College Football Rankings 2020: Projected AP Top 25, Week 3
By Zach Bigalke
Louisiana scored the biggest win of any Group of Five team to date, going on the road to Ames in Week 2 and knocking off an Iowa State team that opened the year ranked No. 23 in the AP Top 25. It was the first time in Ragin’ Cajuns history that the Sun Belt team took down a ranked opponent on the road, and as a result they should jump into the AP Poll despite receiving no votes in the preseason.
The victory at Jack Trice Stadium was fueled by special teams. Chris Smith ran back a kickoff 95 yards in the second quarter immediately after Iowa State opened the scoring, and Eric Garror added an 83-yard punt return for another touchdown in the fourth quarter to ice the game. Louisiana’s defense also held the Cyclones to just 303 total yards of offense, as Brock Purdy struggled to complete passes all day.
The Ragin’ Cajuns stay on the road next week as they travel to Atlanta to face Georgia State in Sun Belt play. After such a resounding victory on the road, Louisiana increasingly looks like they could be in contention for the Group of Five bid into a New Year’s Six bowl game in this strange 2020 season.