Old Dominion offense reminds Louisiana football of Tennessee football. Here's why

Each week, each game presents varying degrees of challenges in football coaches’ construction of a gameplan to install for the team.

For Louisiana football (1-0) this week, as it travels to Old Dominion for the first time in school history to open Sun Belt Conference play Saturday afternoon (5 p.m., ESPN+), watching the Monarchs on film reminds them of a vaunted SEC team, identified by its offensive prowess.

“At ODU, it’s like the Tennessee football playbook a little bit,” said UL inside linebackers coach Galen Scott.

Tennessee coach Josh Heupel, former Oklahoma quarterback, has turned into one of top offensive minds in college football. And plenty of his concepts have made their way around the sport, including with the Monarchs and first-year offensive coordinator Kevin Decker.

ODU coach Ricky Rahne, who’s offense has been pretty woeful his first three seasons in Norfolk, hired Decker away from Fordham, who set an FCS record for yards per game at 609 last season and lit up scoreboards for 49.5 points a game.

“They’re going to try to stretch you way down field. They get it out quick on some screens, RPO action,” Scott said. “But they’re going to try to throw it down the field a little bit more.

“It’s a different challenge for us and they’ve got different skill players to operate with. They’ve got a good offensive football team. We’re going to have to play well.”

Monarch QB Grant Wilson, who played for Decker at Fordham, is the starting point for their attack and he led the way against Virginia Tech, leading the offense in passing and rushing, scoring both touchdowns via the air.

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To get as prepared as possible, the Louisiana defense is not only watching Old Dominion’s 36-17 loss to Virginia Tech last week, but it’s been diving into plenty of Fordham tape from the last couple of seasons. That, in and of itself, presents a different challenge as the players they scout aren’t the same.

“Seeing where (Decker) is at now versus where he was previous, it’s going to be challenging because when he was at Fordham, it’s not the same players as he’s got at ODU right now,” Ragin’ Cajuns sophomore safety Tyree Skipper said. “We have to watch the players at ODU, see how they run routes, see anything that can boost our level of game and make us play fast against those guys, while still watching Fordham to see his scheme. “

Coming off its best statistical performance since 2016, holding Northwestern State to 187 yards in Saturday night’s 38-13 victory, there’s confidence beaming within a Cajuns defense that technically had more new starters than returners from a season ago.

UL coach Michael Desormeaux has lauded the defense’s communication and athleticism despite that fact.

Old Dominion will undoubtedly lean on Wilson to drive its offense, Louisiana knows that. For Desormeaux and defensive coordinator LaMar Morgan, it’ll be a long process to figure out what the best plan will be.

“On offense, they do a lot of things that causes you problems with wide splits and tempo ... Light box runs they have. They have good schemes and an identity,” Desormeaux said.

“We have to figure out what’s the best plan for these guys. It’s similar to last week but different in some ways. Is it more four-down (defensive line front)? Is it more pressure? We have figure out the right fit.”

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: Why Louisiana football sees Tennessee football offense in Old Dominion