Louisiana-Lafayette Football

It has been said many times that good things come to those who wait. That statement rang true for Louisiana's Ladarius Green.

After being left out of the original posting of the Mackey Award watch list, Green was added the next day when Kavario Middleton was removed as a candidate by the Nassau County Sports Commission. Middleton was dismissed by the Washington Huskies in July after violating team rules.

It was a surprise that Green wasn't originally a nominee for the Mackey Award, the honor given to the best tight end in the FBS, since he was a mid-season addition to the 2009 Mackey watch list.  Green was one of only three underclassmen on the 22-man midseason list.

Only a junior, Green already has more receptions and receiving yards than any tight end in Ragin' Cajun history.

Despite missing three games with a neck injury in 2009, Green caught 32 passes for 533 yards and two touchdowns for Louisiana. Green ranked third in the Sun Belt in receiving yards per game and had the longest reception, 91 yards, in the conference last season.

In his two final games last season, Green caught 12 passes for 250 yards. At the end of the year, Green's teammates voted him Louisiana's offensive MVP, and Green was selected to the All-Sun Belt second team.

As a freshman in 2008, Green appeared in 12 games as a reserve tight end and tallied 268 yards on 22 receptions.

Louisiana started its 2010 campaign with a 55-7 defeat to the Georgia Bulldogs. Green was the lone bright spot for the Ragin' Cajuns, as he accounted for slightly over 76 percent of the passing yards for Louisiana. Green's 60-yard reception accounted for the Louisiana's only touchdown last Saturday. For the game, he accumulated 87 yards on four receptions.

At 6'6" and 230 lbs, the Pensacola, FL product is as much a big wide receiver as he is a tight end. Green is a tough player to defend as he can use his size to out-muscle defensive backs or utilize his speed to run past linebackers.

2010 should be Green's best season yet as Louisiana continues to transition from a running team led by former tailback Tyrell Fenroy and quarterback Michael Desormeaux to a passing team featuring Chris Masson at quarterback.

Although Masson struggled against Georgia, he completed 60 percent of his passing attempts last season for 2,406 yards and 10 touchdowns. With Louisiana already playing one of its toughest opponents this year, Green should see plenty of passes thrown in his direction in Sun Belt action.

By season's end,  Green will be considered of the best tight ends in the FBS, and college football fans will be wondering why Green wasn't considered to be better than Middleton in the first place.

Photo Credit: Ragincajuns.com

Which bowl game do you predict the Louisiana - Lafayette Ragin Cajuns will play in after the 2010 - 2011 college football regular - season is completed? (* Note: (Sun Belt Conference secondary bowl) The Little Caesars Pizza Bowl allows a Sun Belt Conference team participate if the team is bowl eligible and if the Big Ten Conference does not have a bowl eligible team to participate.)

·        The BCS National Championship (BCS No.1 vs. BCS No.2)

·        Bowl Championship Series Bowl (BCS at-large vs. BCS at-large)

·        GMAC Bowl (SBC No.1)

·        New Orleans Bowl (SBC No.2)

·        Little Caesars Bowl (*SBC secondary bowl)

·        None – home during post-season play.

Mark Leggiero leads the Leopard "D"

The Leopards are without doubt the most complete and balanced team the Lions will face all year.

In short, Lafayette has a good QB, a good RB, a good WR, a great defense, and a great kicker.

If you're pining away for that team that barely beat us last year, (13-3 at Wien Stadium), forget it. Remember that the Leopards top rusher, Maurice White, left that game very early with an injury. If not for that, Lafayette may have won by a lot more.

On the other hand Columbia left A LOT of points on the table in that game, blowing a number of red zone chances. This is a much improved Lions team, especially on offense.

But this post is about Lafayette.

The Leopards have some great experienced weapons on offense.

Senior QB Rob Curley is completing 66% of his passes, throwing for 231 yards per game, and has eight TD passes versus just two picks after four games.

Senior RB Maurice White averages 4.9 yards per carry.

Junior WR Mark Layton already has 359 receiving yards and six TD catches.

Meanwhile, the stingy Lafayette defense has allowed just 13.2 points per game and is led by an All-America candidate linebacker Mark Leggiero.

Another major concern is Andrew Poulson on the defensive line. He's joined up front by an emerging star in Ian Dell.

If Lafayette has a defensive weakness, and that's an IF, it's the secondary which is giving up 200 passing yards per game. If the Lions get decent pass protection for M.A. Olawale, that could become a factor.

I said at the top that the Leopards have a great kicker... but I may have lied. Davis Rodriguez has a gun for a leg and had been "lights out" his first two seasons, but he started out very slow this year at 3-for-8 on FG's and his longest one this season is a 31-yarder.

Columbia has never won at Lafayette, (although they did notch a tie in 1995), and this is surely one of the better Leopard teams they've faced over the decades.

Writer's Note

A colleague of mine, Ron Bowens, and I were discussing my recent article on Noel Devine when he asked me if I had heard of the “Tyrell kid down in Louisiana.” Taking as much pride as I do in knowing obscure sports names, players, stats, and information, I was a bit embarrassed that I hadn’t heard of him.

Ron assured me that I should check him out, and when I did, it prompted me to write a piece on him as well to bring attention to this fine young man.

Enjoy!

****************************************************************

From humble beginnings in La Place, LA, (population 30,590), Tyrell Fenroy has gone from prep phenom, to overlooked recruit, to the sixth-leading rusher in the nation. He also has grown mentally, physically, and spiritually as a person and player at the University of Louisiana-Lafayette.

Rated as a one-star recruit on Scout.com and a two-star recruit on Rivals.com out of St. Charles Catholic High School, Tyrell wasn’t even the most highly touted recruit at his position when he signed with the Cajuns in 2005. That honor went to a three-star speedster from Houston named Deon Wallace.

Tyrell’s low recruiting rankings are surprising given the success he had in high school and, in hindsight, the success he’s had at the D-I level.

Despite finishing his prep career with 5,714 all-purpose yards and 82 touchdowns, along with twice being voted Player of the Year by the Clarion Herald and being recruited by Florida, Tennessee, Ole Miss, and Texas, he only received offers from ULL and Ole Miss. Through soul searching and conferring with his family, he decided to stay close to home. 

As a true freshman, he started out buried in the depth chart, but after an injury to Wallace, forcing him to redshirt, Tyrell capitalized and went on to rush for 1,053 yards and 12 touchdowns, becoming the first back in ULL history to post a 1,000-yard rushing season. 

He followed that up with impressive sophomore and junior campaigns in which he posted over 1,000 yards for three straight years. 

This season though, after beefing up to around 215 lbs., he has gone above and beyond, posting four 100-plus yard performances in seven games, including a three-game stretch where he rushed for over 183 yards and scored three touchdowns in each game.  

When asked about Tyrell prior to the season starting, Coach Ricky Bustle said, “I think Tyrell is one of the finest backs I have ever been around. Whether I was at Virginia Tech, South Carolina, or anywhere. I think he is a heck of a back, as long as he wants to stay hungry, and he seems to be that way. That he wants to work hard every day, the sky's the limit. He is a tough guy, knock on wood and stays away from too many injuries.” 

Playing in the Sun Belt conference, on the best rushing offense in college football at 311.7 yards per game, the senior running back has gained 930 yards and 12 touchdowns and is on pace for 1,663 yards and 21 touchdowns. His 7.5 yards per carry is almost two yards higher than his career average. Fenroy is currently sixth in the nation in rushing.

What makes it so impressive is that Heisman candidate and NCAA leading rusher Javon Ringer, who has put up 1,373 yards, has 170 more carries than Fenroy but only averages 4.6 ypc. If Fenroy had 300 carries, he'd have 2,250 yards already!  

So far, he has racked up 4,241 yards and scored 42 touchdowns in his career, making him the Sun Belt Conference's all-time leading rusher. Earlier this season, he passed Patrick Cobbs of North Texas (now with the Miami Dolphins), who had 4,050 yards and 36 touchdowns. 

He needs just 70 yards to eclipse the 1,000-yard mark again, which will be his fourth consecutive 1,000-yard rushing season. Only six other players have accomplished that feat in NCAA history.

"I think about it a little bit," Fenroy says of the milestone. "It's just going to come when it comes. Really, I just go out and practice every day and make sure I leave everything on the field." 

The star running back is 21 years old, grounded, and is a man of faith. His mother has been encouraging and supportive of her son from day one. Ann Fenroy helped Tyrell with the recruiting process, deciding to commit to ULL, and talks to her son before each game to pray. 

"That's our tradition," Ann explains. "Every game he calls me...every game. He calls and he says, 'Momma, let's pray.'" 

The Doak Walker Award candidate has hopes of making it to the NFL, and if his play this year is any indication, he may very well be drafted next April. If not, the young man wants to become a State Trooper, putting his degree in Criminal Justice to good use. 

I’m sure that the highways of Louisiana can wait a few years, Tyrell. Have fun in the NFL.