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Written by Kane McGuire, Associate Director of Strategic Communications, Louisiana Tech University; Photo by Josh McDaniel
RUSTON — Louisiana Tech overcame a double-digit fourth-quarter deficit to fall to Tulsa, 23-20, in overtime on Saturday night at Joe Aillet Stadium.
LA Tech (1-2) used three different quarterbacks throughout the game and it was two redshirt freshmen, Blake Baker and Evan Bullock, who led a touchdown drive in the fourth quarter.
The quarterback change was meant to energize an offense that was trailing 17-7 going into the final stages of the game and managed just 155 total yards and 1-of-9 third down conversions.
Baker was the first to get going. After being sacked for an eight-yard loss on the first play of the fourth quarter, he completed three consecutive passes to Eli Finley for 14 yards, another to Finley for 53 yards and another to Solo Lewis for 19 yards.
Three successful passes got LA Tech to the one-yard line, and three quarterback sneaks were needed, the third of which crossed the goal line to cut the lead to 17-13 (the extra-point attempt was unsuccessful).
The Bulldog defense stopped three straight attempts by Tulsa (2-2) for the seventh time of the night. On the ensuing attempt, Baker was injured after scrambling for extra yardage.
It was Bullock who received the ball with 4 minutes, 55 seconds left in the game, and Lewis’ 30-yard punt return gave the Dogs advantageous field position at the Tulsa 48-yard line, where Bullock eventually found Finley free over the middle for a 24-yard touchdown that gave LA Tech a 20-17 lead.
The Golden Hurricane picked up three first downs and got within field goal range of Seth Morgan, who converted a 45-yard shot to tie the game at 20-20 and send the game into overtime.
Tulsa won the coin toss and elected to start on defense in overtime. On LA Tech’s second play, Bullock was sacked on the blind side and fumbled, but the Golden Hurricane recovered it and nearly ran it in for a touchdown. Four plays later, Morgan booted a 34-yard field goal to give the visitors the win.
The game was dominated by defense on both sides. Tulsa took the lead midway through the first quarter with a 40-yard drive in five plays. LA Tech’s first points came when Cedric Woods caught the ball after it was fortunately hit by the Bulldogs on a punt return. Woods then raced 49 yards down the right sideline to give the home team the ball at the Tulsa 25-yard line. Jimmy Holiday reached the end zone on a 1-yard rush on fourth down, tying the score at 7-7.
The only other score in the first half came on a 32-yard shot by Tulsa’s Morgan that gave the Golden Hurricane a 10-7 lead at halftime.
Jack Turner, Baker and Bullock combined to complete 17 of 30 passes for 197 yards. Finley had three catches for a career-high 91 yards. Defensively, Zach Zimos and Blake Thompson combined for 25 tackles and three tackles for loss (nine for the team).
Quote
Head Coach Sonny Camby
Opening statement…
“The crowd was great. The atmosphere was amazing. The student crowd was awesome and I think we had an advantage in that regard. It’s unfortunate that we didn’t take advantage of it as a team. We didn’t make enough plays and didn’t play well offensively. We didn’t improve this week on special teams and defense, flying around and playing a physical style of football. On offense, we have to find ways to move the ball and be more efficient. The crowd was great. It’s unfortunate that we didn’t get the win and finish off the bottom. We have conference coming up and we still have a lot of football to play. We start next week with a trip to FIU and then we’ll watch this game on Monday and learn from it and then go on to the next game. There’s going to be a lot of games like this and there’s a lot of good teams in the league. It’s the little things that make the difference in the games in CUSA. I’m disappointed for our players tonight and for the great crowd. There’s also a lot of hurt left in the locker room because this team is so invested in this place and in each other and we intend to keep it that way.”
A recurring theme and how to turn it around…
“On offense, you don’t have 11 guys playing together or all at the same time. That’s the nature of offensive football, everybody has to be on the same page. We haven’t been efficient and quick on offense. There are a variety of reasons for that and we’re aware of that. That’s the most important thing from an offensive standpoint in terms of putting together a game plan and getting guys to start the football quickly.”
Linebacker Zach Zimos
As for what changed after being down 10 points…
“I don’t know, but I think it was a desperate quarter while we were losing. We needed to get a stop and score at the end of the day. We needed to win at home. Unfortunately, the ball just didn’t go our way. I was asking our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ to give us a chance. We got that chance, but unfortunately it didn’t go our way.”
On tonight’s defensive success…
“Yeah, I think we played a good game, but obviously it wasn’t enough. I think they had under 100 rushing yards. I don’t know how many passing yards they had. I knew they were going to come up with a different formation and up the tempo and I thought it was going to play out differently. In the end, we just didn’t get enough stops to win the game.”
Tight end Eli Finley
As for what changed after being down 10 points…
“Our defense helped us the whole game. We knew we were going to win in the fourth quarter, but we had to turn the tide and do something for them.”
Regarding turnover this season…
“We just need to stay focused and keep playing. We practice every week, keeping the ball, having the ball, so it’s important that we don’t make mistakes in those little moments in the game. We do our job, everybody does their job, other guys do their job as a team and the game goes well. You know we can make explosive plays, we’ve just got to make it happen in the fourth quarter.”
Famous people
LA Tech is now 4-11 all-time in overtime. It was the Bulldogs’ first overtime game since October 28, 2022. Eli Finley tied his season high with three receptions for a career-high 91 yards and also recorded his first career touchdown reception. Omily Wiggins recorded 53 all-purpose yards (he entered this game with 19 total yards in his first two games). After just one rushing attempt in his first two games, Fred Robertson rushed for 39 yards on seven carries. Jimmy Holiday recorded his second rushing touchdown of the season. Zach Zimos recorded a game-high 13 tackles (one yard shy of tying his career high). Blake Thompson recorded a career-high 12 tackles.
next time
LA Tech will open Conference USA play at FIU on Saturday, September 28. Kickoff is scheduled for 5pm Central Standard Time and will be broadcast on ESPN+.
