Sunday, September 6, 2009

Louisiana-Lafayette 42, Southern Jaguars 19

Southern University Jaguars Coach Pete Richards begins 17th season on the Bluff with expectations of winning the 2009 SWAC Championship after blowing a 12-7 lead at ULL.

Missed opportunities

Jaguars lead early, but fall to Cajuns...
Wherever and whenever this season ends, the Southern football team probably won’t remember the final score of Saturday’s season opener — a 42-19 runaway for Louisiana-Lafayette, a game that started with a bevy of big plays and ended as a snoozer. The Jaguars might remember the record crowd of 41,357 at Cajun Field and how lively it seemed for the first two quarters. They’ll remember other things, too.

As they walked off the field, outmatched against a Football Bowl Subdivision opponent that controlled the line of scrimmage and cashed in on their mistakes, the Jaguars were left to lament the opportunities they missed, the mistakes they made and the potential for a strong season that might still lie ahead. “Our goal is to get to the (Southwestern Athletic Conference) championship game,” 17th-year coach Pete Richardson said. “Now, we’ve just got to get back home and try to get some of our guys back together. “Every time we play up, it’s such a physical type game — and it’s a numbers game.

SU shakes off bumps, bruises

Southern coach Pete Richardson said his No. 1 priority in Saturday’s season opener at Louisiana-Lafayette — aside from winning, of course — was escaping Cajun Field with relatively few injuries. At the end of the Jaguars’ 42-19 loss, they appeared to get lucky. With 8:54 left in the first quarter, freshman cornerback Pierre Warford and senior free safety Anthony Wells collided while trying to make an interception near the Southern 10-yard line. Warford suffered a rib injury and did not return. Jeremy Ivory came off the bench to play corner, while House replaced Wells at free safety. Wells returned to the field later, but junior Jason House played much of the rest of the game.



Stewart keeps SU close

Jaguars leave opportunities on the field... For all of the success that Louisiana-Lafayette had operating against Southern’s defense, the Cajuns were in a tight battle for most of the first half of Saturday’s season-opening game. With wideout Juamorris Stewart threatening all of his single-game best numbers, Southern came away from a 42-19 loss at Cajun Field feeling like it left too many opportunities on the field. “We know, as an offense, we left a lot of points out there,” Stewart said. “We’re just going to have to get in the film room and work it out.”

Game Statistics: SU-ULL

Photo Gallery
Photos: ULL 42, Southern 19

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