Coming off a brutal 38-point defeat against Brigham Young University, Head Coach Jake Spavital and his Texas State Bobcats will look to rebound on Homecoming night with a win against the University of Louisiana at Lafayette Ragin’ Cajuns.
The Bobcats will enter the game with a 1-6 overall record (1-2 in the Sun Belt) riding a four-game losing streak and seeking their first home victory of the season. 
Louisiana goes into the Halloween night matchup with a 4-1 overall record (2-1 in the Sun Belt) and is undefeated on the road.
The Cajuns have a 7-0 all-time record against Texas State and an average margin of victory of two possessions. The two teams’ most recent battle came last season when Louisiana pummeled Texas State 31-3.
The Bobcats will have their hands full again, with the team experiencing injuries to key players.
“We were about to finish the game [against BYU] with four [defensive backs],” Spavital said. “You know, we don’t got anybody else. A lot of bumps and bruises, shoulder injuries, ankle injuries… we’ve just got to move guys around as much as we can; we’re a little depleted there obviously.”
Louisiana is one of the most efficient offenses in Division I football, led by senior quarterback Levi Lewis who has thrown for seven touchdowns and four interceptions while boasting a 135.16 passer rating through eight games.
The Bobcats’ front seven will have to take a step forward if they want to stop the Cajuns’ high-power rushing attack, along with their efficient passing offense.
“They’ve got a very good sense of running the football, establishing the run, and being committed to it,” Spavital said. “They have a quarterback that you know, they don’t ask him to do much, but he’s very efficient in what he does… it’s going to be a tough battle.”
Louisiana averages over five yards per carry and has eight touchdowns on the ground, led by senior running backs Trey Ragas and Elijah Mitchell.
Texas State’s rushing attack, led by sophomore Jahmyl Jeter, sophomore Brock Sturges, and freshman Calvin Hill, also has eight touchdowns on the ground, averaging 3.9 yards per carry.
The Bobcats will look for sophomore quarterback Brady McBride to protect the football. Spavital says McBride is improving week to week.
“For the most part he’s getting better with that [off-script play]; he’s managing the game and getting it to the right spot,” Spavital said. “We’ve just got to help him out in other areas. And then he’s just got to be smarter in terms of the plays over, let me just throw it away and move on to the next one.”
Texas State’s wide receiver group will look to win its individual matchups against a team that runs a lot of man coverage.
“They’ve got a lot of athletes on their team… which I believe is true but we’ve got a lot of athletes on our team so a lot of it is us working on us this week [in practice],” said Marcell Barbee, junior wide receiver.
Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. on Oct. 31 at Bobcat Stadium. The game will be broadcast on ESPNU.