WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. (AP) Kenneth Almendares kicked the go-ahead 31-yard field goal with 52 seconds left to help Louisiana edge Wake Forest 41-38 on Saturday.

The game ended with Wake Forest's Matthew Dennis trying a final-play 42-yard field goal for the tie, only to see the ball plunk off the left upright and bounce back into the field for a miss. That started the celebration for the Ragin' Cajuns (3-1), including coach Michael Desormeaux leaning over with his hands on his knees to process those stressful final moments.

Desormeaux was emotional afterward, his voice trembling, when talking to reporters about the win.

“For two years it just seemed like nothing would go our way,” he said, adding; "I just know that hard work pays off and to see it happen for them just felt good.”

Almendares also kicked a 50-yarder in the win, which saw Louisiana hold on in a shootout that also included them losing four defensive players to targeting ejections. The game also included Wake Forest top running back Demond Claiborne being carted off with a knee injury in the second quarter, only to see him return briefly in the third and break off a 60-yard touchdown run that tied the game at 24-all in what turned out to be his final play.

Ben Wooldridge threw for 257 yards and three touchdowns to lead the Ragin' Cajuns, with Lance LeGendre posting career highs of six catches for 123 yards and a pair of scores. Wooldridge also scored on a keeper, while Bill Davis (95 yards) added his own trip to the end zone on the ground.

“You don't come on the road and win a game like this against a good team if you don't have great quarterback play," Desormeaux said of Wooldridge. "We got it tonight and he's played that way really for us all year.”

Hank Bachmeier threw for 254 yards and a score to lead the Demon Deacons (1-3), while Tate Carney ran for three 1-yard touchdowns - the last coming with 1:55 left to tie the game at 38.

“We just didn't play well enough across the board,” Wake Forest coach Dave Clawson. “We got off to a slow start on offense and defensively they just had us on our heels the whole game."

Louisiana: The Ragin' Cajuns entered this one after a home loss to Tulane and arrived in Winston-Salem to start a stretch with four of five games on the road. Louisiana earned its first win against a power-conference opponent since beating Iowa State in September 2020.

Wake Forest: The Demon Deacons were coming off an open week after home losses to Virginia and highly ranked Mississippi. The offense moved the ball effectively in this one but the defense struggled for stops.

Claiborne looked like he was done with a serious injury when he was carted off with what the ACC Network broadcast described as a dislocated kneecap. But after trainers tended to his left knee, Claiborne was able to get up and onto the cart on his own power, then returned to the sideline to start the second half while sporting a brace and jumping around to get warm.

Claiborne returned a kickoff before Wake Forest's first third-quarter possession, then got two carries before taking a fourth-and-1 play through the right side to the end zone with 8:19 left in the third quarter in what turned out to be the capper on his day..

“His kneecap kind of got tweaked and we were really worried,” Clawson said. "They were able to adjust it. and then at halftime, he felt good. ... Then in the third quarter, fourth quarter, it just got sore and painful, and he couldn't go anymore."

Louisiana: The Ragin' Cajuns visit Southern Miss to open their Sun Belt Conference slate next Saturday.

Wake Forest: The Demon Deacons open Atlantic Coast Conference play at instate foe North Carolina State next Saturday.

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