Louisiana scored on about the same level in its third game as it did in the first two games.
The problem was the Ragin’ Cajuns gave up 41 points in this past weekend’s loss to Tulane after allowing a combined 20 in the first two games.
Wake Forest comes out of its first off week with a matchup against a Louisiana team that’s 2-1. The Ragin’ Cajuns are in their third season under Michael Desormeaux, a former quarterback for the program who has been on the coaching staff since 2016 and took over in December of 2021 when Billy Napier left for Florida.
Here are five things to know about Louisiana ahead of Saturday’s game:
1. A QB who’s been through a lot
Here are some other names of quarterbacks from the Class of 2018: Trevor Lawrence, Justin Fields, Michael Penix Jr., Sam Hartman. At least Tyler Shough (Louisville) and Cam Rising (Utah) are still in college.
And then there’s Ben Wooldridge.
Wooldridge played sparingly for three seasons at Fresno State, taking a redshirt in his first season and his third being the 2020 season, which doesn’t count against players’ eligibility.
He didn’t play in his first season at Louisiana (2021) and has started eight games over the last two seasons, with injuries ending both of those campaigns.
For a seventh-year quarterback, it’s not like his game experience is off the charts. Saturday will be his 12th collegiate start — and that’s including a start in which he took four snaps last year.
2. Don’t sleep on Sun Belt
It might be more difficult for Group of 5 teams to win games over Power 4 teams these days, but Louisiana’s conference can at least boast such a win in each of the last two weeks.
Georgia State was picked to finish last in the East Division, via Sun Belt coaches, and knocked off Vanderbilt (which beat Virginia Tech, as a reminder) a couple of weeks ago.
And you’re probably familiar with the 70-50 football win that James Madison scored in Chapel Hill this past weekend.
“The Sun Belt has really good football,” Wake Forest coach Dave Clawson said this week, “and if anybody would question that, I think you can just look at this past week.”
3.-man front
This is a conveniently placed entry.
Louisiana uses a three-man defensive line and either a 3-3-5 or a 3-4 defense, depending on who starts at the “STAR” position.
Jordan Lawson (6-4, 243), Kadarius Miller (6-2, 310) and Mason Narcisse (6-1, 301) have started each game on the defensive line. Lawson is a redshirt junior and the other two are seniors.
Louisiana has started three players — Courtline Flowers, Jaden Dugger and Amir McDaniel, in that order — at STAR in the first three games. Flowers is suspended for the rest of the season, Dugger is a 6-5, 239-pounder, and McDaniel is 5-8, 182.
Given Wake’s personnel almost always includes a slot receiver, it’s likely McDaniel starts against the Deacons.
There’s something else convenient about this: Wake’s next opponent, N.C. State, has for years operated with a three-man defensive line and is one of the only teams in the ACC that does so. This week should be decent preparation for the Deacons’ trip to Raleigh.
4. Big O-line
Louisiana started three redshirt seniors, a redshirt junior and a redshirt sophomore on its offensive line against Tulane this past week.
Four of the five are listed over 310 pounds; the average weight of the listed starting five is 319.2 pounds.
The Ragin’ Cajuns crank out the rushing yardage behind a massive offensive line. Even in the loss to Tulane, Louisiana piled up 183 rushing yards and averaged 6.8 yards per carry. The season averages of 183.3 yards per game and 5.98 yards per carry rank 48th and 19th in the country, respectively.
5. Missing piece
Louisiana’s leading tackler is K.C. Ossai and it sounds like the Deacons won’t have to worry about him on Saturday.
Ossai left last weekend’s game against Tulane with an upper body injury in the second quarter and was ruled out for the rest of the game. Desormeaux said earlier this week that he’s “probably doubtful,” for this game.
Louisiana had a lead on Tulane for most of the first half, and then a field goal and pick-6 occurred in a 22-second span, sending the Ragin’ Cajuns to the locker room trailing 17-13. Tulane returned the second kickoff for a touchdown and rolled up 145 of its 272 rushing yards in the second half to notch the 41-33 win.
