When the Huskies take their show on the road to Southwest Louisiana (4-6) for the final game of the 1990 season, they’ll be entering territory that was not too friendly to them during their first visit.

In 1988, the Ragin‘ Cajuns demolished NIU 45-0.

But this season, USL is only 1-3 at home this season, and have lost three in a row at Cajun Field.

NIU quarterback Stacey Robinson pulled out a 23-20 win in last year’s meeting at Huskie Stadium with a seven-yard touchdown run as time expired, to bring the series even at 1-1.

The Cajuns started 1990 with wins over Tulane and Nicholls State before losing four straight to Texas A&M, East Carolina, Louisiana Tech and Alabama. They increased their mark to 3-4 with a victory over Tulsa and then dropped their next two to Memphis State and Southern Mississippi.

Last week, USL narrowly escaped with a 17-16 win over Arkansas State, who the Huskies defeated four weeks ago, 35-0.

“It wasn’t beautiful, but we’ll take it,” USL head coach Nelson Stokely said. “After some of the things that have happened this season, it’s been hard for our players and hard on the defense. This is a win and it came when we needed it.”

The Ragin’ Cajuns are averaging 291.9 yards of total offense this season compared to NIU’s 437.0. The USL defense has allowed an average of 397.9 yards a game, including 247.4 on the ground. NIU averages 354.1 rushing yards a game.

USL’s run-and-shoot offense is led by sophomore quarterback James Freeman, who has completed 90-196 passes for 1,231 yards and five touchdowns. He has carried the ball 145 times for 455 yards, but he has lost 229 for a net of 226. The Cajuns leading rusher is fullback Damon Denaburg with 350 yards on 76 carries and four touchdowns. Wide receiver Quent McCollum, who is two catches away from becoming USL’s career receiving leader, has 35 receptions for 602 yards.

The Cajuns “50” defense is basically the same front that the Huskies have seen for the last few weeks. They have allowed three touchdowns in only two games this season, and held their opponents to less than 25 points in all but one game. Safety Van Ray Alexander leads the squad with 86 tackles and four interceptions. Linebacker William Sims is second with 68 stops.