Nevada vs. LA-Lafayette: Score and Twitter Reaction for 2014 New Orleans Bowl

Louisiana-Lafayette kicked off college football bowl season with a 16-3 win over Nevada in the R+L Carriers New Orleans Bowl on Saturday. In the process, it became the first school to win the same bowl game four straight years.

Yes, the Ragin' Cajuns were making their fourth consecutive appearance in the same bowl. They won each of the previous three with triumphs over Tulane, East Carolina and San Diego State. It's made the Mercedes-Benz Superdome almost like a second home for the Sun Belt squad.

Here's how their latest trip to the New Orleans Bowl played out:

Team	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	Total
Nevada	0	3	0	0	3
Louisiana–Lafayette	10	0	0	6	16

The Wolf Pack knew the contest presented a unique challenge. Going into a road atmosphere against a team with recent success in the game isn't too common during bowl season.

Nevada quarterback Cody Fajardo told Trey Iles of The Times-Picayune they were looking at it as a typical away game rather than a neutral-site encounter.

"They have a great history in this game," he said. "This is their fourth consecutive year here. They're pretty much the home team, and that's the way we're approaching it. It'll be a fun atmosphere."

Given those factors—along with the fact the game kicked off at 8 a.m. Reno time, where the Nevada program is based—perhaps the way the game started shouldn't have been much of a surprise.

Louisiana-Lafayette took the ball after the opening kickoff and proceeded to put together an eight-play, 77-yard drive to get on the scoreboard first. Terrance Broadway found C.J. Bates for a 17-yard touchdown strike to grab a quick 7-0 edge.

As CBS Sports College Football pointed out, it was quite a start to bowl season:

After forcing a three-and-out on defense, the Ragin' Cajuns embarked on another long drive that resulted in points.

This one covered 60 yards on 13 plays and ate up nearly seven minutes of the clock. The drive stalled out just inside the Nevada 30, however. Hunter Stover made sure they still salvaged something out of the drive by connecting on a 46-yard field-goal attempt. 

Nick Krueger from House of Sparky noted it was a career long for the senior kicker:

The Wolf Pack, probably just emerging from their morning daze, were finally able to stabilize the game after that score. The offense started moving the ball, and the defense made a couple stops.

Nevada got on the scoreboard about midway through the second quarter. A brutal nine-yard punt by Daniel Cadona gave it terrific field position. The offense drove all the way down to the 1-yard line, but a false start penalty pushed it back, and from there, the group couldn't find the end zone.

Brent Zuzo made sure the Mountain West side got something out of the drive by splitting the uprights from 21 yards out to make it 10-3.

Scott Prather of ESPN 1420 noted the lack of big plays from either side in the first half:

Louisiana-Lafayette tried to change that on the final drive of the half by throwing up a Hail Mary as the clock ticked down to zero. But Broadway, who completed his first 14 attempts in the game, watched the long toss get knocked down in the end zone.

Still, the Ragin' Cajuns entered the locker room up by a touchdown. On Twitter, the program noted its success in that situation both this season and during the tenure of head coach Mark Hudspeth:

Although there were no points scored in the third quarter, a key stretch occurred about midway through the period.

Matthew Leach of MLB.com probably summed up the thoughts of many college football fans:

Louisiana-Lafayette was inside the Nevada 25-yard line when Lenny Jones came through for the Wolf Pack defense. He delivered a huge hit on Broadway for the strip-sack and also recovered the fumble.

It felt like a perfect opportunity for the Wolf Pack to take the sudden change of fortune to start building some positive vibes on the offensive side of the ball.

Instead, they could only muster one first down before punting. That allowed the Ragin' Cajuns to get the ball back and go on another extended drive. Fifteen plays later, they stretched the lead back to a pair of scores with Stover's second field goal of the afternoon.

Chad Washington of The Daily World noted it put a lot of pressure on the Nevada offense against a defense that was playing perhaps its best game of the season:

The Wolf Pack attempted to respond quickly. They started advancing down the field with ease against a less aggressive Cajuns defense, but four straight incompletions from Fajardo brought the drive to an abrupt halt after they had moved into opposing territory.

Louisiana-Lafayette went back to the ground-and-pound approach once again. It milked four more minutes off the clock, and Stover delivered, this time from 35, to make it 16-3.

ESPN Stats & Info pointed out the lack of success on the ground held Nevada back, especially with the Cajuns utilizing that facet of the game to control the clock:

There was no miracle comeback to be found in the final minutes. Louisiana-Lafayette finished the job to become the first winner of bowl season.

Dr. Saturday highlighted the result:

SI College Football gave props to the winning squad:

Nevada finishes the season with a 7-6 record. It deserves credit for bouncing back from a mediocre beginning to the campaign to secure bowl eligibility. The Wolf Pack just got off to a sluggish start and didn't have enough offense to mount a comeback.

Louisiana-Lafayette ends its year with a win in the New Orleans Bowl for the fourth consecutive year. For a program that waited a long time for success after its move to Division I, it's a nice accomplishment. The Ragin' Cajuns will aim even higher in 2015.