Box Score
PINEVILLE, La. - The LC football team opened their 2009 season in convincing fashion with a 59-21 win over NAIA member, Bacone College. LC rolled up 556 total yards of offense, forced five turnovers and limited Bacone to only 234 yards of offense. The Wildcats have a bye next week. They will return to action September 19th, traveling to nationally ranked Hardin-Simmons for a 2 p.m contest.
Louisiana College football coach Dennis Dunn and his Wildcats went into their season opener against Bacone College knowing nothing of what to expect from the Warriors.
The Wildcats were quick studies, however, and made short work of the team from Muskogee, Okla., to notch a 59-21 win at Wildcat Stadium despite a week in which the home team was unable to acquire film of Bacone to study.
“I was really pleased with out kids' effort tonight,” Dunn said. “Bacone is a team with a new coach and we didn't know what to expect from them. We had no film for this game, but I thought our kids did a great job overcoming that lack of information.”
Pacing the LC effort was the duo of Donovan Williams and Jordan Rideaux, two of the three players who grace the front of the Wildcats' media guide.
Rideaux, a wide receiver accounted for two touchdowns and 71 yards on four receptions, including an 56-yard reception from Ben McLaughlin for LC's first score of the season, and notched 66 yards on a combined four punt and kick returns.
Williams, normally a linebacker, was all over the field on defense, and even got into the act on offense, scoring on a three-yard run in the second quarter as a part of the Wildcats' goal-line offense.
“When we started driving, Coach Dunn told us he was going to put me in if we got down to the goal line,” Williams said. “I told him, not to be selfish, but I really wanted to score. He made the call and I was able to get in.”
Williams also made a diving interception to halt the Warriors' opening drive of the second half, a play that set up a quick touchdown for the Wildcats, a score that came on a xx-yard run by tailback Lee Jones which, coupled with a 95-yard kickoff return for a touchdown by Detrick James, made the score 45-21 and all but ended the game in the third quarter.
On the night, the LC defense forced five turnovers, four interceptions and one fumble.
“The story of this game was missed opportunities,” Bacone coach Lloyd Spotted Wolf said. “Several times we had guys wide open and dropped balls or didn't convert. We had four interceptions tonight and on three of them, the first pair of hands to touch the ball belong to a Bacone Warrior ... We need to work on making those conversions. There ain't no doubt in my mind that we'll start to do that as the season goes on.”
The Wildcats took the early lead Rideaux hauled in his 56-yard touchdown pass from McLaughlin.
The Warriors tied the scored quickly however, thanks to a 67-yard touchdown run by tailback JaMario Thomas.
A second Rideaux touchdown (on a five-yard reception), a three-yard touchdown run by Donovan Williams, a four-yard touchdown run by McLaughlin and a 25-yard field goal by John Michiels followed as LC scored 24 unanswered to build a 31-7 advantage.
The Williams touchdown was something of an anomaly as Williams, normally a linebacker, was able to score out of the backfield.
He later made a diving interception to halt the Warriors' opening drive of the second half.
The Warriors stopped Wildcats' scoring spree just before the half with a 15-yard touchdown pass from Spencer Johnson to Roman Nelson to send the game to the break with Louisiana College ahead 31-14.
Of the Wildcats 556 total yards on the night, 285 of which came off the arm of McLaughlin.
Chaz Baxter and Chad Hindman rushed for 66 and 62 yards respectively to lead LC's ground attack.
Bacone managed 234 yards of total offense.
