By Doug Gann | 446Sports
PINEVILLE, La. — One week after walking into Turpin Stadium and stunning an NCAA Division I opponent, Louisiana Christian came home with a very different challenge.
Could the Wildcats turn the page?
Could they handle success?
Could they take a conference opponent they were supposed to beat and play like the team everybody suddenly wanted to talk about?
Yeah.
They handled it.
Louisiana Christian piled up 640 yards of offense, rushed for 390, scored 10 touchdowns and overwhelmed Langston 70-14 Saturday night at Wildcat Field.
LCU improved to 2-0 overall and 1-0 in conference play, and this one stopped feeling competitive long before the final whistle.
The Wildcats scored 21 points in the first quarter, led 28-14 at halftime and then buried the Lions with 42 unanswered points after the break.
Last week showed Louisiana Christian could win a fight.
This week?
The Wildcats showed they could put somebody away.
LCU Came Out Swinging
The first scoring drive didn’t require much patience.
After Darius Washington’s punt return and a Langston penalty gave LCU the football in plus territory, EJ Scott ripped off a 27-yard run and Datlan Cunningham finished the short field with a five-yard touchdown.
Then came the explosives.
Bryce Perkins found EJ Scott for a 66-yard touchdown to make it 14-0.
Langston answered immediately with a 46-yard score.
LCU answered right back.
| First-Half Scoring | Score |
|---|---|
| Datlan Cunningham 5-yard TD run | LCU 7-0 |
| EJ Scott 66-yard TD catch from Bryce Perkins | LCU 14-0 |
| Langston 46-yard TD pass Wasel to Langley | LCU 14-7 |
| Omarius Davis 47-yard TD catch from Bryce Perkins | LCU 21-7 |
| Joe Johnson 7-yard TD run | LCU 28-7 |
| Langston 2-yard TD run | LCU 28-14 |
That Davis touchdown mattered because Langston had just cut the lead in half.
Twenty seconds earlier, Steele Wasel had hit Janeal Langley for 46 yards and suddenly it was 14-7.
The Lions had a little life.
LCU took it right back.
Perkins eventually faced fourth-and-three near midfield. Joe Johnson powered ahead for five yards to move the chains.
Next snap?
Perkins to Davis.
Forty-seven yards. Touchdown.
Whatever momentum Langston thought it had lasted less than four minutes of game clock.
Then the Running Game Took Over
There are rushing performances where one back dominates the box score.
This wasn’t one of them.
Louisiana Christian just kept sending people at Langston.
Cunningham.
Joe Johnson.
Phillip Jones II.
Ashontis Brooks Jr.
Kedrian McNeil.
Perkins.
Scott.
Travis Adams.
By the end of the night, the Wildcats had rushed 52 times for 390 yards and six touchdowns, averaging 7.5 yards per carry.
And at the top were Cunningham and Johnson.
| LCU Rushing Leaders | Carries | Yards | Avg. | TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Datlan Cunningham | 19 | 115 | 6.1 | 2 |
| Joe Johnson | 13 | 114 | 8.8 | 2 |
| Phillip Jones II | 3 | 37 | 12.3 | 1 |
| Ashontis Brooks Jr. | 4 | 33 | 8.3 | — |
| Kedrian McNeil | 4 | 27 | 6.8 | — |
| Bryce Perkins | 4 | 25 | 6.3 | — |
| EJ Scott | 1 | 25 | 25.0 | — |
| Travis Adams | 3 | 18 | 6.0 | 1 |
Cunningham and Johnson combined for 229 yards and four rushing touchdowns on 32 carries.
Cunningham was steady all night and had a 47-yard burst in the third quarter.
Johnson averaged nearly nine yards per carry, scored from seven yards in the second quarter and added another five-yard touchdown in the third.
The second score was set up in large part by Johnson himself.
Starting at the LCU 20, Johnson ripped off a 29-yard run, and later Perkins found Davis for 34 yards before Johnson finished the drive from five yards out.
This wasn’t a one-back offense.
It was a conveyor belt.
Perkins Was Efficient — And Explosive
Perkins didn’t need 35 pass attempts.
He didn’t even need 20.
| Bryce Perkins | Number |
|---|---|
| Completions | 12 |
| Attempts | 18 |
| Passing Yards | 250 |
| Touchdowns | 3 |
| Interceptions | 1 |
| Long | 66 |
| Yards Per Completion | 20.8 team average |
Perkins finished 12-of-18 for 250 yards and three touchdowns.
Those three scores went to three different receivers:
EJ Scott — 66 yards.
Omarius Davis — 47 yards.
Grayson Thibodeaux — 5 yards. (1st College Touchdown)
The Wildcats finished with 250 passing yards on only 12 completions.
That’s the kind of passing game that changes a defense’s math.
Crowd the line of scrimmage to slow Cunningham and Johnson?
Now you’ve got Scott and Davis running through the secondary.
Back everybody up?
Good luck with 390 rushing yards.
Offensive Leaders
| Player | Stat Line |
|---|---|
| Bryce Perkins | 12-of-18, 250 yards, 3 TD |
| Datlan Cunningham | 19 carries, 115 yards, 2 TD |
| Joe Johnson | 13 carries, 114 yards, 2 TD |
| EJ Scott | 4 catches, 102 yards, TD |
| Omarius Davis | 3 catches, 96 yards, TD |
| Phillip Jones II | 3 carries, 37 yards, TD |
| Grayson Thibodeaux | 1 catch, 5-yard TD |
Scott and Davis combined for 198 receiving yards on only seven receptions.
Scott averaged 25.5 yards per catch.
Davis averaged 32.
Together they caught two of Perkins’ three touchdown passes and gave LCU exactly what it needed to keep Langston from selling out against the running game.
The Third Quarter Ended Any Suspense
Langston went into halftime down 28-14.
Not ideal.
But not dead either.
That changed quickly.
Obadiah Butler opened the second half with a 52-yard kickoff return, immediately putting LCU in Langston territory.
Cunningham eventually finished the possession from one yard out.
35-14.
Then Johnson capped another scoring drive.
42-14.
Then Cunningham broke loose for 47 yards on another possession before Perkins found Thibodeaux for the five-yard touchdown.
By the end of the third quarter, this had gone from a two-score game to a rout.
And Louisiana Christian wasn’t finished.
| Second-Half Damage | Result |
|---|---|
| Cunningham 1-yard TD | LCU extends lead |
| Joe Johnson 5-yard TD | LCU adds another |
| Thibodeaux 5-yard TD catch | LCU keeps pouring it on |
| Travis Adams 4-yard TD run | Fourth-quarter score |
| Amir Franklin-Sanders 38-yard Pick Six | Defensive TD |
| Phillip Jones II 5-yard TD run | Final LCU touchdown |
LCU scored 42 unanswered points after halftime.
That’s what finishing looks like.
The Numbers Were Lopsided Everywhere
Sometimes a 70-point performance comes from a couple of turnovers and short fields.
Not this one.
Louisiana Christian moved the football.
Repeatedly.
| Category | Langston | Louisiana Christian |
|---|---|---|
| First Downs | 13 | 37 |
| Rushing Yards | 91 | 390 |
| Passing Yards | 139 | 250 |
| Total Offense | 230 | 640 |
| Offensive Plays | 64 | 71 |
| Yards Per Play | 3.6 | 9.0 |
| Rushing TD | 1 | 6 |
| Passing TD | 1 | 3 |
| Interceptions Thrown | 2 | 1 |
Thirty-seven first downs.
Six hundred forty yards.
Nine yards per play.
LCU more than doubled Langston’s offensive production and outrushed the Lions 390-91.
There’s dominant.
And then there’s almost a 300-yard advantage on the ground.
Photos courtesy of Kyleigh Kramel Photography
Three Things We Learned
1. LCU Didn’t Have a Northwestern State Hangover
This may have been the biggest question entering the night.
Last week’s win at Northwestern State was emotional.
It was historic-feeling.
It created attention.
And those are exactly the kinds of games that can make the next Saturday uncomfortable.
Louisiana Christian didn’t let that happen.
| After the D-I Win | LCU vs. Langston |
|---|---|
| Points | 70 |
| Total Yards | 640 |
| First Downs | 37 |
| Rushing Yards | 390 |
| Yards Per Play | 9.0 |
| Second-Half Points | 42 |
LCU didn’t spend Saturday night celebrating what happened a week earlier.
It went back to work.
That may matter more than anything in the box score.
2. Cunningham and Joe Johnson Give LCU a Serious One-Two Punch
A week ago Cunningham was the guy who helped LCU finish the Northwestern State upset.
Against Langston, he had company.
| Cunningham + Johnson | Production |
|---|---|
| Carries | 32 |
| Rushing Yards | 229 |
| Touchdowns | 4 |
| Average Per Carry | 7.2 |
Johnson’s line deserves attention:
13 carries. 114 yards. Two touchdowns. 8.8 per carry.
Cunningham?
19 for 115 and two scores.
Defenses don’t get to breathe when one comes out.
The next guy can hurt you too.
3. LCU’s Explosive Plays Are Coming From Everywhere
This may be the trait that carries over most clearly from the first two weeks.
| Explosive Play | Distance |
|---|---|
| EJ Scott TD reception | 66 yards |
| Omarius Davis TD reception | 47 yards |
| Datlan Cunningham run | 47 yards |
| Obadiah Butler kickoff return | 52 yards |
| Amir Franklin-Sanders Pick Six | 38 yards |
| Omarius Davis reception | 34 yards |
| Joe Johnson run | 29 yards |
That’s offense.
Special teams.
Defense.
Different players.
Different ways.
Scott can stretch the field.
Davis can do the same.
Cunningham and Johnson can create explosives on the ground.
Butler can flip field position.
And Franklin-Sanders can turn defense into seven points in a heartbeat.
That’s a difficult team to make play left-handed.
Five Stats That Tell the Story
| Stat | Why It Matters |
|---|---|
| 70-14 | Complete control |
| 640-230 | LCU’s advantage in total offense |
| 390-91 | The Wildcats dominated the ground game |
| 37-13 | LCU’s advantage in first downs |
| 42-0 | Second-half scoring margin |
And Don’t Forget the Defense
Seventy points will swallow most of the oxygen.
But LCU’s defense deserves its share.
Langston finished with only 230 total yards, including 91 rushing yards on 38 attempts.
That’s 2.4 yards per carry.
LCU also intercepted two passes.
Jaden Jones grabbed one just before halftime.
Then Amir Franklin-Sanders turned his into points.
With 7:40 left in the fourth quarter, Franklin-Sanders stepped in front of a Brooks Kerbow pass and went 38 yards the other way for a touchdown.
That was the exclamation point.
| Defensive Note | Production |
|---|---|
| Langston Total Offense | 230 yards |
| Langston Rushing | 91 yards |
| Langston Yards/Rush | 2.4 |
| LCU Interceptions | 2 |
| Amir Franklin-Sanders | 38-yard Pick Six |
| LCU Tackles for Loss | 6 |
| LCU Sacks | 1 |
David Voorhies III, Trace McHugh and Jaden Jones each finished with six tackles. McHugh added 1.5 tackles for loss and two pass breakups, while Kawarren Scott recorded two tackles for loss.
The defense didn’t need to carry this game.
It just made sure Langston never had a way back into it.
The Bottom Line
Last week told us Louisiana Christian could stand in the ring with a Division I opponent, take punches and find a way to win.
Saturday told us something different.
LCU can handle prosperity.
There was no emotional hangover.
No sleepwalking through a conference opener.
No waiting until the fourth quarter to get serious.
The Wildcats scored 21 in the first quarter.
They rushed for 390 yards.
Perkins threw three touchdowns.
Cunningham and Johnson both went over 100 on the ground.
Scott went over 100 receiving.
Davis nearly joined him.
The defense allowed 230 yards.
Franklin-Sanders took one back to the house.
And by the time the night ended, the scoreboard looked like this:
TOTAL OFFENSE: Louisiana Christian 640, Langston 230
RUSHING: Louisiana Christian 390, Langston 91
FIRST DOWNS: Louisiana Christian 37, Langston 13
FINAL: Louisiana Christian 70, Langston 14
One week ago, LCU changed the conversation.
Saturday night, the Wildcats made sure nobody changed the subject.
Louisiana Christian is 2-0.
And right now, the Cats aren’t just winning.
They’re making a whole lot of noise.
Follow The Cats to Plainview, TX next Saturday as they look to take on Wayland Baptist. 446Sports on YouTube will have the call for you!
Watch the entire game here: Louisiana College 70 Langston 14
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Follow LCU all season long on 446Sports. You can reach Doug Gann at doug@446sports.com
