Louisiana football manhandles UAB for nonconference road victory

The injury report heading into the showdown with UAB was not great for Louisiana football, most notably missing starting running back Dre'Lyn Washington.

Prior to kickoff, top receiver Rob Williams and right tackle George Jackson were scratched and then starting quarterback Ben Wooldridge went down with a foot injury in the first quarter. UL navigated its game with the Blazers with a patchwork offense, and it worked.

Coupled with a lockdown performance from its defense, Louisiana (2-1) embarrassed UAB, 41-21, to get back in the win column.

How Louisiana football handled QB Ben Wooldridge going down with injury early

During the first offensive drive of the game, Wooldridge went down with a reported foot injury, making a rough start with injuries for the unit much worse.

Zeon Chriss, the freshman reserve, entered the game for his first action since last season's Independence Bowl when he spelled an injured Chandler Fields.

Despite the quarterback change, UL coach Michael Desormeaux did little to change the team's approach, mixing in more zone-read runs. But a good sign was seeing Desormeaux dial up a deep shot to receiver Peter LeBlanc on his second series and the playbook remained open for the freshman signal caller.

But the mixture and balance allowed Chriss to flourish. He rushed for two second-quarter touchdowns, finishing with 174 passing yards, 103 rushing yards and three total TDs.

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Ragin' Cajuns defense dominates UAB Blazers, highlighted by 7 sacks

It's been a while since the Cajuns defense shut down an FBS offense like it did the Blazers.

UAB quarterback Jacob Zeno came into the game leading the nation in completions (35.5) and second in completion percentage (84.5) per game. There was little room and less time for him to operate against UL's defense, which forced two picks that the offense turned into 10 points in the first half. Zeno managed 280 passing yards on 27-of-38 passing and scored two late TDs.

Cameron Whitfield was a terror off the edge for Zeno as he led the Ragin' Cajuns seven-sack outing with 2.5 of his own.

Louisiana outgained UAB, 515 to 386 and limited them to 2-for-12 on third downs.

Ragin' Cajuns forced to go younger at receiver with Rob Williams out

UL's receiving corps was already young and inexperienced. The absence of Williams made the unit that much younger.

There wasn't much throwing with Chriss in at QB, but the younger crop of pass catchers stepped up when their respective number was called.

Freshman Harvey Broussard pulled down a 36-yard deep throw and ended his night with three receptions for 65 yards off a team-high six targets. Fellow freshman Charles Robertson and others didn't record a catch.

Cory Diaz covers the LSU Tigers and Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns for The Daily Advertiser as part of the USA TODAY Network. Follow his Tigers and Cajuns coverage on Twitter: @ByCoryDiaz. Got questions regarding LSU/UL athletics? Send them to Cory Diaz at bdiaz@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Lafayette Daily Advertiser: Louisiana football manhandles UAB for road victory