Santorum needs to pull out a win in Louisana to continue to challenge Romney (Courtesy Creative Commons).

With a decisive 11 point win for Romney in Illinois, his contenders are running out of time and delegate counts to launch a successful comeback. Rick Santorum and Newt Gingrich will both be in Louisiana on Friday as the final part of a strong weeklong campaign.

"We think we're going to do well here. This state, I think of all the states in the Deep South, I think matches up with us well. It's a very conservative state," Santorum told The Associated Press.

Louisiana traditionally has leaned towards more conservative candidates. In 2008, the strong conservative evangelical groups in the state helped propel Mike Huckabee over the more moderate John McCain.

Santorum and Gingrich has both been in Louisiana for over a week, campaigning hard on the ground. Santorum has already spoken to two church congregations. Gingrich has also made several local stops throughout the state.

The intensified campaigning comes after Mitt Romney had several decisive wins in recent months. Republican voters, however, are still not fully satisfied with any one candidate.

Romney currently leads the pack with 563 of the 1,144 delegates needed for the Republican nomination. Santorum is in second with 263, and Gingrich trails with just 135 delegates, according to the Associated Press.

National polls show, however, that Santorum is the strong favorite in Saturday’s elections.  31% of voters indicated Santorum as their candidate of choice, while 22% chose Romney. Gingrich is just slightly behind Romney in the polls at 20%.

The numbers are in favor of Santorum, who sees the importance of Saturday’s primaries.

"We have to do well — really well — here in Louisiana," he said. He asked local voters to "reset this race. Give us a chance."

With Romney not campaigning seriously in the state, Gingrich has a window of opportunity he needs to capitalize upon.

"If he can't do well in Louisiana, then it's pretty much finished," said Ed Chervenak, a political scientist at the University of New Orleans. "If he's beaten by Romney in the Deep South, it's a sign that his campaign is going nowhere."

Contact Associate News Editor Jerry Ting here.