The Other Side of the Wall: Louisiana

If last week’s game was a trap, this is a hunting gallery. Everyone associated with Troy remembers popping Prilosec, breathing into a paper bag or heaving after Kimani’s game-winning touchdown last year.

That sort of comeback shouldn’t be necessary this year… but we’re not going to forget that fear either.

Team	Louisiana
Time, Network	2:30 pm, NFL Network
Current Record	5-5, 2-4
Troy’s Record	10-13
Last Matchup	W, 23-17
Current Conf. Rank	5th, SBC West
FPI Rank	96
FPI Win% (Troy)	83.6%
Spread	Troy -16

Again… do NOT be fooled by these numbers.

Surely this Louisiana team is better than they look on paper. After all, they beat South, another 5-5 team that’s better than the stats indicate.

Then again, they lost to Old Dominion and Southern Miss.
Then again, they just lost their starting quarterback.
Then again, the replacement is their starter from last year.

To sort all this out, we turned to Dusty from Ragin’ Review.

What does the warning label for this team say?
Warning: Extremely Volatile (4 out of our 5 losses came against teams who were underdogs against us)
Now that’s causing some flashbacks.

What Taylor Swift song title best describes UL’s postseason expectations? Why?
It would be “Cruel Summer” because the song is about wanting something you can’t have, and our goal was to win the Sun Belt Conference Championship. Well, we can’t have it now, so a bowl berth will have to suffice.
My wife, who is a Swiftie, will appreciate the lyrical understanding that went into this answer. For the record, I do too.

In one word, describe the South Alabama win. Why that word?
“Capable.” That game summed up the potential of what this team could do when playing consistently well for all four quarters. If the Cajuns played like this every game leading up to Troy, this Saturday could have been the game that wins the West for either team. Now, it’s the Trojans that will be heading to the Sun Belt Conference Championship.

In one word, describe the Southern Miss loss. Why that word?
“Disheartening.” This was a game where we made so many mistakes, yet we had the win at our fingertips and let it slip away. It’s been a tale of our season so far.
That’s how the early stretch of our season felt. As the philosopher Rascal Flatts once said, “what hurts the most is being so close.”

Which Avenger is most like Coach Desormeaux?
Dr. Strange because Coach Desormeaux became a student of coaching under the likes of the Ancient One, Billy Napier, before becoming The Sorcerer Supreme himself. He is now using what he learned to lead the Cajuns.
I like this take, but I’d suggest recategorizing Napier as Baron Mordo. It’s your call.

What are three names on defense Troy fans should pay attention to? Why?
The first would be LB Kendre Gant. Anytime Troy has the football, expect Gant to be one of the first defensive players to make contact. He leads the team in tackles for loss and plays an integral part in the rush defense.
The second would be LB K.C. Ossai. A major defensive leader, K.C. leads the team in solo tackles and will play a similar role against the run just like Kendre.
The third would be LB Cameron Whitfield. Cam leads the team in sacks and will be one of the main focuses for the Troy coaching staff when trying to protect QB Gunnar Watson from defensive pressure.
Note to self: Louisiana’s linebackers are their strength.

When Louisiana snaps the ball, what is most likely to happen?
With Chandler Fields now at starting quarterback, expect the Cajuns to run a balanced attack out of the shotgun. Chandler is a pocket passer who can throw both in the pocket and on the rollout. Look for some out routes to the flat with a few opportunities for a long pass or two. The Cajuns will also look the run the football with 3 running backs (Jacob Kibodi, Dre’lyn Washington, and Zylan Perry) who have all had significant carries on the year.
Sounds like the offense reverted to last year’s formula. It obviously worked for three quarters against Troy.

If we wake up Sunday and the underdog wins, what happened the day before?
We would see a similar scenario to the win at South Alabama. In Mobile, the Cajuns forced 5 turnovers which included a defensive touchdown through a scoop and score via a sack fumble along with some Jaguar stalled drives. Offensively, the Cajuns were able to string together some long drives that wore down South Alabama’s defense who had given up a total of 10 points combined for the two games prior. In order for the Cajuns to defeat the Trojans, they will have to sustain drives and take advantage of scoring opportunities against this vaunted Trojan defense while forcing a few turnovers defensively.
ULM made moves against this defense and I wasn’t happy about it. I’ll discuss that later.

What chicken joint is most associated with the team, college, fanbase or city? If not chicken, BBQ?
The Popeyes near our campus housed the only buffet of its kind in the world before closing in 2021 even though the restaurant itself remains open. As far as BBQ, Blanchard’s BBQ in Lafayette serves as a Texas-style BBQ restaurant that started out as a food truck. You can’t go wrong with the food there.
That’s why I like asking Louisiana folks about their restaurants. I can really trust their recommendations.

What’s one question you have for us about Troy, if you have one (we’ll answer in the article)?
Let’s have some fun with this. What would it take for the Cajuns to score on the Trojan defense? Coach Jon Sumrall is a defensive mastermind, and the Trojans defense is a staple in the G5. What are some weaknesses this defense has that the Cajuns can take advantage of?
The funny thing is that Louisiana cracked this code last year, and nearly beat Troy. The problem is this year’s defense is more balanced. Unfortunately, with a stout line and shutdown secondary, the defense is somewhat prone to chunk plays.
Don’t give up on the run, because it will at least open up short-to-mid-yardage opportunities.
Get on the board as often as you can early and hope your own defense can stop Troy’s also-improved offense.
Finally, you have to be lucky with your halftime adjustments. Sumrall knows ball. Troy is a second-half team because coaches are always analyzing and making changes. You can’t necessarily stick with what’s working, but if you do find an advantage in personnel, don’t hesitate to attack it.

So it sounds a little similar to South Alabama’s problem: tons of talent, but mistakes killed momentum.

Let’s start with the talent side. How do the Cajuns rank among Troy opponents?

Stat	National Rank	Closest team
Passing Offense	80	Arkansas State (73)
Rushing Offense	24	Army (23)
Scoring Offense	40	South Alabama (49)
Passing Defense	64	Western Kentucky (78)
Rushing Defense	91	Texas State (76)
Scoring Defense	89	Texas State (87) or Western Kentucky (91)

Okay, see? Louisiana has a passing game almost as good as Arkansas State, Army’s run game and the ability to score more often than South Alabama. That’s the sort of strength I expected.

Troy’s defense will have its work cut out for them, even though Zeon Chriss is out. Chandler Fields didn’t see action against Troy because of his own injury last year, but he gets another shot against them this year.

The good news is that those three offensive teams scored a combined 13 points against Troy. The bad news is ULM, with its awful offense, scored 14 by itself.

The other good news is that the Cajun defense is a clone of Texas State and Western Kentucky, and Troy scored 58 points on both teams.

I really don’t have any other bad news for this section.

Now to the mistakes part. Troy isn’t a perfect team by any stretch, but which side stumbles more?

Stat	Troy	UL
Sacks Allowed	22	16
Fumbles Lost	10	11
Interceptions Thrown	4	8
Third Down Percentage	.411	.400

Troy comes out slightly cleaner, but that sack total is awful. The good news is that sacks don’t mean turnovers.

On the other hand, Louisiana throws twice as many picks as Troy, and Troy’s defense loves interceptions.

Troy has yet to play a complete game, but this year’s team took a step forward in that it doesn’t let the other team get ahead early. It keeps pace, then breaks away late.

If last year’s game was an indicator of how that team worked, this game should fulfill the same role.

The more I think about this game, the better I feel, I just can’t shake the PTSD from 2022.

Then again, I couldn’t shake the Monroe juju last week either.

Troy wins, 31-14.

Again, special thanks to Dusty at Ragin’ Review.