Middle Tennessee State University Athletics
Middle Tennessee
Louisiana-Lafayette (CSS)
Blue Raiders seek to slow down Ragin' Cajuns
11/13/2009 10:27:00 AM | Football
MURFREESBORO, Tenn. - As Middle Tennessee seeks to extend its current three-game winning streak, and increase the chances of being involved in post-season play, they must face conference nemesis Louisiana-Lafayette. The Ragin' Cajuns have won three straight over the Blue Raiders at Floyd Stadium and are 5-1 against MT the last six meetings.
Saturday, the Blue Raiders will celebrate their 28th annual Salute to Armed Services/Veterans Day.
It will be a gorgeous day for football as the Blue Raiders and Ragin' Cajuns will kick it off at 3:15 Saturday afternoon in a game to be televised on the Sun Belt Conference Network. It can be seen locally on CSS-TV.
Louisiana-Lafayette will be coming to town with a 5-4 record, a 3-2 mark in conference play, and a burning desire to become eligible for a bowl game. Middle Tennessee is 6-3 overall, and tied with UL-Monroe for second place in the SBC with a 4-1 record.
UL has had the better of MTSU in the past decade, posting a 6-4 edge in victories, including a 42-28 shootout win last year.
From a spectator's standpoint, it has been a great series, with two games going into overtime, and both teams averaging over 31 points per game for the series. Middle Tennessee is averaging nearly 400 yards per game of total offense in the ten games against the Ragin' Cajuns.
Blue Raider Head Coach Rick Stockstill was quick to point out just how good the Ragin' Cajuns have been this season.
"They are coming off of a big win at Arkansas State which is a hard place to win. They beat Kansas State in the second game of the season, and Kansas State is leading their side of the Big 12 Conference," noted Stockstill.
Two of UL's losses came on the road against ranked teams, No. 9 LSU and No. 25 Nebraska.
One of the best battles on the field will be between Middle Tennessee's defense and Louisiana's offensive line. The Blue Raiders lead the conference in sacks with 25 in nine games, while UL has given up only four sacks in their nine games, which ranks as the lowest in the nation. Seniors Chris McCoy and Brandon Perry will lead the charge to get to Ragin' Cajun QB Chris Masson before he can get rid of the ball.
Middle Tennessee also leads the Sun Belt in turnover margin, with +8. Individual leaders are senior cornerback Marcus Udell, who ranks third in the nation with six interceptions, and senior linebacker Danny Carmichael, who has forced a school record six fumbles so far in 2009 to lead the nation.
Offensively, junior quarterback Dwight Dasher was named the SBC Player of the Week for the second time this season on Monday. He ran for 178 yards and three touchdowns in the 48-21 win over FIU last week, and threw for 182 yards and two more scores.
Sophomore speedster D.D. Kyles also rushed for 110 yards against FIU, giving the Blue Raiders two 100-yard rushers for the second consecutive game.
Another area of emphasis for Middle Tennessee is special teams, and junior Jeremy Kellem garnered the SBC Special Teams Player of the Week honors for his punt block against FIU that set up the Blue Raiders first score of the game. It was the fourth blocked punt of Kellem's career, and his second in as many games. He later intercepted a pass to thwart a potential FIU scoring drive.
Also on special teams, place-kicker Alan Gendreau continues to be one of the nation's most accurate field goal kickers, having hit on 14 of 15, including a school record 12 in a row. He leads all SBC kickers with 72 points and was recently named a Lou Groza Award semifinalist.
The game will be aired on the Blue Raider Network, featuring Chip Walters and Kelly Holcomb. Affiliates are WGNS 1430 AM, 101.5 FM and WMOT-FM 89.5 in Murfreesboro, WNSR AM 560 in Nashville, and 103.9 FM in Bowling Green, KY.
