DELAWARE HOLDS ON FOR DRAMATIC 20-13 WIN OVER LOUISIANA IN 27TH ANNUAL 68 VENTURES BOWL

The Blue Hens won seven games in their first season as a Football Bowl Subdivision member

MOBILE, Ala. –The Delaware Fightin’ Blue Hens made the most of the first bowl game in program history, downing Louisiana’s Ragin’ Cajuns 20-13 in the 27th Annual 68 Ventures Bowl at Hancock Whitney Stadium on Wednesday.

Delaware (7-6) couldn’t truly celebrate until the clock expired in the fourth quarter, as the Ragin’ Cajuns (6-7) had a chance to tie the game with the ball on the Blue Hen eight at the end of the game.

However, a last-second pass breakup in the endzone by linebacker Blake Matthews gave Delaware the hard-fought win.

Red zone stances were the story of the night for the Blue Hen defense, which also sent Louisiana away scoreless in the second quarter when cornerback Nate Evans intercepted Ragin’ Cajuns quarterback Lunch Winfield in the endzone.

That play proved the initial spark to Delaware’s scoring, as the Blue Hens went 80 yards in five plays and took a 7-0 lead after a 61-yard touchdown run by tailback Jo Silver.

“Anytime we can open up holes like we did for Jo did early in the game, it’s going to open up the pass game as well,” UD head coach Ryan Carty said. “And I thought Nick did a really nice job of settling in the third quarter.”

Silver, who finished with 116 yards on 14 carries, was named the game’s most valuable player. Evans made five tackles and had a pass breakup to be named the game’s defensive MVP.

The Ragin’ Cajuns struggled to finish drives throughout the night. In addition to the pair of red-zone mistakes, Louisiana also had an early drive stall at the Delaware 22 and failed to come away with points when kicker Tony Sterner missed a 39-yard field goal attempt.

Sterner got the Ragin’ Cajuns on the board in the second quarter with a 22-yard field goal, but Delaware’s Nate Reed connected on a 33-yard attempt to send the Blue Hens to the half with a 10-3 lead.

The teams’ 13 combined points were the lowest first-half total in 68 Ventures Bowl history. The previous record was 14 in 2000 when Southern Miss and TCU scored 7 points apiece.

Points came more readily for the Blue Hens in the third quarter, as quarterback Nick Minicucci guided Delaware on a 6-play, 70-yard drive to start the half. Minicucci capped the drive by connecting with Sean Wilson on a 35-yard touchdown to put the Blue Hens up 17-3.

Minicucci, who was named the game’s offensive MVP, finished with 176 yards on 19-of-30 passing. He added four yards on the ground to help the program win seven games in its first season at the FBS level.

“We have done some astonishing things this year (as a program),” Minicucci said. “Something is building here that’s going to be incredible in the next couple years.”

The teams traded field goals before the end of the quarter, with Reed connecting from 27 yards and Sterner 39.

Reed, who, in addition to his field goals, was a perfect 5-for-5 on kicking the ball out of the endzone for touchbacks, was named the game’s special teams MVP.

It looked for a moment like Delaware would cruise to a comfortable win, but Louisiana proved a stubborn opponent.

After a special teams spark – a blocked kick by senior defensive lineman Jordan Lawson – the Ragin’ Cajuns put together their best drive of the night, a 10-play, 46-yard effort that ended with an 8-yard touchdown pass from Winfield to Sheldon Sampson Jr.

Winfield finished the night with 231 yards on 21-of-36 passing. He added a team-high 40 rushing yards.

Redshirt sophomore tight end Caden Jensen led the Ragin’ Cajuns in receiving with 72 yards on four receptions. Linebacker Jaden Dugger had the best defensive showing for Louisiana, notching a team-high seven tackles, logging a sack, and two tackles for loss.

Linebacker Gavin Moul led Delaware with a game-high eight tackles.

Delaware was the 18th team to earn a bowl invitation in its first year of eligibility, but just the fourth to win its bowl game. The other three teams were UAB (winner of the 2017 Bahamas Bowl), Jacksonville State (winner of the 2023 New Orleans Bowl), and Missouri State (winner of the 2025 XBox Bowl).

###