The Texas State Bobcats (1-3, 0-0) travel to meet the Louisiana-Lafayette Ragin’ Cajuns (1-3, 0-0) this week in a matchup between a couple SBC teams who’ve started the season off slow. A player to watch in this matchup is the SBC’s second-leading rusher, Elijah McGuire (415 yards, 6 TDs). Players will take the field Saturday, Oct 10 at 7:00 p.m. ET and it will air on ESP3.
Louisiana-Lafayette was blown out by Louisiana Tech 43-14 last week. Elijah McGuire had a solid outing on the ground in the loss, gaining 84 yards on 12 carries. He was also a threat in the passing game with 70 yards and a TD on six receptions. Jalen Nixon added 161 yards and a TD through the air. Texas State had a rough game as well, getting blown out by Houston 59-14. Demun Mercer had a good game for the Bobcats, registering six receptions for 71 yards.
Louisiana-Lafayette is a five-point favorite in this game and the Over/Under (O/U) is currently unavailable.
Heading into Week 6 of the college football season, the Ragin’ Cajuns are 1-3 Straight Up (SU) and 2-2 Against The Spread (ATS). The Louisiana-Lafayette run game is productive, currently ranking 24th in the nation with 217 rushing yards per game. Texas State could put the Ragin’ Cajuns away early, because the Bobcats are one of the worst in the country in scoring defense for the fourth quarter. So far this year, they’ve given up an average of 13 fourth-quarter points.
On the other side, the Bobcats have 1-3 SU and ATS records this season. Running the ball has yielded impressive results thus far for the Bobcats. They average 5.5 yards per rush, one of the best rates in Division I. Switching gears to the Texas State defense, there are certain areas where it measures up well against the Ragin’ Cajuns. If the Ragin’ Cajuns aren’t careful with ball security against Texas State’s defense, they are going to be in some trouble. That defense has recovered the 18th-most fumbles on the season with one per game. The Bobcats usually get going immediately from the initial kickoff, averaging 11.2 points in the first quarter this year. Special teams usually provides a spark for Texas State. They average the 15th-most return yards in the nation with 125.8.
Predictions: SU Winner – Texas State, ATS Winner – Texas State
Notes
Louisiana-Lafayette is 9-4 SU in its last 13 games.
The total has gone OVER in 13 of Louisiana-Lafayette’s last 18 games at home.
Louisiana-Lafayette is 20-5 SU in its last 25 games at home.
Texas State is 1-1 SU when leading at the half this season. Louisiana-Lafayette is 1-0 SU when taking a lead into halftime.
Among all FBS teams, the Louisiana-Lafayette offensive passing game is ranked 93rd in the nation, while the Texas State pass defense is only ranked 126th. The Bobcats passing attack is ranked 29th, compared to the 80th-ranked pass defense of the Ragin’ Cajuns.
