Tue., Oct. 12 @ 6:30 pm CT
App State Mountaineers at Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns
FOOTBALL GAME NOTES
App State Mountaineers
(4-1, 1-0 Sun Belt)
Coach: Shawn Clark
Career: 14-4/2nd full year
At App State: Same
GAME 6
Date: Tuesday, Oct. 12, 2021
Time: 7:30 p.m. ET (6:30 p.m. CT)
TV: ESPN2
Location: Lafayette, La.
Venue: Cajun Field (41,426)
National Rankings:
App State: 11 pts (Coaches), 2 pts (AP)
Louisiana: 1 pt (Coaches)
Series: App State leads 8-1 (3-0 on road)
Last Year: L, 24-21 (in Boone on Dec. 4)
Road Ws: ‘19 (17-7); ‘16 (24-0); ‘14 (35-16)
APP STATE STORYLINES
• The teams that have represented the Sun Belt Conference’s East and West divisions in the last two contested conference championship games meet again in a nationally televised matchup on ESPN2.
• Since App State joined the Sun Belt in 2014, the Mountaineers and Ragin’ Cajuns rank first and second, respectively, among its league members in overall wins (74-21 for App State, 56-38 for Louisiana) and wins against Sun Belt teams (50-9 for App State, 40-20 for Louisiana). The Mountaineers’ 84.8 winning percentage vs. league foes since they joined the FBS level ranks fifth nationally behind just Ohio State (93.8), Alabama (92.4), Clemson (90.9) and Oklahoma (85.3).
• Since App State joined the FBS in 2014, its 29 road wins are tied for No. 2 nationally, behind just Boise State’s 30. App State’s 50-9 record vs. the league includes a 23-5 mark in Sun Belt road games.
• App State’s 67-16 overall record (80.7%) since the start of 2015 is No. 5 nationally behind Alabama (84-6, 93.3%), Clemson (82-9, 90.1%), Ohio State (72-9, 88.9%) and Oklahoma (72-12, 85.7%).
• Shawn Clark was the only first-year FBS head coach in 2020 to win nine-plus games. At 14-4, his 77.8 winning percentage ranks No. 6 among full-time FBS coaches and No. 1 among full-time G5 coaches.
• Bednarik Award candidate D’Marco Jackson is No. 3 in the FBS at both 10.8 tackles a game (54 total) and 2.0 TFLs a game (10.0 total) while also ranking in the top 25 with 4.0 sacks. He also has one INT.
• Corey Sutton, a Mayo Clinic Comeback Player of the Year candidate after he missed the 2020 season to fully recover from a 2019 knee injury, is one of six FBS receivers this season with three straight 100-yard games. In the last three games, he has 21 catches for 361 yards and two TDs, with 128 yards vs. Elon, 127 yards vs. Marshall (on a career-high 10 catches) and 106 yards vs. Georgia State.
• Throwing primarily to four super senior WRs, Chase Brice leads the Sun Belt at 272.0 passing yards per game. He has thrown for 293 yards (Elon), 283 yards (Marshall) and 326 yards (Georgia State, three TDs) during App State’s three-game winning streak to go along with 259 yards in the ECU win.
• App State has the Sun Belt’s No. 1 and No. 3 rushers in yards per game with Nate Noel at 102.2 and Camerun Peoples at 88.3. Peoples sat out vs. Georgia State, and Noel played only the first half, but the only FBS program with four 500-yard rushers in 2020 relied on Anderson Castle (22-yard TD) and Jahmir Smith to rush for 90 second-half yards on 20 attempts. Daetrich Harrington (595 yards in six games in an injury-shortended 2020) could make his 2021 debut vs. Louisiana.
MORE STORYLINES
• App State has an 8-1 record in the series against Louisiana, which enjoyed a breakthrough 24-21 win last year on a rainy Friday night in Boone. Before that, the 8-0 start included home wins against the Ragin’ Cajuns in the first two Sun Belt Championship games: 30-19 in 2018 and 45-38 in 2019.
• App State is one of just 12 schools to finish in the top 26 of AP Poll voting in each of the last three years. Four teams have won at least nine games in each of the last six seasons: App State, Alabama, Clemson and Oklahoma.
• The Mountaineers opened Sun Belt play with a 45-16 win at Georgia State, as App State built a 45-9 lead and the first-team defense allowed only three field goals. The Panthers pulled within 14-9 midway through the third quarter before App State went on a 31-0 run over roughly the next 12 minutes.
• App State’s first four games all featured a crowd of at least 28,000 people: a Thursday opener against ECU in Charlotte’s Bank of America Stadium (36,752), a two-point loss at Miami (45,877), a Kidd Brewer Stadium opener against FCS opponent Elon (30,224) and a Thursday home game against Marshall (28,377). It played in front of 14,258 fans in its Sun Belt opener at Georgia State.
• App State returned 10 defensive starters, seven offensive starters and 80 percent of the letter-winners from 2020, including 14 super seniors taking advantage of the extra year of eligibility granted by the NCAA. Those 14 players have now combined to play 513 games for App State and make 336 starts.
• Last year was App State’s 36th straight season (seven in the Sun Belt, 29 in the SoCon) with a league record of .500 or better. Among current FBS programs, counting seasons before and after any transitions, it’s the longest streak by 14 years — Clemson, Oklahoma and Boise State are at 22 in a row.
• App State led in-state FBS programs in wins during each of the last three seasons and at least tied for the most wins among in-state FBS programs during each of the last six seasons.
• App State posted a combined record of 33-6 from 2018-20 with three different head coaches, three different offensive coordinators and three different defensive coordinators in those three seasons.
• App State’s defense has ranked in the top 21 nationally in fewest points allowed in each of the previous four years under four different coordinators, and the offense has ranked top 16 in the country in rushing yards per game in each of the last three years under three different coordinators.
• Early in his 25th season as an App State assistant, Dale Jones is in Year 2 as the defensive coordinator after the Mountaineers ranked among the national leaders in scoring defense (16th, 20.0 points) and total defense (17th, 328.8 yards) in 2020. Offensive coordinator Frank Ponce is back after serving as the Mountaineers’ co-offensive coordinator (passing game)/QBs coach from 2013-18. Shawn Clark worked with Ponce as App State’s co-offensive coordinator (run game) from 2016-18.
• App State has eight team captains: WR Thomas Hennigan, OL Baer Hunter, LB D’Marco Jackson, OL Cooper Hodges, DL Demetrius Taylor, P Xavier Subotsch, LB T.D. Roof and DL Caleb Spurlin.
• Thomas Hennigan, Caleb Spurlin and Xavier Subotsch have played in every App State game since the start of 2017. With 56 career starts, Hennigan set a program record in the last game after previously being tied with cornerback Jerome Touchstone (55 straight starts from 2004-07). The most career FBS starts on record by non-specialists are 57 apiece by Clemson OL Mitch Wyatt (2015-18) and Alabama OL Ross Pierschbacher (2015-18).
• In 2019, App State became the first Sun Belt team AND the first FBS team in North Carolina history to win 13 games in a season (13-1). Programs in North Carolina have posted an 11-win season at the FBS level a combined 10 times, and App State accounted for three of those in its first six FBS seasons.
• App State has the Sun Belt’s most-followed Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and TikTok accounts among football programs. It ranked No. 2 among G5 programs (behind just UCF) and No. 42 in the FBS in social media interactions in 2020.
OFFENSE
• Chase Brice, who had played in 36 FBS games, taken more than 1,100 snaps and thrown for nearly 3,200 yards in combined stints at Clemson and Duke before arriving at App State, has thrown for at least 283 yards in each of the last three games after posting a high of 279 in his first three FBS seasons.
• Thomas Hennigan, a second-team Academic All-American in 2020, ranks No. 2 in school history with 205 career catches and needs four to break the record of 208 from Andrew Peacock (2010-13). Hennigan is No. 4 in school history with 2,627 receiving yards and No. 6 with 18 TD receptions. Among active, full-time FBS players, he ranks No. 3 with his 205 career catches.
• Despite sitting out last year, Corey Sutton has the most receiving TDs (20 in just 27 games) among Sun Belt players since the start of the 2018 season. After catching a career-high 10 passes for 127 yards vs. Marshall and dragging his back foot in bounds on a fourth-quarter TD grab that ranked No. 1 on SportsCenter’s top plays, he had a 79-yard TD as part of a four-catch, 106-yard day against Georgia State to leave him with 32 catches (No. 1 in Sun Belt) for 473 yards (No. 2 in the Sun Belt).
• During the current three-game streak of 100-yard receiving days by Corey Sutton, App State has twice had a pair of 100-yard receivers. Sutton (128 yards) and Malik Williams (123) went over 100 yards against Elon before Sutton (127) and Thomas Hennigan (123) did the same against Marshall.
• With 11 plays of more than 40 yards in his career, Jalen Virgil is No. 4 overall (No. 1 among offensive skill position players) on “The Freaks List” from The Athletic, marking the fourth straight year he’s been named one of the most-gifted athletes in college football. At Miami, he scored on a 100-yard kickoff return for the second time in a span of four games (adding to one at Georgia Southern late in 2020).
• App State has four super senior receivers in Thomas Hennigan, Corey Sutton, Malik Williams and Jalen Virgil. They’ve combined for 570 career catches for 7,617 receiving yards and 61 touchdowns. Of the 190 catches by App State players in 2020, the 2021 roster includes players responsible for 181 of those, or 95.3 percent of the 2020 receptions (as well as 96.4 percent of the receiving yards).
• Nate Noel and Camerun Peoples have combined for 864 rushing yards on 147 attempts (80 by Noel, 67 by Peoples, with a yards-per-carry average of 5.9 between the pairing). With eight rushing TDs in the first four games, Peoples didn’t play at Georgia State, and Noel didn’t play in the second half.
• App State was the only FBS team in 2020 with 500-yard rushing seasons from at least four players, and three of them are on the 2021 team: Camerun Peoples, Nate Noel and Daetrich Harrington (who missed the last six games of 2020 with a knee injury).
• Camerun Peoples scored three first-half TDs against Marshall, and Nate Noel rushed for 104 of his 187 yards during the fourth quarter, when App State turned a 30-21 deficit into a 31-30 win. Noel had gains of 11, 14, 41 and 22 yards on the final drive, smartly going down short of the end zone in the final two minutes to prevent Marshall from possibly regaining possession with an eight-point deficit.
• Camerun Peoples capped a 1,124-yard rushing season in 2020 with 317 yards and five touchdowns in the Myrtle Beach Bowl. He set the NCAA single-game bowl record for rushing yards (Georgia Tech’s P.J. Daniels had 307 in the 2004 Humanitarian Bowl), broke the school record for single-game rushing yards (Armanti Edwards had 313 in a 2007 FCS semifinal win), tied the NCAA bowl record for rushing TDs and tied the school record for rushing TDs (John Settle also had five vs. Davidson in 1986).
• Camerun Peoples arrived at the 2020 Myrtle Beach Bowl needing 193 yards to give App State a 1,000-yard rusher for the ninth straight year, and that streak is now the longest among current FBS programs. The second-longest active streak of three seasons is shared by Minnesota and Buffalo.
• App State’s new-look offensive line includes All-Sun Belt pick Baer Hunter, who moved to center during the spring after starting 31 straight games at right guard, right tackle Cooper Hodges (All-Sun Belt pick who now has 30 career starts) and left tackle Anderson Hardy (three starts there in 2020). Isaiah Helms occupies the right guard spot as a Western Carolina transfer, while Damion Daley and Luke Smith have both performed well at left guard. Hunter, Daley and Smith all began their college careers as defensive linemen.
• Running behind the “Bulls” up front, App State has ranked among the nation’s top 25 rushing teams in all seven of its FBS seasons: No. 6 in 2020 (264.9 yards), No. 16 in 2019 (231.4), No. 14 in 2018 (240.3), No. 22 in 2017 (223.6), No. 10 in 2016 (250.9), No. 6 in 2015 (271.5) and No. 18 in 2014 (241.8).
DEFENSE
• Jerry Moore is App State’s winningest head coach with a 215-87 record in 24 seasons. Through 24 years as an App State assistant, many alongside Moore, defensive coordinator Dale Jones has been part of 225 wins. He coached at Louisville with Scott Satterfield in 2019 following a 23-year run at App State, where he was the defensive coordinator from 2010-12 and co-defensive coordinator in 2018.
• App State has held the opposing offense to less than 30 points in 18 straight games dating back to 2019 — Marshall had a special teams TD in the 31-30 loss to the Mountaineers. They have allowed 10 points or less 30 times since moving to the FBS ranks in 2014.
• Sun Belt tackles leader D’Marco Jackson was named the Sun Belt’s defensive player of the week after posting nine tackles, two tackles for loss, one sack, one interception, one pass breakup and one quarterback hurry — all in the first three quarters —against Georgia State. On seven of Jackson’s nine tackles, the play ended with Georgia State gaining 2 yards or less.
• D’Marco Jackson had a career-high 14 tackles against Marshall less than a week after becoming the first FBS player since 2014 and first-ever Sun Belt player to record at least 13 tackles, 4.5 tackles for loss and 3.0 sacks in the same game (against Elon). In 2020, he was the only FBS player with at least 90 tackles (91), 6.5 tackles for loss, 2.5 sacks, two interceptions and eight passes defended (he had six PBUs), leading him to be called one of the nation’s most versatile players by ESPN.
• A preseason All-American (honorable mention) from PFF College as well as a member of the watch lists for the Walter Camp Player of the Year, Bednarik Award, Bronko Nagurski Trophy and Ted Hendricks Award, Demetrius Taylor increased his career total to 22.0 sacks with two more at Georgia State. He is No. 5 among active FBS players in career sacks and is tied for the team lead with five QB hurries this year.
• Strong safety Kaiden Smith started every game in 2020, returned for a sixth year as a super senior, suffered a torn Achilles tendon during an April 15 spring practice but returned less than six months later as a starter in last weekend’s Georgia State game and posted four tackles. Caleb Spurlin gave up his captain’s spot for that game to let Smith have it while playing close to his Georgia hometown.
• T.D. Roof posted 2.0 sacks among seven tackles from his OLB position in his first career start at Miami, leading to him being named the Sun Belt’s Defensive Player of the Week by The Draft Network, and he added a 90-yard interception return from the visiting end zone in the win against Elon.
• Shaun Jolly received All-America recognition in each of his first two years as a starting cornerback, with PFF College naming him a second-team All-American to end a five-INT campaign in 2019 (with two INTs vs. Georgia State) and Phil Steele naming him an Honorable Mention All-American in 2020. He had a tone-setting interception on the second play of this year’s Georgia State game and graded out well enough to be named to PFF College’s National Team of the Week at cornerback.
• Caleb Spurlin, who paired a blocked field goal with a career-high seven tackles at Miami, has been named to the watch list for the Paul Hornung Award because of his versatility. Last season, as a starting defensive end who contributed as a fullback/H-back, he was the only FBS player (and just the third since 2000) with at least 2.5 sacks and two receiving TDs in the same year. He was the lead blocker on two rushing TDs vs. Marshall, increasing his career total to five in that department.
• Based on a Wins Above Average metric from PFF College, linebacker Brendan Harrington was named the fifth-most valuable defender in college football in 2020, and he recorded two sacks in the 2021 opener before adding half a sack against Marshall. Last season, he had 48 tackles, a team-leading four interceptions that produced 95 return yards, six pass breakups, 4.0 tackles for loss and four QB hurries.
• OLB Nick Hampton has 2.0 sacks, 5.5 tackles for loss and 26 tackles (second on the team) this season, contributing to his 10.5 sacks and 18.5 TFLs in 29 games since the start of the 2019 season. Young backup Jalen McLeod has also come on strong, with two tackles for loss and one sack vs. Marshall.
• With 107 INTs since the start of 2015, App State is tied with Alabama for No. 1 at the FBS level during that stretch. Four DBs who attended App State were with NFL franchises at the start of training camp: Shemar Jean-Charles (Packers draft pick, after leading the nation in PBUs and being a first-team All-American in 2020), Josh Thomas (Bills), Doug Middleton (Panthers) and Tae Hayes (Cardinals).
• With NFL draft pick Shemar Jean-Charles as the only departed starter from 2020, players responsible for 91.0 percent of the tackles last season are still with the Mountaineers this year.
SPECIAL TEAMS
• Assistant Brian Haines again directs a unit with returning starters at kicker (Chandler Staton), punter (Xavier Subotsch), long snapper (Christian Johnstone) and holder (Clayton Howell).
• Chandler Staton, who hit a 45-yard field goal to turn a 30-28 deficit into a 31-30 lead with 5:45 left in the Marshall win and added a 48-yard field goal at Georgia State, is the Sun Belt’s career scoring leader with 392 points. That’s tied with the legendary Armanti Edwards for second in school history, behind only running back Kevin Richardson’s 444 from 2004-07.
• Chandler Staton is 8-for-8 on field goals this season and 20-for-22 from 40-49 yards in his career. His game-winning kick against Marshall was App State’s latest deficit-erasing, go-ahead field goal since Zach Matics ended the Mountaineers’ FBS bowl debut in 2015 with a 23-yard kick to beat Ohio 31-29.
• With 18 kickoff returns since the start of the 2019 season, Jalen Virgil has two 100-yard kickoff returns for TDs (at Miami, at Georgia Southern in 2020 regular-season finale) plus a 57-yard return that set up App State’s final touchdown in a 20-15 win at South Carolina in 2019. This season, Virgil ranks No. 2 nationally with his return average of 36.0 yards.
• Xavier Subotsch, a candidate for the Ray Guy Award, had a 2020 net punting average of 40.3 yards to lead full-time starters in the Sun Belt. Last season, App State ranked No. 11 nationally (and No. 1 the Sun Belt) by allowing 2.2 yards per punt return.
• Michael Hughes has been handling kickoffs as a true freshman.
• Against ECU, Logan Doublin and Tyler Bird combined on a tackle that forced a fumble on a kickoff early in the fourth quarter, and teammate Anderson Castle recovered the loose ball. Doublin also has a forced fumble on defense this season.
Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns
Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns
(4-1, 2-0 Sun Belt)
Coach: Billy Napier
Career: 32-12/4th year
At Louisiana: Same
INSIDE THE SERIES
Overall Series…….App State Leads, 8-1
Last Meeting……….Dec. 4, 2020 (24-21)
In Lafayette……………………………………… 0-3
In Mobile………………………………………….. 1-5
Current Streak………………………………….W1
Longest Winning Streak…………………W1
Last 10 Games…………………………………. 1-8
Biggest Win………… 24-21 (Dec. 4, 2020)
Biggest Loss……….. 14-63 (Dec. 2, 2017)
Most Louisiana Points………….38 (2019)
Most App State Points…………63 (2017)
Fewest Louisiana Points……….. 0 (2016)
Fewest App State Points……..17 (2019)
Games Decided by 3 Pts or Less….. 1-0
Games Decided by 7 Pts or Less……1-1
A LOUISIANA WIN WOULD…
• Be its first over Appalachian State in \Lafayette in program history.
• Improve it to 15-3 in games played at Cajun Field under Coach Napier.
• Extend the Ragin’ Cajuns’ current home winning streak to five games.
LOUISIANA FACES APPALACHIAN STATE IN SUN BELT HOME OPENER
Now 2-0 in Sun Belt Conference play and riding a four-game winning streak, Louisiana returns home
after two weeks on the road for a pivotal league clash against Sun Belt East Division preseason favorites,
Appalachian State. The Ragin’ Cajuns and Mountaineers have been the standard in the Sun Belt since 2019,
owning a combined 51-10 record and having faced off in the league’s championship game in 2018 and 2019.
A LOOK AT THE RAGIN’ CAJUNS
• Louisiana has won 25 of its last 29 games.
• Louisiana owns a 21-7 record against Sun Belt opposition under Coach Napier, including a perfect 13-0 mark against Sun Belt West opposition.
• The Ragin’ Cajuns have been phenomenal at home since the 2018 season, owning a 14-3 record.
• Louisiana is 32-5 under Coach Napier when scoring more than 20 points.
• Since 2018, Louisiana is 16-4 when playing in games at 6 p.m. or later.
• The Ragin’ Cajuns own a 12-3 record in one-possession games since the start of the 2018 season.
• Louisiana has eight “super seniors” on the roster this year in quarterback Levi Lewis, linebacker Ferrod Gardner, offensive lineman Ken Marks, wide receiver Jalen Williams, linebacker Chauncey Manac, nose tackle Tayland Humphrey, safety Cameron Solomon and kicker Nate Snyder. Of the eight, Ken Marks and Ferrod Gardner are in their seventh season of eligibility.
• Levi Lewis needs four passing touchdowns to set the program record for career passing scores. The current record of 64 is held by Ragin’ Cajun legend Jake Delhomme.
• Louisiana’s defense has held its opponents under 25 points for four consecutive games. Since 2018, the Ragin’ Cajuns are 23-1 when holding opponents to 25 points or fewer.
• Following a big performance against the South Alabama Jaguars, kick returner Chris Smith was named the Sun Belt Conference’s Special Teams Player of the Week. Smith produced 137 kickoff return yards against the Jags, including an 87-yard return on the opening kickoff of the game.
TEAM NOTES
• In Billy Napier’s first four seasons, the Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns have won three Sun Belt Conference West Division titles, were the 2020 Sun Belt Co-Champions and have won two bowl games (LendingTree Bowl (2020) and SERVPRO First Responder Bowl (2021)).
• Louisiana owns a perfect 13-0 record against Sun Belt West Division opponents and is 21-7 overall against Sun Belt opposition.
• Louisiana has won seven-straight road games against Sun Belt teams and is 14-1 in regular-season road games since the start of the 2019 season.
• Louisiana is 32-5 when scoring 20 or more points in the Napier era.
• Since 2018, Louisiana is 12-3 in one-possession games.
• With the win at Georgia Southern, Louisiana moved to 3-1 in Sun Belt openers under Napier.
• The 49 points scored against Ohio marked the 12th time that Louisiana has produced more than 40 points in a single game under Napier. The team is 12-0 in those games.
• Louisiana produced 562 yards of total offense against Ohio, the 16th time the Cajuns have recorded 500+ yards in the Napier era. The team owns a 15-1 record in those contests.
• Louisiana’s defense held Ohio to just 14 points on Sept. 16, improving the Ragin’ Cajuns to 8-0 over the last four seasons when an opponent scores 14 or fewer points.
• Louisiana has eight “super seniors” on the roster this year in quarterback Levi Lewis, linebacker Ferrod Gardner, offensive lineman Ken Marks, wide receiver Jalen Williams, linebacker Chauncey Manac, nose tackle Tayland Humphrey, safety Cameron Solomon and kicker Nate Snyder. Of the eight, Ken Marks and Ferrod Gardner are entering their seventh season of eligibility.
• The Ragin’ Cajuns boasted a 6-1 record in one-score games last season.
• Per ESPN’s Bill Connelly, Louisiana returns 96 percent of its production entering the 2021 season. The team has 93 percent of its offense returning and 98 percent of the defense coming back.
• Louisiana placed nine on the Sun Belt’s All-Conference teams after having 14 All-Conference selections at the end of the 2020 campaign.
QUARTERBACK NOTES
QB Levi Lewis
• Levi Lewis is 26-7 as the starting quarterback of the Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns.
• Recorded a team-high 10 carries for 61 yards and his first rushing score of the year., while also completing nine passes for 49 yards at South Alabama (Oct. 2).
• Led Louisiana to its third consecutive victory in a Sun Belt Conference opener, going 17-for-28 for 249 yards and three passing touchdowns against Georgia Southern (Sept. 25).
• Accounted for 261 of Louisiana’s 378 yards of total offense against the Eagles after adding 12 yards rushing in the game.
• Lewis has thrown for at least 200 yards in four out of the team’s five games and is now 12-3 in his career when eclipsing the 200-yard marking through the air.
• Louisiana is 18-1 when Lewis throws two or more touchdowns in a game.
• Was efficient against Ohio, throwing for more than 200 yards for a third consecutive game after completing 21 of his 29 attempts for 212 yards and touchdown.
• Lewis had a strong showing against Nicholls (Sept. 11), going 19-for-33 for 304 yards and throwing two touchdown passes.
• Lewis’ 304 passing yards were the third-most of his career and marked the third time he eclipsed the 300-yard passing threshold. It was also the 37th 300-yard passing performance in program history.
• Lewis went 28-for-40 for 282 yards and a touchdown in the team’s Week 1 loss at No. 21/19 Texas.
• His 282 passing yards were the fifth most in his career and the most in a season opener by a Ragin’ Cajun since Chris Masson threw for 283 yards against Southern on Sept. 5, 2009.
• The yardage total also marked the most by a Ragin’ Cajun against a Power 5 opponent since Blaine Gautier threw 236 yards against Oklahoma State on Sept. 15, 2012.
• Lewis is second in program history for career passing touchdown and third in career passing yards.
• He sits 223 yards behind Terrance Broadway for the second most career passing yards.
• Lewis and Jake Delhomme are the only quarterbacks in program history to throw for more than 7,000 yards and 50 touchdowns in their careers.
• Was named to the Maxwell Award Watch List, Davey O’Brien Award Watch List, AFCA Good Works Team Watch List, Wuerffel Trophy Preseason Watch List, CFPA National Watch List, Manning Award Watch List, Reese’s Senior Bowl Watch List and the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Preseason Watch List.
QB Chandler Fields
• Completed one pass for nine yards in the win at South Alabama (Oct. 2).
• Saw the first significant action of his career against Ohio (Sept. 16), going 4-for-5 for 40 yards and a touchdown pass.
• The 13-yard touchdown pass to John Stephens, Jr., was the first passing score of Fields’ career.
• Took one snap in the season opener against No. 21/19 Texas.
• Made two appearances during the 2020 season, attempting six passes in those contests.
• Enters the season having appeared in five career games, going 3-for-9 for 16 yards through the air.
QB Ben Wooldridge
• Transferred to Louisiana from Fresno State.
• Appeared in five games for Fresno State, going 8-for-16 for 117 yards as a sophomore in 2020.
• Played in three games in 2019 for the Bulldogs, going 4-for-6 and throwing a 17-yard touchdown pass.
QB Lance LeGendre
• A four-star recruit who transferred in from Maryland, LeGendre enters his first season with the Ragin’ Cajuns program.
• Appeared in six games for Maryland over the last two seasons, earning one start.
• In 2020, he completed 11 of his 14 pass attempts for 91 yards.
• Saw action in three games as a true freshman in 2019, went 1-for-3 for seven yards through the air while rushing for 104 yards on 13 carries.
• Appeared on Season 3 of the Netflix show, “QB1: Beyond the Lights”.
QB Hunter Herring
• Tabbed as the No. 50 overall player in the state and the No. 47 dual quarterback in the country by 247Sports.com.
• Threw for 2,769 yards with 34 touchdowns during his career at Ouachita Christian High School.
• Also ran for 2,181 yards and 48 scores, highlighted by back-to-back 20+ rushing touchdown seasons to end high school career.
