Louisiana football's fifth-year kicker Kenneth Almendares earned his first honors of the season after being named the Sun Belt Conference Special Teams Player of the Week. He is the first Cajun football player to get conference honors this season.

The announcement and recognition come after the Cajuns' go-to kicker scored the game-winning field goal from 31 yards out against Wake Forest to beat the Demon Deacons 41-38. They were going score for score with them and when the offense couldn't get in the end zone, Almendares answered the call while Wake Forest's kicker Matthew Dennis missed the tying field goal from 42 yards out.

The 6-foot-2, 252-pound kicker made five extra-point attempts and was perfect on his two field goal attempts. Along with his game-winning field goal, he kicked a career-high 50-yarder in the game.

So far this season, Almendares has made all seven of his field goal attempts. He has scored 37 points for the Cajuns, putting him at second in the SBC. As he climbs the kicker ladder, he etches his name further into UL football history as well. After the Wake Forest game, he sits in sixth place in school history for career total points with 272. He has passed up Alonzo Harris' total of 270 points set from 2011-2014. In Week 6 against Southern Miss, Almendares needs just five more points to pass Elijah McGuire, who sits in fifth place with 276 points set from 2013-16.

The Cajuns will face the Golden Eagles at 6 p.m. on Oct. 5 in Hattiesburg, Mississippi.

Shannon Belt covers high school sports and the Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns for The Daily Advertiser as part of the USA TODAY Network. Follow her high school and Cajuns coverage on Twitter: @ShannonBelt3. Got questions regarding HS/UL athletics? Send them to Shannon Belt at sbelt@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Lafayette Daily Advertiser: UL's Kenneth Almendares earns Sun Belt Conference weekly honors