NEW ORLEANS — The Sun Belt Media Day marks the unofficial countdown to college football season, and the Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns are entering the 2025 campaign with redemption on their minds.
"I was going to get out of college coaching...I was worried about being the holdover...he leaned on me...it meant a lot for him to say those things."
— Jamarcus Fitzpatrick (@JFitzTV) July 22, 2025
.@RaginCajunsFB HC @michaeldes1 on Florida HC @coach_bnapier giving him praise last weekhttps://t.co/UituypnOjW https://t.co/TLlXftiEie pic.twitter.com/V6ucrjRyLl
The conference’s preseason poll tabbed the Cajuns as the favorite to win the Sun Belt West Division—an honor that comes months after a 10-4 season and a berth in their first Sun Belt Championship Game since 2021. That game ended in disappointment, with a lopsided 31-3 loss to Marshall, and the sting of that defeat is still driving the team forward.
“We had a chance to win the dang conference championship at home, at our place, and we came up short,” Louisiana head coach Michael Desormeaux said. “Really in a fashion that none of us are really proud of or pleased with. When you're really competitive, those are the types of things that just fuel your fire.”
The Cajuns bring back key talent, including senior safety Tyree Skipper, who says the team’s mentality has shifted.
“Hey, man, we hungry,” Skipper said. “That wasn’t our standard. We lost the bowl game and the Sun Belt Championship. We got a high standard that we gotta complete. The team knows it, and they gonna follow it.”
That same mindset is echoed in the trenches by senior offensive lineman Jax Harrington.
“Nothing's going to be granted to us,” Harrington said. “We really have the mindset that nothing's going to be given to us. We got to go out and earn it every single day. We can go 0-12, just like we can go 12-0.”
Louisiana begins its season on Aug. 30, hosting Rice at the newly renovated Our Lady of Lourdes Stadium in Lafayette.
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