Louisiana Monroe Indians

2005 Season Summary

Louisiana-Monroe head coach Charlie Weatherbie was making noticeable progress after just two seasons on the job. After fielding a horrific 2003 team that went 1-11 straight up and 4-6 against the spread, Weatherbie's second edition climbed to 5-6 both straight up and against the spread, which was just one win shy of bowl eligibility. This was quite a climb for a team that had won a total of just seven games in the four previous seasons combined!

Promising offense but a depleted defense

Louisiana-Monroe entered the 2005 campaign hoping to clear that final hurdle to a winning season after a promising finish to 2004 in which they won two of their final three games. The Indians had a promising offense but a depleted defense that was hit hard by graduation. Still, it was figured, with such a potentially strong offense Louisiana-Monroe stood a fighter's chance in the wide-open and even Sun Belt Conference.

Big early loss set up excellent value

After an opening day win at home over 1-AA opposition that was not on the betting boards, Louisiana-Monroe did what all Sun Belt Conference teams have to do, hit the road against bigger programs for big paychecks. Their first game in this role was at Wyoming, against a highly touted Cowboy team that was coming off a bowl season and was a chalk to take the Mountain West Conference. The Cowboys were installed as 21-point favorites and got the cash 0-38. It turned out this big early loss set up excellent value for gamblers on the Indians.

Value reached its peak

The blowout loss at Wyoming coupled with having to travel to play an SEC powerhouse in the Georgia Bulldogs made the Indians a ridiculous 39.5-point dog in their next game. Georgia was known by knowledgeable gamblers for not being the most reliable "heavy lifters" and Louisiana-Monroe stayed within the number in a 7-44 loss.

Next was a trip to a college football "expansion" team at Florida Atlantic, who was in their inaugural season in 1-A, on the betting boards, and in the Sun Belt Conference. Louisiana-Monroe, due to back-to-back blow out losses retained excellent value as a 7.5-point dog and took the cash in a 28-21 win.

The Indians remained an excellent value in their next game as 3-point home dogs against Arkansas State, taking the game and cash 31-27 for their second consecutive straight up win and third straight cover, as their value had reached its peak.

A short dip and correction against the spread

With their recent solid play, Louisiana-Monroe caught the attention of more gamblers than usual as they headed off to play at struggling Arkansas. The combined play of the two teams kept the number lower than it normally would have been as the Hogs were a 27-point chalk and took their frustrations out on the Indians in a 44-15 win. Monroe bounced back at home the following week with a solid 27-3 win as 3-point dogs against Troy, which was a classic lesson in how the line is set based on public perception rather than true merits and reality. Incredibly enough, however, Louisiana-Monroe, as a 10-point home chalk in their next game after a bye-week, lost to another "expansion" team, Florida International, 29-31 to complete a short dip and correction against the spread.

Excellent bargain as conference road dogs

Three of Louisiana-Monroe's four prior road games in 2005 had been blowout losses as they headed off to play Middle Tennessee State, who was installed as a 10.5-point chalk as a result of this despite their own subpar play in 2005. The Indians proved to be an excellent bargain as conference road dogs in a 34-31 straight up win. Louisiana Monroe flipped to a 4.5-point road chalk at hapless North Texas and got the cash in a 24-19 win.

Another foregone conclusion blew up in the faces of gamblers

The Sun Belt Conference title and New Orleans Bowl berth was Monroe's for the taking in their home finale as 2.5-point chalks against UL-Lafayette. Many mainstream gamblers figured Monroe to be a "sure thing" with this angle but, as so often happens in football betting, another foregone conclusion blew up in the faces of gamblers as the Indians lost 21-54 to join the long list of teams that threw away golden opportunities while serving as a sucker bet.