Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns football | |||
---|---|---|---|
| |||
![]() | |||
First season | 1901; 123 years ago | ||
Athletic director | Bryan Maggard | ||
Head coach | Michael Desormeaux 3rd season, 13–14 (.481) | ||
Stadium | Cajun Field (capacity: 41,426) | ||
Year built | 1971 | ||
Field surface | Turf (ProGrass) | ||
Location | Lafayette, Louisiana | ||
NCAA division | Division I FBS | ||
Conference | Sun Belt Conference | ||
Division | West | ||
All-time record | 565–580–34 [1] (.494) | ||
Bowl record | 5–4 (.556) | ||
Conference titles | 10 | ||
Division titles | 4 | ||
Rivalries | Louisiana Tech (rivalry) ULM (rivalry) Lamar (rivalry) McNeese State (rivalry) Southeastern Louisiana (rivalry) | ||
Consensus All-Americans | 4 | ||
Colors | Vermilion and white [2] | ||
Fight song | Ragin' Cajuns Fight Song | ||
Marching band | Pride of Acadiana | ||
Outfitter | Adidas | ||
Website | RaginCajuns.com |
The Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns football program is a college football team that represents the University of Louisiana at Lafayette at the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) level as a member of the Sun Belt Conference. Since 1971, the team has played its home games at Cajun Field in Lafayette, Louisiana. Michael Desormeaux has served as Louisiana's head coach since 2021.
The RCAF (Ragin Cajun Athletic Foundation) is the supporter association that assists with funding for all Ragin Cajun sports.
The program began play in 1901 when the school was known as Southwestern Louisiana Industrial Institute. The school's sports teams were known as the Southwestern Louisiana Bulldogs from 1921 until 1973. The school's fight name was formally changed to Ragin' Cajuns in 1974, which had been in use since the 1960s. In 1999, the university took on its current name, at which point its sports teams were referred to as Louisiana–Lafayette. A rebranding in 2017 dropped "Lafayette" from the Cajuns' name.
Between 2011 and 2014, the Cajuns won four consecutive New Orleans Bowls, representing the most successful stretch in the program's history at the time, but later had to vacate two of the victories due to NCAA violations. [3]
Between 2018 and 2021, during the tenure of head coach Billy Napier, the Cajuns reached many milestones, including the first National ranking in program history, four consecutive division championships, two conference championships, three bowl championships, and the best season finish and conference finish in the 2021 season, finishing 13–1 and 7–0 in conference play.
The Cajuns have had several players go to play professionally in the National Football League (NFL), including Jake Delhomme, Charles Tillman, Brian Mitchell, Orlando Thomas, Brandon Stokely, Elijah McGuire, Elijah Mitchell, Kevin Dotson, and Levi Lewis.
Before 1974, the team's official nickname was the Bulldogs, although the current nickname was in common use with the football team for approximately the decade prior.[ citation needed ]
Years | Division |
---|---|
1937–1962 | National Junior College Athletic Association |
1963–1972 | NCAA College Division (Small College) |
1973 | NCAA Division II |
1974–1977 | NCAA Division I |
1978–present | NCAA Division I-A (FBS) |
Louisiana has been both independent and a member of four different conferences. [4] : 89
Louisiana has won 10 conference championships, with the 2013 championship later vacated. [5] [4] : 84–89
Year | Conference | Coach | Conference record | Overall record |
---|---|---|---|---|
1952† | Gulf States Conference | Raymond Didier | 3–0–2 | 5–2–2 |
1965† | Russ Faulkinberry | 4–1 | 7–3 | |
1968 | 5–1 | 8–2 | ||
1970 | 5–0 | 9–3 | ||
1993† | Big West Conference | Nelson Stokley | 5–1 | 8–3 |
1994† | 5–1 | 6–5 | ||
2005† | Sun Belt Conference | Rickey Bustle | 5–2 | 6–5 |
2013†‡ | Mark Hudspeth | 5–2 | 9–4 | |
2020†^ | Billy Napier | 7–1 | 10–1 | |
2021 | 8–0 | 13–1 | ||
† Co-champions
‡ Louisiana vacated the 2013 Sun Belt Conference co-championship due to major NCAA violations [5]
^ The 2020 championship game was not played due to Coastal Carolina impacted by COVID-19 pandemic [6] For College Football Playoff purposes, Coastal Carolina was viewed as the 2020 Sun Belt Champions. [7] Recognizing that the College Football Playoff committee had no jurisdiction to that magnitude coupled with a desire to prevent the diminishment to the Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns football team’s accomplishments in 2020, Lafayette Mayor-President Josh Guillory declared, by executive proclamation, the Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns football team as the 2020 sole champions of the Sun Belt Conference in football. [8]
Louisiana has won four division championships with the most recent in the 2021 season.
Year | Division | Coach | Conf. record | Overall record | Opponent | CG result |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2018 | Sun Belt West | Billy Napier | 5–3 | 7–7 | Appalachian State | L 19–30 |
2019 | 7–1 | 11–3 | Appalachian State | L 38–45 | ||
2020 | 7–1 | 10–1 | Coastal Carolina | No Contest^ | ||
2021 | 8–0 | 13–1 | Appalachian State | W 24–16 |
^ The 2020 championship game was not played due to Coastal Carolina impacted by COVID-19 pandemic [6]
Date | Coach | Bowl | Opponent | Result |
---|---|---|---|---|
January 1, 1944 | Louis Whitman | Oil Bowl | Arkansas–Monticello | W 24–7 |
Date | Coach | Bowl | Opponent | Result |
---|---|---|---|---|
December 12, 1970 | Russ Faulkinberry | Grantland Rice Bowl | Tennessee State | L 25–26 |
Since joining the NCAA Division I-A (FBS) in 1978, the Ragin' Cajuns have played in 11 bowl games, although two of those games (which were victories) were vacated due to sanctions. Officially, they have a record of 5–4 in bowl games.
Date | Coach | Bowl | Opponent | Result |
---|---|---|---|---|
December 17, 2011 | Mark Hudspeth | New Orleans Bowl† | San Diego State | W 32–30 |
December 22, 2012 | New Orleans Bowl | East Carolina | W 43–34 | |
December 21, 2013 | New Orleans Bowl† | Tulane | W 24–21 | |
December 20, 2014 | New Orleans Bowl | Nevada | W 16–3 | |
December 17, 2016 | New Orleans Bowl | Southern Miss | L 21–28 | |
December 15, 2018 | Billy Napier | Cure Bowl | Tulane | L 24–41 |
January 6, 2020 | LendingTree Bowl | Miami (OH) | W 27–17 | |
December 26, 2020 | First Responder Bowl | UTSA | W 31–24 | |
December 18, 2021 | Michael Desormeaux | New Orleans Bowl | Marshall | W 36–21 |
December 23, 2022 | Independence Bowl | Houston | L 16–23 | |
December 16, 2023 | New Orleans Bowl | Jacksonville State | L 31–34 OT | |
In 1940 McNaspy Stadium was built on the campus of Southwestern Louisiana Institute (now University of Louisiana at Lafayette). It served as the Cajuns home field through the 1970 season and was demolished in 2000. McNaspy Stadium was located at the site where the current computer science building Oliver Hall now stands.
Cajun Field is a football stadium located in the city of Lafayette, Louisiana, and has served as the home field of the Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns football team since 1970. Cajun Field has an official capacity of 41,426 with 2,577 chairback seats, and its nickname is "The Swamp."
In June of 2021 it was announced that Cajun Field would be undergoing a $75 million renovation, with construction slated to begin summer of 2022. [11] The plans are to demolish the current West Tower, and replace it with a state of the art facility, including amenities such as premium suites, a club level and club seats, loge boxes, and press box. Because of a $15 million donation, the stadium will now be known as “Cajun Field at Our Lady of Lourdes Stadium.”
Years coached | Name | Record |
---|---|---|
1901–1902 | Ashby Woodson | 3–2 |
1903 | J. Ovey Herpin | 1–1 |
1904 | Edwin F. Gayle | 2–0–1 |
1906 | Herbert McNaspy | 1–0–1 |
1907 | Jefferson Caffery | 1–0 |
1908–1911; 1913; 1917–1918 | Clement J. McNaspy | 34–15–4 |
1912 | H. Lee Prather | 3–4 |
1914–1915 | R. B. Dunbar | 10–5–1 |
1916; 1919; 1921–1930 | T. R. Mobley | 57–48–7 |
1920 | Herbert O. Tudor | 2–8 |
1931–1936 | Truman F. Wilbanks | 19–32–2 |
1937–1941; 1946 | Johnny Cain | 33–19–5 |
1942–1945 | Louis Whittman | 14–14–2 |
1947–1949 | Gee Mitchell | 18–8–1 |
1950 | A. L. Swanson | 5–4 |
1951–1956 | Raymond Didier | 29–23–2 |
1957 | John Robert Bell | 4–5–1 |
1958–1960 | Red Hoggatt | 11–17 |
1961–1973 | Russ Faulkinberry | 66–63–2 |
1974–1979 | Augie Tammariello | 30–35–2 |
1980–1985 | Sam Robertson | 29–34–2 |
1986–1998 | Nelson Stokley | 62–80–1 |
1999–2001 | Jerry Baldwin | 6–27 |
2002–2010 | Rickey Bustle | 41–65 |
2011–2017 | Mark Hudspeth | 29–38† |
2018–2021 | Billy Napier | 40–12 |
2021–present | Michael Desormeaux | 13-14 |
† Hudspeth's record of 51–38 was reduced to 29–38 due to alleged NCAA violations.[ citation needed ]
This section needs additional citations for verification .(November 2019) |
![]() | This section needs expansion. You can help by adding to it. (November 2019) |
Although no longer an active rivalry, the first Sabine Shoe trophy was first awarded in 1937 to the winner of the SLI–Lamar football game. [12] The name of the bronze rivalry trophy was derived from the Sabine River that forms the Texas-Louisiana border. USL defeated Lamar in the 1978 edition of the rivalry game, but the Ragin' Cajuns were not awarded the trophy as it had vanished. [13] The Sabine Shoe trophy now sits in at trophy case in the Ragin' Cajun Athletic Complex.
Games played | First meeting | Last meeting | LA wins | LA losses | Ties | Win % |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
34 | October 27, 1923 (won 19–16) | September 1, 2012 (won 40–0, vacated) | 22 | 11 | 0 | 66.7% |
Another former rivalry. When active the Cajun Crown was the name of the trophy between Louisiana and McNeese State. [14]
Games played | First meeting | Last meeting | LA wins | LA losses | Ties | Win % |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
38 | September 22, 1951 (won 35–14) | September 10, 2016 (won 30–22) | 16 | 20 | 2 | 44.7% |
This is another former rivalry. The Cypress Mug was the turned, polished mahogany mug awarded to the winner of the Southwestern–Southeastern football game. [15]
Games played | First meeting | Last meeting | LA wins | LA losses | Ties | Win % |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
41 | November 11, 1930 (won 13–0) | September 3, 2022 (won 24–7) | 21 | 17 | 3 | 54.9% |
The Battle on the Bayou is the annual rivalry game between Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns and Louisiana–Monroe. The wooden boot-shaped rivalry trophy was created in 2002 to be awarded to the victors. [16]
Games played | First meeting | Last meeting | LA wins | LA losses | Ties | Win % |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
58 | September 15, 1951 (lost 7–13) | September 24, 2022 (lost 17–21) | 31 | 26 | 0 | 54.4% |
Games played | First meeting | Last meeting | LA wins | LA losses | Ties | Win % |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
11 | November 22, 2014 (lost 16–35) | December 4, 2021 (won 24–16) | 3 | 8 | 0 | 27.3% |
Games played | First meeting | Last meeting | LA wins | LA losses | Ties | Win % |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
51 | October 17, 1953 (lost 12–13) | October 22, 2022 (won 38–18) | 29 | 21 | 1 | 58.2% |
Games played | First meeting | Last meeting | LA wins | LA losses | Ties | Win % |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
87 | 1910 (lost 0–75) | October 3, 2015 (lost 14–43) | 33 | 48 | 6 | 41.38% |
Announced schedules as of February 2, 2023. [17]
2024 | 2025 | 2026 | 2027 | 2028 | 2029 | 2030 |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Grambling State | Rice | UAB | at Tulane | Tulsa | Louisiana Tech | at Buffalo |
at Kennesaw State | McNeese | at Louisiana Tech | at UCF | |||
at Michigan State | at Eastern Michigan | Kennesaw State | ||||
Tulane | at Missouri |
The New Orleans Bowl is an NCAA-sanctioned post-season college football bowl game that has been played annually since 2001. It is normally held at Caesars Superdome in New Orleans; when the Superdome and the rest of the city suffered damage due to Hurricane Katrina in 2005, the game was temporarily moved to Cajun Field in Lafayette, Louisiana, and given the name New Orleans Bowl at Lafayette. Since 2006, the bowl has been sponsored by R+L Carriers and officially known as the R+L Carriers New Orleans Bowl. The game was previously sponsored by Wyndham Hotels & Resorts from 2002 to 2004 and was officially called the Wyndham New Orleans Bowl.
Cajun Field is a football stadium located on the South Campus of the University of Louisiana at Lafayette in the city of Lafayette, Louisiana. Nicknamed The Swamp, it is the home field of Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns athletics. Cajun Field is primarily used for its American football team. Cajun Field has an official capacity of 41,426 with 2,577 chairback seats.
The Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns are the athletic teams of the University of Louisiana at Lafayette. The college has been competing athletically since 1901. The Ragin' Cajuns compete in NCAA Division I, fielding 16 varsity teams.
The Coastal Carolina Chanticleers football team represents Coastal Carolina University in college football at the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision level. The Chanticleers are members of the Sun Belt Conference, fielding its teams at the FBS level since 2017. The Chanticleers play their home games at James C. Benton Field at Brooks Stadium in Conway, South Carolina.
The 2011 Louisiana–Lafayette Ragin' Cajuns football program represented the University of Louisiana at Lafayette in the 2011 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Ragin' Cajuns were led by first year head coach Mark Hudspeth and played their home games at Cajun Field. They are members of the Sun Belt Conference. They finished the season 9–4 overall and 6–2 in Sun Belt play to finish in third place. They were invited to the New Orleans Bowl, the program's first bowl game, where they defeated San Diego State. However, in 2015 Louisiana–Lafayette vacated eight wins including their New Orleans Bowl victory due to major NCAA violations.
The 2011 R+L Carriers New Orleans Bowl, part of the 2011–12 bowl game season, took place on December 17, 2011, at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana. The 11th edition of the game featured the Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns from the Sun Belt Conference, and the San Diego State Aztecs from the Mountain West Conference. The game was telecast at 8:00 p.m. CT on ESPN and ESPN 3D.
The 2012 R+L Carriers New Orleans Bowl was a post-season American college football bowl game held on December 22, 2012, at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana. The 12th edition of the New Orleans Bowl began at 11:00 a.m. CST and aired on ESPN. It featured the East Carolina Pirates from Conference USA against the Louisiana–Lafayette Ragin' Cajuns from the Sun Belt Conference and was the final game of the 2012 NCAA Division I FBS football season for both teams. The Ragin' Cajuns accepted their invitation after earning an 8–4 record in the regular season, while the Pirates advanced to the game through the C-USA's contingency plan after earning an 8–4 record.
The Sabine Shoe is the name of the bronze shoe trophy that was awarded to the winner of the annual college football game between the Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns of the University of Louisiana at Lafayette in Lafayette, Louisiana and the Lamar Cardinals of Lamar University in Beaumont, Texas. The Sabine Shoe trophy was first awarded in 1968 by the University of Southwestern Louisiana's chapter of Alpha Phi Omega fraternity. The name of the bronze rivalry trophy was derived from the Sabine River that forms part of the Texas–Louisiana border. USL defeated Lamar in the 1978 edition of the rivalry game, but the Ragin' Cajuns were not awarded the trophy as it had vanished. The Sabine Shoe trophy now sits in at trophy case in the Ragin' Cajun Athletic Complex in Lafayette.
The 2013 Louisiana–Lafayette Ragin' Cajuns football program represented the University of Louisiana at Lafayette as a member of the Sun Belt Conference in the 2013 NCAA Division I FBS football season. They were led by third-year head coach Mark Hudspeth and played their home games at Cajun Field. They finished the season 9–4 overall and 5–2 in Sun Belt play to claim a share of the conference title with Arkansas State. Louisiana–Lafayette was invited to the New Orleans Bowl for the third consecutive year, where they defeated Tulane. However, in 2015 Louisiana–Lafayette vacated eight wins including their New Orleans Bowl victory and Sun Belt Conference co-championship due to alleged major NCAA violations.
The 2013 New Orleans Bowl was an American college football bowl game that was played on December 21, 2013, at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana. The thirteenth edition of the New Orleans Bowl, it featured the Tulane Green Wave of Conference USA against the Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns of the Sun Belt Conference. The game began at 8:00 p.m. CST and aired on ESPN. It was one of the 2013–14 bowl games that concluded the 2013 FBS football season. Sponsored by freight shipping company R+L Carriers, the game was officially known as the R+L Carriers New Orleans Bowl. The Ragin' Cajuns defeated the Green Wave by a score of 24–21.
The 2014 New Orleans Bowl was a college football bowl game played on December 20, 2014 at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana. The fourteenth annual New Orleans Bowl, it pitted the Nevada Wolf Pack of the Mountain West Conference against the Louisiana-Lafayette Ragin' Cajuns of the Sun Belt Conference. The game began at 10:00 a.m. CST and aired on ESPN. It was the first of the 2014–15 bowl games that concluded the 2014 FBS football season. Sponsored by freight shipping company R+L Carriers, the game was officially known as the R+L Carriers New Orleans Bowl. Louisiana–Lafayette beat Nevada by a score of 16–3.
The 2015 Louisiana–Lafayette Ragin' Cajuns football team represented the University of Louisiana at Lafayette in the 2015 NCAA Division I FBS football season. They were led by fifth-year head coach Mark Hudspeth and played their home games at Cajun Field in Lafayette, Louisiana. The Ragin' Cajuns were members of the Sun Belt Conference. They finished the season 4–8, 3–5 in Sun Belt play to finish in a five way tie for fifth place.
The 2018 Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns football team represented the University of Louisiana at Lafayette in the 2018 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Ragin' Cajuns played their home games at Cajun Field in Lafayette, Louisiana and competed in the West Division of the Sun Belt Conference. They were led by first-year head coach Billy Napier. They finished the season 7–7, 5–3 in Sun Belt play to finish in a tie for the West Division championship with Arkansas State. Due to their head-to-head win over Arkansas State, they represented the West Division in the inaugural Sun Belt Championship Game where they lost to East Division champion Appalachian State. They were invited to the Cure Bowl where they lost to Tulane.
The 2018 Sun Belt Conference Championship Game was played on December 1, 2018, between the Mountaineers of Appalachian State and the Ragin' Cajuns from Louisiana. The game was played at Kidd Brewer Stadium in Boone, North Carolina, due to Appalachian State's better conference record. This was the second time these teams played this year; the first meeting finished 27–17 in the Mountaineers' favor. The winner of the game would play in the R+L Carriers New Orleans Bowl while the loser would play in the Cure Bowl.
The 2019 Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns football team represented the University of Louisiana at Lafayette in the 2019 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Ragin' Cajuns played their home games at Cajun Field in Lafayette, Louisiana, and competed in the West Division of the Sun Belt Conference. They were led by second-year head coach Billy Napier. The Cajuns made it to the Sun Belt Conference Championship Game for the second consecutive year by winning the West Division, ultimately losing to Appalachian State by the score of 45–38. The Cajuns then defeated Miami (OH) in the LendingTree Bowl, to end the season with an overall record of 11–3. Following the season, head coach Billy Napier's contract was extended by two years, going into the 2025 season.
The 2020 LendingTree Bowl was a college football bowl game played on January 6, 2020, with kickoff at 7:30 p.m. EST on ESPN. It was the 21st edition of the LendingTree Bowl, and was the last of the 2019–20 bowl games concluding the 2019 FBS football season, with only the National Championship and all-star games to follow. The game's title sponsor was online lending marketplace LendingTree.
The 2020 Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns football team represented the University of Louisiana at Lafayette in the 2020 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Ragin' Cajuns played their home games at Cajun Field in Lafayette, Louisiana, and competed in the West Division of the Sun Belt Conference. They were led by third-year head coach Billy Napier. The Cajuns began the season with an away matchup against a preseason top-25 Iowa State and concluded their regular season at conference and in-state rival Louisiana–Monroe.
The 2020 Coastal Carolina Chanticleers football team represented Coastal Carolina University as a member of the East Division of the Sun Belt Conference during the 2020 NCAA Division I FBS football season. Led by third-year head coach Jamey Chadwell, the Chanticleers compiled an overall record of 11–1 with a mark of 8–0 in conference play, winning the Sun Belt East Division title. Coastal Carolina was scheduled to play Louisiana, champion of the Sun Belt's West Division, in the Sun Belt Conference Football Championship Game on December 19, but the game was cancelled, and two teams were declared co-champions of the conference. The Chanticleers were invited to the Cure Bowl, where they lost in overtime to Liberty. Coastal Carolina played home games at Brooks Stadium in Conway, South Carolina.
The 2021 Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns football team represented the University of Louisiana at Lafayette in the 2021 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Ragin' Cajuns played their home games at Cajun Field in Lafayette, Louisiana, and compete in the West Division of the Sun Belt Conference. They were led by fourth-year head coach Billy Napier. The Cajuns began the season with an away matchup against Big 12's Texas and concluded their regular season at conference and in-state rival Louisiana–Monroe.
The 2022 Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns football team represented the University of Louisiana at Lafayette in the 2022 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Ragin' Cajuns played their home games at Cajun Field in Lafayette, Louisiana, and competed in the West Division of the Sun Belt Conference. They were led by first-year head coach Michael Desormeaux.
The Cajuns will vacate 22 total wins, including New Orleans Bowl championships in 2011 and 2013, and a shared Sun Belt Conference championship in 2013.
A highly anticipated rematch between No. 12 Coastal Carolina and No. 19 Louisiana in the Sun Belt Championship Game has been canceled due to a positive COVID-19 test in the Coastal Carolina program, the Sun Belt announced Thursday night. One of the Chanticleers' entire position groups would have been unavailable for the game "due to possible exposure," according to the league's announcement.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link){{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)