Jake Delhomme honored at 2026 UL Spring Gala

TL;DR

Jake Delhomme was honored at the 2026 UL Lafayette Spring Gala, expressing surprise at receiving the recognition at age 51. He reflected on the significance of the university and its athletic program in his life.

Key points

Jake Delhomme honored at UL Lafayette 2026 Spring Gala
Delhomme expressed surprise at being recognized at age 51
He values the university and its athletic program highly

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Jake DelhommeUL Lafayette

Jake Delhomme honored at 2026 UL Spring Gala

LAFAYETTE, La. (KLFY) — Former Cajun quarterback Jake Delhomme was the man of honor at the UL Lafayette 2026 Spring Gala.

“I heard when I was going to be honored, gosh, you probably were, I guess, about a year ago, maybe a little bit longer. And I was stunned, to be very honest. I always thought that that was for older people. You know, I hate to be that way, but I’m like, well, I’m 51, and I got cheaters all over the place because my eyes are not good anymore. I’m going to be a grandfather here soon. So, it’s like, I guess I am one of those,” Delhomme said.

Delhomme says the university, as well as the athletic program, has meant so much to him.

“You know, sports was huge,” he explains. “My parents didn’t have to pay for college because I got an athletic scholarship, and that was a duty that I took very seriously. It wasn’t just I played sports that I had to go to school. No, I like education was vitally important and I took it seriously.”

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Delhomme’s Cajuns were able to beat Texas A&M in 1996. It’s not his only favorite memory as the Cajun quarterback.

“We played Louisiana Tech four times when I was here,” he recalls.

“When I was part of the Cajun program who played Tulane twice. So we played six in-state schools, and we went six and against those schools. And I take a lot of pride in that. I think we took a lot of pride in, ” Delhomme said.

Delhomme says the people here is the reason he is proud to be a Ragin’ Cajun.

“I do the radio for the Carolina Panthers, so I travel a lot in the fall, and I go to different venues, and I was able to meet many people along the way. And then, you know, everyone always talks about, yes, we have a Cajun accent. I know I do. But I mean, the Ragin’ Cajuns, it’s always there’s just something about it. They always say that it’s your people. And what they mean by that is that we’re friendly, we’re nice, we’d like to have fun and we’re gritty. There’s something about as the Ragin’ Cajun way,” Delhomme said.