LAFAYETTE (Interstat) — Lunch Winfield threw for a touchdown and added 65 rushing yards as Louisiana beat Troy 33-6 in a Football Bowl Subdivision game on Saturday at Our Lady of Lourdes Stadium. Louisiana was the home team and Troy was the visiting team. The Ragin’ Cajuns improved to 5-2, while the Trojans fell to 3-3. An announced crowd of 20,623 watched Louisiana control the game after an early score and pull away in the second half. The Ragin’ Cajuns defense limited Troy to a single touchdown, the Trojans’ lowest scoring total of the season.

Winfield opened the scoring in the first quarter when he found KeDarius Wade for a 3-yard touchdown. Tony Sterner added the extra point. Troy’s Ethan Head missed a 42-yard field goal attempt in the second quarter, and Louisiana answered with J. Garner’s 37-yard touchdown run. Louisiana’s two-point rush attempt after Garner’s touchdown failed. Sterner then made field goals of 42 and 46 yards before halftime to help Louisiana lead 19-0 at halftime. Tony Sterner made all three of his extra-point attempts. The Ragin’ Cajuns mixed steady passing with a productive ground game and kept Troy from establishing much rhythm on offense.

Troy got on the scoreboard when Tucker Kilcrease rushed up the middle for a 23-yard touchdown. It was Troy’s only touchdown. Ethan Head’s extra-point attempt failed. Louisiana responded with Steven Blanco’s 2-yard touchdown run in the third quarter, and Sterner made the extra point. In the fourth quarter, Anthony Reagan Jr. broke free for a 15-yard touchdown run on a left-side carry, and Sterner again converted the extra point to complete the scoring. The Ragin’ Cajuns were efficient in the red zone and turned their scoring chances into points while Troy managed only one touchdown.

Winfield completed 11 of 21 passes for 70 yards and a touchdown and carried 15 times for 65 yards. Daniel Beale completed both of his passes for 38 yards for Louisiana. Troy used multiple quarterbacks. Kilcrease completed 5 of 10 passes for 76 yards and ran four times for 32 yards and a touchdown. Goose Crowder completed 9 of 16 passes for 65 yards and added 25 yards on five rushes. Jace Petty led Troy’s receivers with four catches for 69 yards. TJ Lott had three receptions for 16 yards and returned four kickoffs for 66 yards. Mojo Dortch caught two passes for 20 yards, Noreel White had one catch for 17 yards and returned two punts for no yards, TK Keyes had one reception for 12 yards, Jaheim Merriweather had one catch for 3 yards, and Caden Jensen had one reception for 4 yards for Louisiana. Jordan Lovett ran 10 times for 50 yards and caught two passes for 4 yards for Troy, while Gavin Griffin added seven carries for 22 yards. Evan Crenshaw punted four times for 214 yards for the Trojans.

Troy’s defense was led by Jordan Perry, who made 13 tackles. Justin Powe had eight tackles, Donnie Smith finished with seven tackles and two quarterback hurries, and Jabari Strait and Keno Jones each had six tackles. TJ Thompson and Shemar Welch each made five tackles. Marlin Odom recorded four tackles, while Makel Green, Ty Clemons, Miquon Merriweather and Kavion Henderson each had three tackles. Clemons added one quarterback hurry. Delvin Whitaker had one tackle and one quarterback hurry. Jamarion Keyes made three tackles. Doug Nelson and Marcus Goree Jr. each had two tackles, and Jaden Mosley, Knai Cook, Jon Bocchino, Jaxon Villegez-Williams, RaKeem Davis, Gavyn Baker, Kam Curry, Keyshawn Campbell and Luke Hodge each made one tackle. Jaxon Villegez-Williams and Kam Curry were among the offensive linemen credited with tackles.

For Louisiana, Jake St. Andre led the defense with eight tackles. Micah Johnson made five tackles and one quarterback hurry, while Maurion Eleam had five tackles and one sack. Brent Gordon Jr. recorded five tackles and returned a punt 3 yards. Lake Bates and Fitzgerald West Jr. each made four tackles. Avery Demery, Kerry Wilson and Lance Williams each had three tackles, with Williams adding one quarterback hurry. Harrison Kidder made one tackle. The Ragin’ Cajuns defense consistently pressured Troy’s quarterbacks and limited the Trojans’ running game after early gains.

Louisiana’s victory came after the Ragin’ Cajuns had dropped a 32-31 decision at Louisiana Tech in their previous game. Louisiana had scored 31 points in its previous game and had allowed 32, while Troy had scored 55 and allowed 34 in its previous game. Louisiana entered with a 5-1 record and had won three of its previous four games. Louisiana had also beaten Lamar 38-7, lost at Southern California 49-30, beaten UAB 21-14, won at Charlotte 34-7 and beaten Arkansas State 23-20 earlier this season. Troy entered at 3-2 and had lost two of its previous three games. Troy had won 55-34 over Southern Mississippi in its previous outing. The Trojans opened with a 24-21 win over Sam Houston, beat Alabama State 34-17, lost at Missouri 27-17 and lost at Utah State 21-10. Troy had scored at least 10 points in each of its first five games before the loss and had scored 24 or more points in three of those games. Louisiana has now won five of seven games and remains in contention in its conference. The Ragin’ Cajuns are scheduled to play at Southern Mississippi, while Troy is set to host Louisiana-Monroe. Those games will give both teams another chance to build momentum as the season moves deeper into conference play.

Interstat’s game simulator had projected a final score of Louisiana 38, Troy 30. Interstat’s ELO system had projected Louisiana with a 68.3 percent probability to win. Louisiana had been installed as a pregame favorite with a spread of -3. The total score of 39 went over the over/under line of 49.5.