Troy closes schedule at Louisiana on Saturday – The Troy Messenger

The Troy Trojans (3-7, 2-4) close out their 2024 road schedule against the Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns (8-2, 5-1) on Saturday.

Louisiana would clinch a spot in the Sun Belt Championship with a win over Troy, but the Trojans could shake things up with a win over the Cajuns, which would cause a possible four-way tie for first place heading into the season finale.

Troy is coming off a 28-20 win over Georgia Southern, where quarterback Matthew Caldwell walked away with the Sun Belt Offensive Player of the Week. Louisiana, meanwhile, is coming off a 24-22 loss to South Alabama.

In Troy’s last quarter of play, the Trojans have scored 94 points after scoring just 136 points in the previous 30 quarters. Caldwell has taken the reigns as Troy’s new starting quarterback, completing 101-of-156 passes for 1,191 yards, eight touchdowns and six interceptions. Damien Taylor has rushed for 774 yards and four scores, while Gerald Green has rushed for 492 yards and three touchdowns. Devonte Ross is among the conference’s receiving leaders with 63 catches for 879 yards and 10 touchdowns.

The Troy defense is led by linebacker Jordan Stringer’s 71 tackles, 6.5 tackles-for-loss, two sacks and an interception, while Brendan Jackson has tallied 63 tackles, 12 tackles-for-loss and a sack. Former walk-on Justin Powe has also tallied 59 tackles, one tackle-for-loss and a team-high two interceptions.

Louisiana enters the contest with one of the most efficient offenses in the conference, but will have to play without starting quarterback Been Wooldridge, who left the South Alabama game with an injury. Wooldridge had thrown for 2,392 yards and 17 touchdowns with just five interceptions before the injury. Chandler Fields will likely play in his place. He has thrown for 282 yards and a touchdown so far this season.

Troy and Louisiana will kick off at 4 p.m. this Saturday, November 23rd in a game that will air on ESPN+.