With the Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns football team kicking the season off this weekend, I present to you my record predictions for UL this season, including what I believe to be the absolute floor and absolute ceiling. Uncertainty Leads to Wide Record Range So let’s talk about it. There’s a pretty wide spread between what I believe the absolute floor and absolute ceiling could be for this 2026 Cajuns team, and that goes to show just how much uncertainty surrounds UL in my eyes. There have been times this offseason where I looked at this team as a 10+ win group, and other times where I viewed them as yet another 6-6 group. When you lose significant talent to the transfer portal and graduation, things can change quickly. The good news is that UL didn’t lose as many players to the portal as similar programs typically do, and many of the players who stayed gained valuable playing experience last season because of all the injuries the Cajuns had to endure. The bad news is that several of the players UL did lose were key contributors. Injuries sustained this offseason only added another layer of uncertainty for me and many Cajuns fans out there. Schedule Opens the Door for Potentially High Ceiling One thing is for sure: as usual, the Cajuns have a relatively manageable schedule. Only three of their 12 opponents currently rank inside the top 100 of ESPN’s Football Power Index: USC, Southern Miss and Troy. You can look at that schedule and immediately say UL has an opportunity to win a lot of football games, and rightly so, I would agree. The Cajuns are very capable of winning nine or 10 games this season, and potentially even 11 if things break their way and, most importantly, the team stays healthy. Now I will be honest, I am ruling out a 12-0 regular season because I simply don’t think the Cajuns are capable of beating USC on the road with the talent the Trojans have. UL will also be traveling all the way to the West Coast, while USC already has a game under its belt after playing San Jose State last weekend. That should give the Trojans an advantage in being more settled in and game-ready by the time the Cajuns, who will have only played an FCS team in Lamar, arrive on September 12. Outside of USC, the biggest stretch of the season comes in mid-October. UL will play at Louisiana Tech, return home to face Troy and then travel to Southern Miss. To me, those are the three toughest games on the schedule after USC. Troy is the only home game of the three, while the other two will come on the road against programs that have typically given the Cajuns problems. Still, if UL is healthy, I think all three games are within reach. The Cajuns kept things competitive against Troy and Southern Miss last season despite being severely depleted at several key positions. An Unsatisfactory Low Floor Still Exists On the flip side, I wouldn’t completely rule out another 6-6 season or even a losing record. UL’s depth is relatively young (which once again, isn’t unusual for a program like this). Now they have depth with experience, including at offensive line, but they are injury prone. Not to mention, the wide receiver room is, in my eyes, thin when it comes to proven experience, and the secondary still has plenty to prove as well. If injuries begin piling up again, that’s where I could see this team struggling to get beyond six or seven wins. And we don’t have to look very far back to see how quickly that can happen. At this time last season, expectations were extremely high. The Cajuns had Walker Howard, Shelton Sampson Jr., several promising transfer additions and a more veteran roster overall. A lot of people believed UL had a legitimate chance to win 10-plus games and potentially accomplish more than simply reaching the Sun Belt Championship Game. Then the injuries started. They began as early as Week 1 and seemingly never stopped. UL eventually found itself sitting at 2-6 with a similar strength of schedule to this season, and it became clear pretty early that the team we saw on paper before the season was not going to be the same team we watched on Saturdays. That experience is a big reason why I’m hesitant to automatically assume everything will go right this season. As far as how low things could realistically go, I simply do not see the Cajuns losing to Lamar, UAB, UL-Monroe or Georgia State. Or at least I would think. I may even go as far as saying I don’t think they lose to Coastal Carolina, but Coastal’s level of play seems to vary from year to year, so I’m a little less confident there. Regardless, it would surprise me if UL finished with only four or five wins. On paper, this team is better than at least half of the teams on its schedule. Of course, like I said earlier, we learned last season that being better on paper doesn’t mean much when a quarter of your roster is injured. And those of us who follow the Cajuns, as well as the New Orleans Saints, know a thing or two about how different things can be from expectations when injuries plague your team. We unfortunately have a tendency to attract injury-prone players, but that’s a story for another time. At the time of writing this, I also don’t believe this year’s team on paper is any more talented than the group UL had entering last season. I am just simply being real here. That doesn’t necessarily mean this team will be worse, but it’s another reason why I’m not ready to confidently call the Cajuns a 10-win team before seeing them in action. Final Thoughts on Record Prediction Ultimately, because of how favorable the schedule is, I don’t think it’s difficult to envision UL having a very successful season. At the same time however, knowing this program’s recent injury history and considering how young or thin certain parts of the roster are, I’m not ready to assume this season will automatically be dramatically better than last year. I actually went back and forth for a while between predicting 8-4 and 9-3 because I realistically believe the Cajuns’ final regular-season record will land somewhere around those two marks. The four games I’m most concerned about are USC, Louisiana Tech, Troy and Southern Miss. Losing to Louisiana Tech and Southern Miss would certainly hurt, but both games will be on the road against teams expected to be competitive within the Sun Belt. The Troy game was ultimately the deciding factor for me. I view that matchup as a true toss-up, and one that could come down heavily to how healthy UL is by that point in the season. I also believe that game could ultimately decide whether the Cajuns reach the Sun Belt Championship Game, similar to how last season’s matchup versus Troy ultimately decided who made it (after it was all said and done). The Louisiana Tech matchup will also carry some extra juice with it being the Bulldogs’ first Sun Belt game after joining the conference. As much as I hate to say it, I fully expect Louisiana Tech to be fired up for that one. Unfortunately, with the record I’m predicting and losses to the teams I mentioned above, I don’t think that will be enough to get UL back to the Sun Belt Championship Game, as my prediction would have them finishing 5-3 in SBC West play. Still, if that ends up being the final result, I would be satisfied considering everything surrounding not only the football program this offseason, but the athletic department and university as a whole (again, a story for another day). More importantly, I think this season could serve as a bridge toward what has the potential to be a special year for the Cajuns in 2027. But first, we have to see what this team actually looks like. That starts this weekend against Lamar, a matchup which won’t be a gimme like typical FCS games the Cajuns schedule. Lamar is coming in ranked in the FCS Top 25 after taking down a top 25 opponent last weekend, so they will be coming in hungry. Regardless, Cajuns fans are hoping this season’s opener showing looks a whole lot better than what we saw in last season’s opener against Rice. So after going through the schedule, the roster and all of the uncertainty surrounding this team, here’s where I ultimately land: Absolute floor: 4-8 Projected record: 8-4 Absolute ceiling: 11-1 Those who know me well know that I am a realist. Rather than being the super optimistic, I just want to be right with my predictions. Saints and Cajuns fans know what it’s look to be completely wrong with optimistic predictions because things don’t go as expected. We all know how hard it is being a fan of both.

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The final 53 man roster is in and the results are not too surprising this year. About what was expected on offense and a surprise name on defense. Let us break it down by position starting on offense. (QB) - 3 Tyler Shough, Spencer Rattler, Zach Wilson The Saints are rolling with Shough, Rattler, and Wilson to start the regular season. Shough of course the starting quarterback but after him there was certainly some potential for surprise given the lackluster performance by Rattler and Wilson this offseason. Sounds like the Saints were exploring outside options at backup quarterback so look for that interest to continue for the near future. (RB) - 4 Travis Etienne Jr, Alvin Kamara, Kendre Miller, Audric Estime Four running backs is typically unusual but given the health of the running backs on the roster currently carrying four makes total sense. Kamara is banged up currently and Miller has obvious talent but has not been able to show the ability to stay healthy. Audric Estime capitalized on his opportunity given the uncertainty of health in the room. (WR) - 5 Chris Olave, DeVaughn Vele, Bryce Lance, Barion Brown, Kevin Austin Jr Even with the injury to Jordyn Tyson the Saints are feeling very satisfied with this wide receiver room. Lance and Brown especially have shown this offseason and training camp they will be able to contribute when their number is called which could certainly be sooner than later. (TE) - 4 Juwan Johnson, Noah Fant, Oscar Delp, Treyton Welch Four tight ends is a little surprising but because of a hamstring issue with Delp Welch latches on with the team. Welch has shown to be a capable back up tight end and can play special teams so his presence will help solidify the back of the depth chart while Delp gets healthy. (OL) - 8 Kelvin Banks Jr, David Edwards, Eric McCoy, Cesar Ruiz, Taliese Fuaga, Asim Richards, Jeremiah Wright, William Sherman No real surprises here in the offensive live room as the Saints feel good about the potential and depth of this group. Of the group Jeremiah Wright showed some real potential in the preseason to maybe push for a starting role before too long should Cesar Ruiz not step up his level of play. (iDL) - 6 Davon Godchaux, Christen Miller, Vernon Broughton, Nathan Shepard, John Ridgeway III, Khristian Boyd There was room for a surprise here with the injury to Bresee early on in training camp however the names in this room have quite a bit to prove. The D-line group consists of aging veterans and unproven youngsters so this will be a position on the team to monitor this season with quite a few question marks moving forward. (Edge) - 6 Chase Young, Carl Granderson, Cameron Jordan, Anfernee Jennings, Chris Rumph, Tyree Wilson As expected here, the only question of this group in the offseason was whether Cameron Jordan would return or not. Chase Young is poised to take over the top pass rushing mantle from Jordan and become the cornerstone piece on defense for the Saints looking ahead. Behind him are reliable veterans who know their role and what is expected of them. (LB) - 4 Kaden Ellis, Pete Werner, Danny Stutsman, Isaiah Stallbird This will be an interesting group to watch this after the departure of Demario Davis this offseason. Davis’ presence has kept quite a few young, talented linebackers from getting their opportunity on the field but opportunity is plentiful with his absence combined with the level of play from Pete Werner last season. Kaden Ellis looks to make an impact in his return to the Saints as a versatile piece for Brandon Staley to deploy in different spots on defense. (CB) - 4 Kool Aid-McKinstry, Quincy Riley, Martin Emerson Jr, Jayden Price Four corners is an interesting choice not usually made by many teams. The back end depth at corner was dealt some major injuries throughout camp and preseason so this could be a position where the Saints try to fortify on the back end sooner than later. Overall though this is quite the young group of corner who will have their work cut out for them this season on the back end. Croner felt like a position the Saints wished they were able to make a bigger investment in this offseason but ultimately were not able to. (DB) - 6 Justin Reid, Julian Blackmon, Jonas Sanker, Jordan Howden, Lorenzo Styles Jr, Mike Reid Here comes the biggest surprise of the list, Mike Reid. Reid's addition to the 53 man roster felt purely about the ability he showed while playing special teams this summer so kudos to him for earning a spot. The defensive back room as a whole is a good mixture between talented veterans and young players with upside most notably Jonas Sanker after having an impressive rookie season. Sanker will be the one to watch from this group as his role changes to play more in the slot. (Specialists) - 3 Ryan Wright, Daniel Carlson, Zach Wood The surprise here was Carlson who was given a week to earn the kicking job and promptly did so in the last preseason game against the Cowboys. Both Carlson and Wright are looking to finally answer the long time woes the Saints have had at both the kicker and punter positions. For the Saints sake I hope they do as they would deeply benefit from some stability in those positions. The main takeaway from me is the majority of 53 feels written in stone while there are some positions where there will probably be more changes in the coming weeks. The Saints came out of the preseason in a good spot and will look to capitalize in Week 1 when they travel to Detroit to take on the Lions.

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Well that was a much more enjoyable watch then last week was it not? The offense was able to move the ball down the field and get the ball in the end zone. The defense was able to hold the Cowboys to long field goals in the first half and special teams did not have any blemishes. Overall quite a successful team performance resulting in the team’s first victory of the preseason. Even if the win does not mean anything towards the regular season standings, being able to start game planning for Week 1 against the Lions with some momentum from a win is better than the alternative. Let’s break down the victory against the Cowboys as we begin to look towards Week 1. First I want to start off by talking about the offense. What a bounce back performance they had today against the Cowboys. Give credit to the offensive line as they were able to create the running lanes needed for the running backs to take full advantage of today. The running back depth chart just might seemingly be dictated by health more so than talent for the Saints this year. Kendre Miller clearly has always had the talent to be an impactful running back in the NFL but health has been his achilles heel thus far in his career but as of right now I believe he will have a spot on the 53 man roster. After him though I will be curious as to what the Saints do with Audric Estime as he has been productive throughout his short tenure with the team. I believe the Saints will find a spot on the 53 man roster for him as he would surely be snatched up by another team if the Saints did not make room for him. At the beginning of the preseason I was curious as to how the depth of the wide receiver room would shake out given all the draft capital the Saints had invested in this past draft. Jordyn Tyson will surely make quite the impact when he recovers from his injury but I wanted to see if the Day 3 wide receivers in Bryce Lance and Barion Brown would be able to flash enough for them to show they can be legitimate positional depth for the Saints. Mission accomplished. Both Lance and Brown have flashed their talent all summer where I feel very good about the wide receiver room which is quite the turnaround considering the status of the room at the end of last season. I look forward to seeing what the rookies can do on the Sundays ahead. The one major thing on offense I am still unsure on is the status of QB2 behind Tyler Shough. Spencer Rattler did what he needed to do today but will that be enough to keep the Saints from bringing in someone from outside the building? I could make a case for either scenario so it will be interesting to see what the Saints do there as the backup quarterback is an important spot to have someone capable there. As not having a capable backup will sink a promising season before you blink. On defense you get the outing you needed to see in the first half. A bend but not break effort resulting in the Cowboys being forced to kick long field goals. The defense was able to keep Joe Milton in check who has been starting to make quite the reputation for himself with good preseason showings in his short career thus far. There was complimentary football being played so the defense was not out in the field for extended periods of time to where you could see them starting to get worn down. The second half however was a bit of a different story. In the second half the Cowboys were able to quickly move the ball down the field thanks to veteran Sam Howell who just shredded the secondary. The beauty of preseason as a fan is when you watch the other team doing so well late in the game you get to fall back on the fact most of these players will have either very limited roles or not even be on the team come Week 1. So although I would have liked to see the defense close out the game better in the fourth quarter they did what they needed in order to secure the victory. I’ll be curious to see if there will be many roster surprises on the defensive side of the ball come cut down day. Last but not least is special teams where there was not much left to interpret there. Daniel Carlson appears to be the new kicker heading into Week 1 and there were not any special teams blunders or impact plays in the game today. Overall just a solid outing from the special teams unit today where hopefully some guys earned some jobs in the league with what they put on tape this preseason. That puts a wrap on the preseason. We’ll see what cut down day has in store for the Saints as they typically have a surprise name or two end up on the 53 man roster. But once the 53 man roster settles all eyes will be ahead looking towards Week 1 against the Detroit Lions. Practice time is over, from here on out, it’s meaningful football again.

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