New Orleans Bowl regular Louisiana-Lafayette meets FBS newcomer Jacksonville State
Fri, Dec 15, 2023
NCAAF News (AP)
New Orleans Bowl: Louisiana-Lafayette (6-6) vs. Jacksonville State (8-4), Dec. 16, 2:15 p.m. ET (ESPN)
Line: Jacksonville State by 2 1/2, according to FanDuel Sportsbook.
Series record: Jacksonville State leads 1-0.
WHAT'S AT STAKE
Louisiana-Lafayette had to win its regular-season finale against in-state rival Louisiana-Monroe to sneak into its sixth straight bowl game and now needs a win to finish above .500. It's the Ragin' Cajuns' seventh appearance in the New Orleans Bowl, where they are offically 3-1 with two vacated victories. This is the first bowl appearance at the FBS level for Jacksonville State and a chance for coach Rich Rodriguez to make this historic moment for the Gamecocks a triumphant one.
KEY MATCHUP
Jacksonville State's running game against the Cajuns' defensive front. JSU has averaged 232.3 yards rushing per game, while the Cajuns are allowing 160.9 yards rushing.
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Louisiana-Lafayette: QB Chandler Fields, the Cajuns' third starter under center this season, has thrown for 788 yards, seven touchdowns and completed 73.2% (71-of-97) of his passes in three three starts vs. Southern Miss, Troy and ULM.
Jacksonville State: DE Chris Hardie has 16 1/2 tackles for loss, and 8 1/2 sacks this season. He also has 22 sacks in his career, the second most in program history.
FACTS & FIGURES
The only other meeting between these teams was during the 2000 season, when Jacksonville State won 28-14. ... ULL is appearing in a bowl game for the 11th time in school history. ... Louisiana-Lafayette's defense has recorded 32 sacks. ... Jacob Kibodi leas the Cajuns in rushing with 729 yards to go along with seven touchdowns. Kibodi is averaging 5.7 yards per carry. ... Cameron Whitfield leads ULL in sacks with seven to go along with eight tackles for loss. ... K Kelvin Almendares is 13-of-14 on field goals, and 46-of-47 on PATs. ... Cajuns left tackle Nathan Thomas is out with a knee injury. ... Jacksonville State is the first team since 1997 to make a bowl game in its first FBS season and the fifth team to do so overall. ... There were 13 Jackson State defenders with at least one interception this season, the most of any FBS team. ... The Gamecocks have rushed for as much as 522 yards in a game this season when they did so in a 56-17 victory over Louisiana Tech on Nov. 18. ... JSU RB Malik Jackson averaged 6.5 yards per carry and has 859 rush yards and seven TDs rushing.
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AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-football-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-football
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