4:35 pm
September 4

#23 Louisiana @ #21 Texas

Who will WIN this matchup?

#23 Louisiana Ragin Cajuns

@ #21 Texas Longhorns

 

Current odds:

Louisiana Ragin Cajuns: (+280)

Texas Longhorns: (-350)

 

• The spread for the game is Texas by 9 points.

• The Longhorns head into play with a new coaching staff, led by former Alabama offensive coordinator Sarkisian, and with a new starting signal caller. Gone is record-setting quarterback Sam Ehlinger, with redshirt freshman Hudson Card and junior Casey Thompson vying to earn the nod behind center. Indications from fall camp are that Card will be the starter, but that Thompson should see some snaps.

• Texas went 7-3 in 2020 and posted a definitive victory over Colorado in the Alamo Bowl. Eight starters return from an offense that averaged 475 yards and 43 points per game in that truncated season. That list doesn’t even include sophomore running back Bijan Robinson, who was named as a preseason All-America by the Associated Press. Nine players that started on defense in the Alamo Bowl also return for the Longhorns. Sarkisian puts little credence in the preseason polls.

• Louisiana’s ranking in the preseason AP poll is its first ever, and comes on the heels of a 10-1 season in 2020. The Ragin’ Cajuns spilt the Sun Belt Conference championship, won their third straight Sun Belt West Division title and posted their second straight bowl victory, a 31-24 win over UTSA in the SERVPRO First Responder Bowl. Louisiana, with Billy Napier heading into his fourth year as head coach in Lafayette, finished 15th in the final AP poll of 2020, four spots higher than the Longhorns. The Ragin’ Cajuns feature an offense triggered by fifth-year quarterback Levi Lewis that averaged 422 yards and 34 points per game a year ago.

• The Ragin’ Cajuns set the table for a wild season in 2020 when they upset No. 23 Iowa State in Ames. Twenty starters return from last year’s team, with Louisiana poised to have one of its best campaigns ever. If the Ragin’ Cajuns can duplicate their beginning from last season, it could be a benchmark year on the bayou.

6/10
Confidence
StreakSmarter Pick
#21 Texas Longhorns
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