By T. SCOTT BOATRIGHT, Lincoln Parish Journal 

The Mickey Joseph era of Grambling State football begins Saturday as the Tigers travel south to visit Louisiana-Lafayette in the Herbert Heymann Classic. 

Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. Saturday at Cajun Field, which is undergoing major renovations that have the entire west (home) side of the stadium off-limits this season. ESPN+ will provide television coverage. 

It will be the second meeting between the programs with ULL claiming a 49-17 victory in the 2018 season opener for both teams.  

Grambling went 5-6 last season under fired coach Hue Jackson, dumped following his second year. The Ragin’ Cajuns are coming off a 6-7 campaign. 

“We’re excited about this upcoming game against Lafayette,” said Joseph, a New Orleans native and veteran major college assistant coach. “We’re honored to play a really good team that played in the postseason the past two years. (ULL coach) Mike Desormeaux does a really good job with them and they’re like every other team in Louisiana — they’re full of Louisiana kids and Texas kids. They’re a well-coached team and we’re excited for the opportunity.” 

Joseph hopes that knowing about many Louisiana players will benefit his game plan. 

“I don’t think they have any film on us. They’re going to have to pick and choose what they study. We understand what they want to do on offense — they’re a 12-personnel team that wants to run the ball. 

“They’re a solid football team all around. Their receiving is really good but the strength of that team is their offensive line.” 

Joseph admits he doesn’t know what to expect defensively from the Cajuns. 

“They’ve brought in a new defensive coordinator and we don’t know what they’re going to do, so we’ve got to be ready for anything,” Joseph said.  

The Tigers return veteran quarterback Myles Crawley, who was picked as the preseason SWAC Offensive Player of the Year and is on the Walter Payton Award preseason watch list. 

Last season the redshirt-senior from Lithonia, Georgia, threw from 2,303 yards and 16 touchdowns while completing 60 percent of his passes (197-of-328).  

Crawley was the first Grambling State quarterback to throw for at least 2,000 yards in a season since Devante Kincaid in 2017 and the first GSU QB to throw at least 16 touchdowns since Geremy Hickbottom in 2018.  

Grambling has a key addition to its offensive backfield in redshirt senior K’Travion “Bull” Hargrove, a transfer from Memphis after time at Mississippi State. 

As a high school junior, Hargrove was a workhorse for Ruston High. On 205 carries, the 5-11, 185 pounder ran for 1,537 yards and 20 touchdowns, adding 460 yards and six TD’s on receptions. Injuries slowed him as a senior but he was still a high-major recruit. 

“I like what Bull can do,” Joseph said. “I know what Bull can do. 

“Bull’s a kid that’s going to run it 20-25 times a game. He’s a great kid. He’s a great human being and we’re glad we’ve got him back home. He’s going to be big for us on offense.” 

Joseph said his Tigers will need to focus on all three phases of the game against the Ragin’ Cajuns. 

“They’re Lafayette, so you know they’re going to run the ball and try to impose their will on you,” Joseph said. “We’ve got to come out and try to compete in all phases of the game. We’re going to have to try to play error-free. We can’t have missed assignments because they’ll make you pay for those, and they’ll also make you play if you’re not physical.” 

Contact Scott at tscottboatright@gmail.com