the previous four games — notably a 20-0 showing in the final two quarters of a 34-17 loss at Middle Tennessee on Nov. 14.

There’s no sugarcoating this: The Cajuns cannot risk digging themselves an early hole or get outplayed in the second half and expect to win against Troy. They won’t have to be perfect, but they will have to be pretty close to beat a physical and talented Trojans squad on both sides of the ball.