Some Louisiana Board Members Suggest Pushing Ragin’ Cajuns Out of the FBS
LAFAYETTE, La. — The Ragin' Cajuns have been nationally ranked in recent years, and were even talked about briefly in the College Football Playoff picture two seasons ago. But now, a member of the University of Louisiana Board of Regents is suggesting the Cajuns drop down to the FCS due to budget problems.
The comments came from regent Wilbert Pryor, a Shreveport attorney, during the board’s Sept. 22 budget hearing for University of Louisiana System schools. University of Louisiana System President Rick Gallot didn’t rule it out, either, telling regents his board is facing decisions it can’t avoid. Pryor suggested that UL, along with Louisiana Tech and ULM consider dropping their football programs from the FBS to the FCS.
What the Regents Are Saying
Pryor argued there’s little reason for the schools to keep competing in the FBS, the same tier as LSU, when the lower FCS tier already includes fellow UL System schools Grambling State, McNeese State, Nicholls State, Northwestern State and Southeastern.
“Schools that are trying to play Division I ... that’s just a sinking hole trying to play Division I ball,” Pryor said during the hearing. “I don’t think much of the public would know the difference if they all play the same level, and it seems like they have to have a self-realization and put a humble cap on. They have to have a humble pie.”
He backed that up with deficit figures he gave the board.
According to the figures he gave, UL as a whole has a $20 million deficit. At the other schools, the deficits are $17 million for Louisiana Tech and $10 million for ULM. He also pointed to coaching pay as a mismatch, saying a head coach at Nicholls, an FCS program, makes roughly $250,000 for the same job that pays close to $1 million at Tech.
Other regents backed the concern about deficit spending on athletics. Regent David Aubrey, president of AT&T Louisiana, said the numbers speak for themselves and called the current path unsustainable. Regent Dallas Hixson, a partner at Hixson Automotive Group in Alexandria, said the losses will only get worse without changes.
Gallot Says Hard Decisions Are Coming, but Wants Data First
Gallot told regents his board will be called on to make decisions that won’t be easy, and said the system won’t shy away from them when the time comes. He said he has his own opinion but wants any recommendation grounded in data rather than his own view.
To get that data, the UL System has hired the consulting firm Deloitte to evaluate the three athletic departments and build out a sustainability path. Gallot said Deloitte’s report is due to the board by the end of this year, and he intends to wait for it before bringing any formal recommendation forward.
“When 2027 starts we’ve got decisions to make,” he said bluntly.
The Numbers Behind the Pressure
Pryor’s figures largely line up with what’s shown up in state audits over the past year. A Louisiana Legislative Auditor review found Louisiana Tech’s athletic department ran a deficit of nearly $11.9 million, with the football program itself bringing in more than $9.5 million against higher expenses.
ULM’s audited athletics shortfall has run smaller, with its most recent report showing the department roughly $1.5 to $1.6 million over budget, a gap athletic director SJ Tuohy has said the school is closing through sponsorships and new revenue rather than cuts. UL Lafayette’s athletics deficit has consistently run largest of the three in past audits, in the $5 million to $8 million range depending on the fiscal year.
What an FCS Move Would Mean
Dropping to FCS would put Tech, UL Lafayette, and ULM alongside those same in-state programs already running smaller budgets and far lower coaching salaries. FCS schools field smaller rosters, offer fewer scholarships than the FBS maximum and draw smaller media rights payouts, but they also spend a fraction of what an FBS program spends to operate.
It would also reshape rivalries and scheduling. Louisiana Tech is entering the Sun Belt Conference this year alongside UL Lafayette and ULM, so all three currently share a conference, and any move would likely have to happen together, but also create a massive shift in the Sun Belt Conference's Western Division.
Gallot’s own timeline points to 2027 as when the UL System will have to start making calls on the future of football at Tech, UL Lafayette, and ULM. Fans of all three programs will likely be watching for where that Deloitte report lands once it’s in front of the board.
You May Also Like...
- UL Athletic Director Discusses Blackout Game, Sun Belt Expansion
- How Louisiana Tech Ended Up on Two Separate 2026 Football Schedules
- ULM Names Bryant Vincent New Head Football Coach
3 Ragin' Cajuns Football Wins Lafayette Will Never Forget
Gallery Credit: Dave Steel
