LAFAYETTE – After an early season open date, the Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns football team returns to action on Saturday when it plays host to in-state rival Tulane in a nationally-televised contest at Cajun Field.

Kickoff is scheduled for 11 a.m., with the contest being televised live on ESPNU with Mike Corey (play-by-play) and Rene Ingoglia (color) providing the commentary. The game will also be aired on the Ragin’ Cajuns Radio Network with Jay Walker (play-by-play), Cody Junot (color) and Dawson Eiserloh (sideline) on the call.

Louisiana (2-0) returns to play after opening the season with impressive wins over Grambling (40-10) and Kennesaw State (34-10). The Ragin’ Cajuns face their biggest test of the season against Tulane (1-2), which opened the season with a win over Southeastern Louisiana before losses to nationally-ranked opponents Kansas State and Oklahoma.

The meeting is the 30th all-time between the schools which dates back to 1911 and is the fourth overall at Cajun Field. Louisiana claimed a 41-13 win in the last meeting in Lafayette on Oct. 6, 2012 with the Green Wave claiming the previous two meetings in the series, capped by a 41-24 victory in the 2018 Cure Bowl in Orlando, Fla.

GAME 3 PREVIEW – Louisiana (2-0) vs. Tulane (1-2)

Location: Cajun Field (25,000); Lafayette, La.

Date | Time: Saturday, September 21 | 11 a.m.

TV/RADIO

TV: ESPNU

Talent: Mike Corey (play-by-play), Rene Ingoglia (color)

Radio: Lafayette – Hot 107.9 FM; 103.3 The Goat, 1420 AM; New Orleans/Slidell – WGSO 990 AM; Worldwide – Varsity Network powered by Learfield

Talent: Jay Walker (play-by-play), Cody Junot (color), Dawson Eiserloh (sideline)

Live Stats: CajunStats.com

THE ALL-TIME SERIES

Overall: Tulane leads, 23-6

In Lafayette: Tulane, 2-1

In New Orleans: Tulane, 20-5

Neutral Sites: Tulane, 1-0

First Meeting: Tulane, 27-0 (October 18, 1911 at New Orleans)

Last Meeting: Tulane, 41-24 (December 15, 2018 at Orlando, Fla.)

LOUISIANA HOSTS IN-STATE RIVAL TULANE FOR FIRST TIME SINCE 2012

• Coming off an open date, Louisiana returns to action before a national audience as it plays host to in-state rival and American Athletic Conference member Tulane at Cajun Field.

• The game will be televised nationally on ESPNU

• The meeting in Lafayette is the fourth all-time between the schools and first since 2012.

• Louisiana improved to 2-0 on the season after posting an impressive 34-10 win at Conference USA newcomer Kennesaw State on Sept. 7.

• The nationally-televised broadcast is the first of three currently on Louisiana’s schedule with the Ragin’ Cajuns game at Wake Forest next week (Sept. 28) slated for the ACC Network and Texas State on Oct. 29 in a Sun Belt Conference showdown on ESPN2.

A LOUISIANA WIN WOULD …

• Give Louisiana its first 3-0 start since the 2020 season and sixth time overall since 1975 (1975, 1976, 1977, 1982, 1988).

• Improve Louisiana’s record in the month of September (since 2020) to 13-5 overall.

• Would be Louisiana’s first regular-season win over Tulane since a 41-13 victory on Oct. 6, 2012.

• Give Louisiana its 14th straight win at home against non-conference opponents dating back to 2016 – the last non-conference loss at home for Louisiana was against Boise State in the 2016 season opener.

• Give Louisiana head coach Michael Desormeaux his first victory over a Jon Sumrall-coached team in three tries. Sumrall guided Troy to a pair of one-score victories over Louisiana in 2022 (23-17) and 2023 (31-24).

• Give Desormeaux a 4-1 record against in-state competition.

UPCOMING LOUISIANA MILESTONES

• With 252 career points, kicker Kenneth Almendares is five points shy of tying Brett Baer (257, 2010-12) for eighth-place in school history and six from tying Trey Ragas (258, 2017-20) for seventh.

• Receiver Jacob Bernard is 26 yards shy of reaching 1,000 career all-purpose yards (863 receiving, 95 punt returns, 16 kick returns).

• Senior linebacker K.C. Ossai is 18 tackles shy of reaching 200 in his career.

• Zylan Perry needs 92 all-purpose yards to reach 1,500 in his career.

• Junior running back Dre’lyn Washington is 110 rushing yards shy of reaching 1,000 for his career.

AGAINST THE GREEN WAVE

• The meeting with Tulane marks the 30th overall contest between the in-state schools in a series which dates back to 1911.

• Tulane leads the all-time series, 23-6.

• In the last 13 meetings dating back to 1988, the series has been nearly even with Tulane holding a 7-6 advantage.

TEAM NOTES

• Louisiana is tied for second among FBS programs in fewest penalties (6) and is third in fewest penalty yards (50).

• The Ragin’ Cajuns are 10th nationally in total defense after the first three weeks, allowing an average of 222.5 yards per game.

• The one punt by Louisiana in its first two games is the fewest of all FBS programs after the first three weeks.

• Louisiana’s 34-10 win over Kennesaw State on Sept. 7 was its first win on grass since defeating Iowa State, 31-17, in the 2020 opener in Ames, Iowa.