Not even Mark Hudspeth had them on his ballot.

But after a 41-13 win over Tulane on Saturday, the 4-1 UL Ragin’ Cajuns received six votes from coaches throughout the country in this week’s USA Today Top 25 college football poll.

"I was "» glad to see that," Hudspeth said Monday. "But "» no, mine was not one of those.

"I’m waiting to see how we do these next couple of weeks," he added, "and it very well could be one of mine."

UL will get plenty of national exposure when it plays at North Texas in an ESPN2 cable-televised game next Tuesday, and Arkansas State at home in another ESPN2 game Oct. 23 at Cajun Field.

"I think we’re close to becoming a very good football team," Hudspeth during his weekly media gathering Monday. "We’re still a work in progress, trying to improve. But when you start getting votes from other people "» that’s opening some eyes around the country. So I think that’s great to see."

Fifty-nine FBS head coaches vote in the USA Today poll, which — like the AP’s writers poll — has Alabama No. 1, Oregon No. 2 and South Carolina No. 3 this week.

(Besides Hudspeth, only three others are from the Sun Belt Conference to which UL belongs: North Texas’ Dan McCarney, Arkansas State’s Gus Malzahn and Middle Tennessee’s Rick Stockstill.)

Florida, which UL visits Nov. 10, is ranked No. 4 by the writers and No. 6 by the coaches after its win Saturday over LSU (No. 8 USA Today, No. 9 AP).

Louisiana Tech (5-0) is No. 24 in the coaches’ poll with 131 votes and Iowa State (4-1) is No. 25 with 73.

Twelve other teams not in USA Today’s Top 25 received as many as or more votes than UL’s six, including Western Kentucky of the Sun Belt with seven. The Cajuns and Hilltoppers meet Nov. 17 at Cajun Field.

Another Sun Belt team, UL Monroe, picked up three votes in the USA Today poll. No Sun Belt team, incidentally. has ever been ranked in the Top 25 of either the AP or USA Today national polls.

Gillis to appeal

A UL spokesman said Monday that starting safety Rodney Gillis, a fifth-year senior, has begun the lengthy process for a medical appeal to the NCAA requesting a sixth year of eligibility.

Gillis sat out his entire redshirt freshman season following surgery to repair an anterior cruciate knee ligament torn during the prior spring practice, and his entire redshirt sophomore season when he injured the same ACL during spring drills the next year.

The first-year starter from St. Thomas Aquinas High in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., has one interception in each of UL’s three home games this season.

"Rodney Gillis continues to really somewhat amaze me," Hudspeth said Monday. "Everybody had sort of counted him out all year long, and every game he comes up and makes a big play."

The NCAA sometimes permits players an extra year’s worth of eligibility when they miss most or all of two seasons for medical reasons.

Lawson’s catches

That defensive back UL receiver Javone Lawson beat for his first of two touchdown catches last Saturday? It was senior Ryan Travis, a cousin of ex-Cajun great and former Washington Redskin Brian Mitchell.

Lawson’s second TD catch Saturday, a 20-yard toss from Terrance Broadway that he pulled in in front of a defender and with one foot down inside the left chalk line of the end zone, was tapped by ESPN as its No. 1 college football play of the weekend.

"That," Hudspeth said, "was an unbelievable play, getting his toe down."

Tillman, Bentley tweet thanks

Ex-Cajuns cornerback Charles "Peanut" Tillman, inducted into the UL Athletic Hall of Fame during halftime of Saturday’s over Tulane, took time to tweet thanks to UL "for all the good memories and allowing me to represent you as a University."

One day after his induction, Tillman returned an interception for a touchdown for the Chicago Bears in their win Sunday at Jacksonville — his second pick-six in as many outings.

Meanwhile, ex-UL cornerback Bill Bentley, now a rookie NFL starter for Detroit, tweeted on Monday a shout out to the Cajuns "for the love and support" shown him when he attended Saturday’s game during a bye weekend for the Lions.

Lagniappe

Hudspeth said Jake Molbert (hip) might have been able to play Saturday vs. Tulane if needed, but Qyen Griffin has supplanted him as UL’s starting inside linebacker next to Justin Anderson. Griffin has led the Cajuns in tackles in back-to-back straight games. "» Ian Thompson remains atop the depth chart, but afterward the Cajuns listed Jacob Maxwell as their starting tight end for the Tulane game — the first time in his UL career that the junior from Pearl River High been credited with a start. "» Hudspeth said reserve linebacker/special teams player Boris Anyama didn’t play Saturday vs. Tulane due to a quadriceps injury, but may be able to go at North Texas.