Cajuns’ defense dominates Troy for redemption victory | UL Ragin’ Cajuns

1. Defense, defense, defense

One week after squandering a 13-point lead in the fourth quarter at Louisiana Tech, UL’s defense played angry against Troy. The Trojans came into the game first in the Sun Belt in rushing with 236 yards and the Cajuns limited Troy to 126 yards on the ground. The Trojans ran for 437 yards in their last game against Southern Miss. Moreover, Troy turned it over on downs three times and was only 3-of-12 on third down and 1-of-4 on fourth down. The Trojans only had 267 total yards in the game. The pass defense also improved dramatically with Troy throwing for 141 yards.

2. Odd night for offense

Last week, UL’s passing game produced four plays over 32 yards or more, including three touchdown passes. Troy came into the game No. 4 against the run and ninth in the league against the pass. And yet, the Lunch Winfield of old returned in this one. The version who looked way more comfortable running the ball and than throwing it. Winfield led all UL ball carriers with 15 carries. On this night, it absolutely played a big role in the 27-point win, but it’ll be interesting to see how that plays out moving forward. It was still good to see JJ Garner with a TD run in his fourth straight game.

3. Uncomplicated win

Was it a thing of beauty? No. Angry from last week’s loss in Ruston, the Cajuns chose the old-fashioned method. Get physical and run the football and stop the run and win the game. It wasn’t about style and grace. Saturday was about getting that bitter taste out of their mouths. It was about showing the offense can run the football. It was about staying alive in the Sun Belt West race by getting to 2-1. It was about putting the Cajuns in position to run the table and put as much pressure on Louisiana Tech as possible. It was just that simple.