2011 Louisiana Tech Bulldogs football team

2011 Louisiana Tech Bulldogs football
WAC champion
Poinsettia Bowl, L 24–31 vs. TCU
Conference Western Athletic Conference
2011 record 8–5 (6–1 WAC)
Head coach Sonny Dykes (2nd year)
Offensive coordinator Tony Franklin (2nd year)
Offensive scheme Air raid
Defensive coordinator Tommy Spangler (5th year)
Captain Adrien Cole
Captain Nick Isham
Home stadium Joe Aillet Stadium
(Capacity: 30,600)
2011 WAC football standings
Conf     Overall
Team   W   L         W   L  
Louisiana Tech $   6 1         8 5  
Nevada   5 2         7 6  
Utah State   5 2         7 6  
Hawaii   3 4         6 7  
San Jose State   3 4         5 7  
Fresno State   3 4         4 9  
New Mexico State   2 5         4 9  
Idaho   1 6         2 10  
  • $ Conference champion
As of December 24, 2011; Rankings from AP Poll

The 2011 Louisiana Tech Bulldogs football team represented Louisiana Tech University in the 2011 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The team was coached by Sonny Dykes, who was in his second season with Louisiana Tech. The Bulldogs played their home games at Joe Aillet Stadium in Ruston, Louisiana and competed in the Western Athletic Conference (WAC). They finished the regular season with an 8–4 overall record and a 6–1 record in WAC play to win the 2011 Western Athletic Conference title. The Bulldogs lost the Poinsettia Bowl in San Diego against the TCU Horned Frogs, the champions of the Mountain West Conference.

Before the season

Recruiting

After the Spring Game at Joe Aillet Stadium, it was announced that Hunter Lee, Blake Martin, and Vincent Moore would walk on at Louisiana Tech. After playing as a wide receiver and a safety at River Oaks High School in Monroe, Louisiana, Vincent Moore plans to play safety at Louisiana Tech. Hunter Lee will likely tryout for a position at running back after earning District 8-5A MVP honors at Flower Mound High School in 2010. [1]

T-Day Spring Game

1 2 3 4 Total
White 0 6 0 0 6
Blue 14 14 7 0 35

On May 24, Sonny Dykes dismissed wide receivers Ahmed Paige and Tim Molton from the team due to a violation of team rules.[2]

Awards & award watch lists

Ryan Allen[3] [4] [5] [6] [7]

Chad Boyd[7]

Matt Broha[7][8]

Colby Cameron[9]

Terry Carter[7]

Kris Cavitt[7]

Adrien Cole[4][7][10]

Lennon Creer[8][11]

Jay Dudley[7]

Justin Ellis[7]

IK Enemkpali[12]

Craig Johnson[13]

Hunter Lee[13]

Matt Nelson[7]

Quinton Patton[7][14]

Tommy Spangler[15]

Stephen Warner[7]

Schedule

The schedule was as follows:[16]

Date Time Opponent Site TV Result Attendance
September 3 9:00 PM at Southern Miss* M. M. Roberts StadiumHattiesburg, Mississippi (Rivalry in Dixie) FSN L 17–19   22,356[17]
September 10 6:00 PM No. 18 (FCS) Central Arkansas* Joe Aillet StadiumRuston, Louisiana ESPN3 W 48–42 OT  20,652
September 17 6:00 PM Houston* Joe Aillet Stadium • Ruston, Louisiana ESPN3 L 34–35   24,628
September 24 6:00 PM at Mississippi State* Davis Wade StadiumStarkville, Mississippi ESPNU L 20–26 OT  55,116
October 1 6:00 PM Hawaiʻi Joe Aillet Stadium • Ruston, Louisiana ESPN+/CST/ALT 2 L 26–44   25,212
October 8 4:00 PM at Idaho Kibbie DomeMoscow, Idaho W 24–11   15,309[18]
October 22 2:00 PM at Utah State Romney StadiumLogan, Utah ESPN+/CST/ALT 2 W 24–17   16,037
October 29 3:00 PM San Jose Statedagger Joe Aillet Stadium • Ruston, Louisiana W 38–28   19,642
November 5 9:30 PM at Fresno State Bulldog StadiumFresno, California (Battle for the Bone) ESPNU W 41–21   27,965
November 12 6:30 PM at Ole Miss* Vaught–Hemingway StadiumOxford, Mississippi CSS/CST W 27–7   44,123
November 19 3:00 PM at Nevada Mackay StadiumReno, Nevada W 24–20   11,639
November 26 3:00 PM New Mexico State Joe Aillet Stadium • Ruston, Louisiana ESPN+/CST/ALT 2 W 44–0   17,458
December 21 7:00 PM vs. No. 15 TCU* Snapdragon StadiumSan Diego (Poinsettia Bowl) ESPN L 24–31   24,607
*Non-conference game. daggerHomecoming. #Rankings from Coaches Poll released prior to game. All times are in Central Time Zone.

Source:[19]

Roster

2011 Louisiana Tech Bulldogs football team roster
Players Coaches
Offense
Pos. # Name Class
WR 1 Casey, RichieRichie Casey Jr
RB/WR 2 Fitte, LyleLyle Fitte Jr
QB 3 Hakmi, TarikTarik Hakmi Jr
WR 4 Patton, QuintonQuinton Patton Jr
RB 5 Creer, LennonLennon Creer Sr
QB 6 Waters, BrockBrock Waters Jr
WR 7 White, MylesMyles White Jr
WR 8 Jackson, JacarriJacarri Jackson So
QB 9 Griffith, ZachZach Griffith So
QB 10 Cameron, ColbyColby Cameron Jr
QB 11 Isham, NickNick Isham Fr
WR 15 Slack, HaydenHayden Slack So
QB 16 Burch, TaylorTaylor Burch Fr
WR 17 Ikharo, TaulibTaulib Ikharo Sr
WR 18 St. Julien, D.J.D.J. St. Julien Fr
WR 19 Guillot, AndrewAndrew Guillot Jr
WR 20 Harrington, MarkMark Harrington So
WR 21 Saintvil, BlasherBlasher Saintvil Jr
RB 22 Duplessis, TyroneTyrone Duplessis So
RB 23 Martin, BlakeBlake Martin Fr
RB 26 King, TevinTevin King Fr
RB 32 Holley, RayRay Holley Sr
RB 36 Lee, HunterHunter Lee Fr
RB 38 Lee, MalonMalon Lee Jr
RB 46 Courtney, RickeyRickey Courtney So
WR 49 Cheshier, NoahNoah Cheshier Fr
OL 57 Saia, KevinKevin Saia Jr
OL 61 Conger, MatthewMatthew Conger Jr
OL 63 Warner, StephenStephen Warner Jr
OL 64 Ginart, JohnnyJohnny Ginart Fr
OL 65 Lantrip, HoustonHouston Lantrip Jr
OL 66 Shepherd, MatthewMatthew Shepherd So
OL 67 Johnson, OscarOscar Johnson Jr
OL 68 Robinson, JoshJosh Robinson Fr
OL 69 Cano, VincentVincent Cano So
OL 72 Graffree, JeremyJeremy Graffree Jr
OL 73 Parrish, JoshJosh Parrish Jr
OL 74 Banks, LarryLarry Banks Jr
OL 76 Alsander, ZekeZeke Alsander Fr
OL 78 Mills, JordanJordan Mills Jr
OL 79 Cavitt, KrisKris Cavitt Sr
WR 81 Cathcart, ScottScott Cathcart Jr
WR 83 Manning, MatthewMatthew Manning Fr
WR 85 Gru, DavidDavid Gru Jr
WR 87 Banks, D.J.D.J. Banks So
WR 89 Spence, ChandlerChandler Spence Jr
Defense
Pos. # Name Class
LB 6 Fitte, BeauBeau Fitte Fr
CB 11 Evans, DeMarcionDeMarcion Evans Sr
CB 15 Abraham, BriceBrice Abraham Fr
DB 17 Johnson, CraigCraig Johnson Jr
DB 20 Johnson, JamelJamel Johnson Jr
DB 23 Williams, RyanRyan Williams Sr
CB 24 Clark, DaveDave Clark Jr
DB 25 Goodman, JustinJustin Goodman Sr
CB 27 Giles, QuinnQuinn Giles Jr
CB 28 Carter, TerryTerry Carter Sr
DB 29 Hayes, KendallKendall Hayes Fr
LB 30 Lewis, HarrisonHarrison Lewis Fr
DB/S 31 Boyd, ChadChad Boyd Jr
S 34 Schrang, MikeMike Schrang Fr
DB 35 Scott, KelvinKelvin Scott So
DB 37 Moore, VincentVincent Moore Fr
S 38 Nichols, ConnorConnor Nichols Fr
LB 39 Bates, WarrenWarren Bates Fr
LB 40 Kisseberth, KevinKevin Kisseberth Fr
DL 41 Enemkpali, I.K.I.K. Enemkpali So
DL 42 James, KendrickKendrick James So
LB 43 Hester, ChipChip Hester Jr
LB 44 Cole, AdrienAdrien Cole Sr
LB 45 Dudley, JayJay Dudley Sr
LB 46 Porter, RufusRufus Porter So
S 47 Crowe, JavontayJavontay Crowe Jr
LB 48 Rust, DustyDusty Rust Sr
LB 50 Morrison, ChesChes Morrison Fr
LB 52 Hook, TyTy Hook Fr
DL 53 Hymel, AdamAdam Hymel Sr
DE 54 Lucas, ShakeilShakeil Lucas So
LB 55 Mitchum, AntonioAntonio Mitchum Jr
LB 56 Randle, SolomonSolomon Randle Jr
LB 58 Voss, ZacharyZachary Voss So
DL 70 Ellis, JustinJustin Ellis So
DT 75 Longino, PhilipPhilip Longino Jr
DE 80 Harper, EricEric Harper Sr
DL 84 Taylor, AndreAndre Taylor Fr
DL 88 Porter, TylerTyler Porter Fr
DL 90 Tanner, DirkDirk Tanner Fr
DE 91 Broha, MattMatt Broha Sr
DL 92 Street, CarterCarter Street Fr
DE 93 Lacey, ChristianChristian Lacey Sr
DL 95 White, Jon'alJon'al White Jr
DT 96 Patterson, BrandonBrandon Patterson Sr
DL 98 Dora, VontarriusVontarrius Dora Fr
DL 99 Pichon, MalcolmMalcolm Pichon Fr
Special teams
Pos. # Name Class
PK 10 Hinton, JohnJohn Hinton Jr
ATH 13 Liggins, LevanderLevander Liggins Fr
PK 33 Nelson, MattMatt Nelson Jr
LS 51 Cuthbert, JoshJosh Cuthbert So
LS 82 Stidham, CodyCody Stidham Fr
P 86 Allen, RyanRyan Allen Jr
Head coach
Coordinators/assistant coaches
  • Tony Franklin (Offensive coordinator / quarterbacks)
  • Tommy Spangler (Defensive coordinator / safeties)
  • Rob Likens (Assistant head coach / wide receivers)
  • Stan Eggen (Defensive line / recruiting coordinator)
  • Pierre Ingram (Running backs)
  • Jeff Koonz (Linebackers)
  • Kevin Curtis (Cornerbacks)
  • Petey Perot (Offensive line)
  • Mark Tommerdahl (Special teams / inside receivers)
  • Damon Harrington (Head strength and conditioning)
  • Ed Jackson (Character education coordinator /
    assistant strength and conditioning)
  • Jacob Peeler (Strength and conditioning intern)
  • Zach Yenser (Offensive graduate assistant)
  • Thomas Graham (Defensive graduate assistant)
  • Hunter McWilliams (Director of football operations)
  • David Snyder (Director of video operations)

[20]


Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • Injured
  • Redshirt

Roster
Last update: September 3, 2011

Game summaries

Southern Miss

Rivalry in Dixie
1 234Total
LA Tech 0 0107 17
USM 7 039 19
  • Date: September 3
  • Location: M. M. Roberts Stadium, Hattiesburg, Mississippi
  • Game start: 9:10 PM
  • Elapsed time: 3:35
  • Game attendance: 22,356
  • Game weather: 74°F, cloudy with heavy rain, winds E 17 mph
  • Referee: Robert Cameron
  • TV announcers (Fox Sports Net): Ron Thulin (play-by-play), J.C. Pearson (analyst), Jeremy Bloom (sideline)

Sources:[21][22][23]

The Bulldogs opened the 2011 football season on the road against the Southern Mississippi Golden Eagles of Conference USA.[21] The game was the second in a scheduled 4-game football series between the two universities from 2010 to 2014.[24] Southern Miss defeated Louisiana Tech 19–17 in a game that was played during periods of heavy rain and high winds due to Tropical Storm Lee.[25]

Southern Miss scored the game's first touchdown at 11:38 in the first quarter to take a 7–0 lead.[22] After neither team scored the rest of the first half, both teams hit field goals to make the score Southern Miss 10, Louisiana Tech 3 with 14 seconds left in the third quarter.[22] Louisiana Tech tied the game at 10–10 when Lyle Fitte ran back a kickoff return 86 yards for a touchdown as the third quarter ended.[22] After USM scored a field goal with 11:42 left in the contest to take a 13–10 lead, Louisiana Tech recovered a fumbled punt by Southern Miss at the USM 3-yard line.[22] Lennon Creer scored Tech's sole offensive touchdown of the night on a 1-yard carry to give Tech a 17–13 lead with 9:43 left in the game.[22] Southern Miss took a 19–17 lead after hitting field goals of 42 yards and 49 yards.[22] Southern Miss went on to win the game after time expired with Louisiana Tech's offense in Southern Miss territory.[22]

Louisiana Tech's offense had 244 total yards in the game with Lennon Creer running 17 times for 53 yards and 1 touchdown.[22] True freshman Nick Isham went completed 20 passes on 36 attempts for 176 yards and kicked two punts for 77 yards in his first collegiate football start.[22] Tech's defense held Southern Miss to 379 total yards and allowed one touchdown and four field goals in the contest.[22] Tech's special teams personnel blocked a field goal in the first quarter, scored a kickoff return TD in the third quarter, and recovered a fumbled punt by USM in the fourth quarter.[22]

Central Arkansas

1 234OTTotal
UCA 10 710150 42
LA Tech 14 71476 48
  • Date: September 10
  • Location: Joe Aillet Stadium, Ruston, Louisiana
  • Game start: 6:04 PM
  • Elapsed time: 3:36
  • Game attendance: 20,652
  • Game weather: 85°F, clear skies, winds N 5–10 mph
  • Referee: Stacy Hardin
  • TV announcers (ESPN3): John Sadak (play-by-play), John Gregory (analyst)

Sources:[26][27][28]

Louisiana Tech opened their home schedule at Joe Aillet Stadium by hosting the University of Central Arkansas Bears for the third meeting between the two schools and the first since 2007. The Louisiana Tech Bulldogs defeated the UCA Bears 48–42 in overtime.[29] Louisiana Tech took an early 7–0 lead after a 42-yard touchdown pass from Nick Isham to Quinton Patton.[28] After UCA kicked a 39-yard field goal to cut the lead to 7–3, Isham completed a 72-yard touchdown pass to Patton to extend the Louisiana Tech to 14–3 over Central Arkansas.[28] Near the end of the first quarter, UCA quarterback Nathan Dick completed a 17-yard touchdown pass to Jessie Grandy to cut the Tech lead to 14–10.[28] In the second quarter, Tech running back Lennon Creer ran for a 5-yard touchdown and UCA's Dominiqu Croom caught a 3-yard touchdown from Nathan Dick to make the halftime score Louisiana Tech 21, Central Arkansas 17.[28]

The third quarter started with a 35-yard field goal by UCA to cut the lead to 21–20 Louisiana Tech.[28] Tech answered with a 4-yard touchdown run by Ray Holley and a 12-yard touchdown run by Lennon Creer to extend Tech's lead to 35–20 with 4:55 left in the third quarter.[28] Nathan Dick threw two touchdown passes of 43 and 56 yards respectively and connected on a two-point conversion attempt to tie the ball game at 35–35 with 14:10 left in the fourth quarter.[28] With 2:08 left in the game, Jerrel McKnight recovered a fumble by Lennon Creer and ran 73 yards for a touchdown to give Central Arkansas its first lead of the night, 42–35. Ray Holley scored his second rushing touchdown in the game on a seven-yard carry to cap a seven-play, 72-yard drive in 1 minute, 10 seconds to tie the contest at 42–42.[28]

The game went into overtime after the fourth quarter ended with the game tied at 42–42. UCA received the ball first in the overtime period and had a 39-yard field goal blocked by Adrian Cole.[28] Louisiana Tech went on to score on a 1-yard touchdown run by Lennon Creer to give Louisiana Tech a 48–42 victory over Central Arkansas in the first overtime game for Louisiana Tech since their September 8, 2007 home game against the Hawaii Warriors.[28][30]

Nick Isham completed 22 of 37 passes for 318 yards, 2 touchdowns, and 1 interception.[28] Lennon Creer had 32 carries for 183 yards and 3 tocuhdowns while Ray Holley ran the ball 9 times for 49 yards and 2 touchdowns.[28] Wide receiver Quinton Patton caught 8 passes for 211 yards and two touchdowns. Patton's 211 yard performance is tied for 10th place for the most receiving yards in a single game by a Louisiana Tech player.[31]

Houston

1 234Total
Houston 0 7721 35
LA Tech 7 13140 34
  • Date: September 17
  • Location: Joe Aillet Stadium, Ruston, Louisiana
  • Game start: 6:04 PM
  • Elapsed time: 3:21
  • Game attendance: 24,628
  • Game weather: 78°F, clear skies, calm winds
  • Referee: Ken Antee
  • TV announcers (ESPN3): John Sadak (play-by-play), Rene Nadeau (analyst)

Sources:[32]

Louisiana Tech hosted the Houston Cougars in their second home game of the 2011 football season. The matchup between Louisiana Tech and the University of Houston is the first game in a scheduled four-game football series that will run from 2011 to 2014. The Houston Cougars defeated the Louisiana Tech Bulldogs 35–34 after Houston scored 28 unanswered points to complete the biggest comeback in their program's history.[32]

Louisiana Tech took a 7–0 lead after Lennon Creer scored a 1-yard rushing touchdown with 11:12 left in the first quarter.[32] Tech extended their lead over Houston to 10–0 after Matt Nelson kicked a 30-yard field goal with 10:10 left in the second quarter.[32] Houston scored its first points of the night with 7:21 left in the second quarter when Case Keenum connected with Michael Hayes for a 54-yard touchdown to cut Louisiana Tech's lead to 10–7.[32] Louisiana Tech answered with a 2-yard touchdown run by Ray Holley and a 47-yard field goal by Nelson to take the 20–7 lead at halftime.[32]

Both teams traded punts to open the third quarter. With 6:47 left in the third quarter, Louisiana Tech QB Nick Isham completed a 16-yard touchdown pass to Quinton Patton to increase Tech's lead to 27–7.[32] After Quinn Giles intercepted a pass by Case Keenum, Ray Holley scored his second rushing touchdown in the game on a 7-yard TD run to bring the Louisiana Tech lead to 34–7 with 5:11 left in the third quarter. Houston began their comeback when Keenum completed a 50-yard touchdown pass with 4:27 left in the third quarter to make the score Louisiana Tech 34, Houston 14.[32] Bryce Beall ran for a 2-yard touchdown to cut the Tech lead to 34–21 with 12:53 left in the fourth quarter.[32] After Houston recovered a fumble by Tech's Ray Holley, Houston completed an 80-yard drive down the field with a 4-yard touchdown run by Beall to make the score 34–28 Louisiana Tech with 7:25 remaining in the game.[32] Houston took its first lead of the night after Keenum threw a 32-yard touchdown pass to make the score Houston 35–34 with 1:36 remaining in the game.[32] Houston went on to win the game after Tech turned the ball over on downs in the last minute of the game.[32]

Louisiana Tech generated 444 yards on offense on 98 plays.[32] Lennon Creer and Ray Holley combined for 47 carries, 161 yards, and three touchdowns on the ground, as Louisiana Tech ran 66 rushing plays in the game which is tied for the 2nd-most carries by a Bulldog team in the history of the program.[32][33] Quinton Patton caught five passes for 82 yards and one touchdown for the evening and was later named to the Fred Biletnikoff Award Watch List after the game as a result of his play through the first three games of the 2011 college football season.[14][32] The crowd of 24,628 at Joe Aillet Stadium for the Louisiana Tech vs. Houston marked the sixth-largest crowd for a Louisiana Tech football game at Joe Aillet Stadium.[33]

Mississippi State

1 234OTTotal
LA Tech 3 7730 20
Miss St 7 10306 26
  • Date: September 24
  • Location: Davis Wade Stadium, Starkville, Mississippi
  • Game start: 6:06 PM
  • Elapsed time: 3:15
  • Game attendance: 55,116
  • Game weather: 79°F, fair skies, winds SSW at 5 MPH
  • Referee: Tom Ritter
  • Television network: ESPNU

Sources:[34]

Louisiana Tech traveled to Starkville, Mississippi to play the Mississippi State Bulldogs in their second road game of the 2011 football season. This meeting marked the first meeting between the two schools since the 2008 season opener at Ruston and only the second meeting since 1996. The Mississippi State Bulldogs defeated Louisiana Tech 26–20 in overtime.

Mississippi State took a 7–0 lead after Chad Bumphis returned a punt 82 yards for a touchdown with 9:20 left in the first quarter.[34] Louisiana Tech cut the lead to 7–3 after Matt Nelson made a 43-yard field goal with 5:49 left in the first quarter.[34] At the 14:17 mark in the second quarter, Louisiana Tech took a 10–7 lead when Lennon Creer scored a 4-yard rushing touchdown to cap off an 11-play, 80-yard drive.[34] Mississippi State retook the lead after Vick Ballard scored an 11-yard rushing touchdown with 8:45 remaining in the second quarter to make the score 14–10 Mississippi State.[34] Mississippi State added a field goal to take a 17–10 lead going into halftime.[34]

After both teams traded punts to open the second half, Louisiana Tech tied the game at 17–17 after QB Nick Isham completed a 14-yard touchdown pass to Quinton Patton with 8:25 left in the third quarter.[34] Mississippi State regained the lead after Depasquale hit a 24-yard field goal to take a 20–17 lead with 5:21 left in the third quarter.[34] With 8:42 left in the game, Louisiana Tech tied the game 20–20 when Matt Nelson hit his second field goal of the game.[34] The score of the game remained tied at 20–20 when the fourth quarter ended. Overtime began with Louisiana Tech on offense. Tech's drive ended with no points scored after Nick Isham threw an interception to Mississippi State's Nickoe Whitley.[34] Mississippi State won the game 26–20 on its offensive possession in overtime after Chris Relf threw a 17-yard touchdown pass.[34]

The Mississippi State game marked the second overtime game for the Louisiana Tech Bulldogs for the 2011 football season.[35] This is also the second time in program history that Louisiana Tech has played two overtime games in one season.[35] The six-point loss to Mississippi State was the third close loss of the year for Louisiana Tech, as their first three losses of the 2011 season were by a combined nine points.[35]

Hawaii

1 234Total
Hawaii 13 7240 44
LA Tech 6 0146 26
  • Date: October 1
  • Location: Joe Aillet Stadium, Ruston, Louisiana
  • Game start: 6:07 PM
  • Elapsed time: 3:33
  • Game attendance: 25,212
  • Game weather: 75°F, clear skies
  • Referee: Robert Cameron
  • TV announcers (ESPN3): Trey Bender (play-by-play), Jay Taylor (analyst)

Sources:[36]

Louisiana Tech hosted the Hawaii Warriors in their third home game and the first WAC conference game of the 2011 football season. This meeting marked the final game between the two schools as members of the Western Athletic Conference, since Hawaii will leave the WAC and join the Mountain West Conference after the end of the 2011–2012 season. The Hawaii Warriors defeated Louisiana Tech 44–26 before a crowd of 25,212, the fourth largest crowd in the history of a Tech football game at Joe Aillet Stadium.[36]

Louisiana Tech took a 6–0 lead over Hawaii after Nick Isham completed a two-yard touchdown pass to Quinton Patton with 8:40 left in the first quarter.[36] Hawaii responded with three touchdown passes by Bryant Moniz to Royce Pollard in the remainder of the first half to take a 21–6 lead over Louisiana Tech at halftime.[36]

Louisiana Tech cut Hawaii's lead to 20–13 when Nick Isham connected with Taulib Ikharo on a 7-yard touchdown pass with 13:37 left in the third quarter.[36] With 9:29 left in the third quarter, Bryant Moniz threw a 6-yard touchdown pass to Craig Stutzmann to extend Hawaii's lead to 27–13.[36] Hawaii's defense scored 14 points off a 49-yard interception return and a 16-yard fumble recovery to increase Hawaii's lead to 41–13 with 7:46 left in the third quarter.[36] Lennon Creer ran for a 10-yard touchdown to cut the Hawaii lead to 41–20 with 6:40 left in the third quarter.[36] Hawaii added a field goal at the 3:01 mark in the third quarter in take a 44–20 lead.[36] Nick Isham ran for a 4-yard touchdown to make the game score Hawaii 44–26 at the 7:55 mark in the fourth quarter. Louisiana Tech went on to lose the game to Hawaii by a score of 44–26.[36]

Louisiana Tech's 2011 record fell to 1–4 overall and 0–1 in the WAC while Hawaii improved its record to 3–2 overall and 1–0 in the WAC.[36]

Idaho

1 234Total
LA Tech 0 10140 24
Idaho 0 506 11
  • Date: October 8
  • Location: Kibbie Dome, Moscow, Idaho
  • Game start: 2:07 pm
  • Elapsed time: 3:30
  • Game attendance: 15,309
  • Game weather: indoors
  • Referee: Clair Gausman

Sources:[37]

Louisiana Tech traveled to Moscow, Idaho to face the Idaho Vandals in their second conference game of the year. The Bulldogs defeated the Idaho Vandals 24–11 to end their three-game losing streak.[37]

After a scoreless first quarter, Louisiana Tech took a 3–0 lead in the game after Matt Nelson kicked a 23-yard field goal with 14:56 left in the second quarter.[37] Tech's lead was cut to 3–2 after Idaho scored a safety when Andre Ferguson tackled Louisiana Tech's Lennon Creer in Tech's endzone at the 12:27 mark in the second quarter.[37] Louisiana Tech increased the lead to 10–2 after Jay Dudley intercepted a pass by Idaho's Brain Reader and completed a 53-yard return for a touchdown with 4:47 left in the second quarter.[37] Idaho scored on a 43-yard field goal with 2:57 left in the second quarter to make the score Louisiana Tech 10–5.[37] Louisiana Tech scored fourteen points in the third quarter as a result of a 6-yard touchdown pass to David Gru and a 1-yard touchdown run by Nick Isham to increase their lead to 24–5.[37] Idaho's Justin Veltung returned a punt by Tech's Ryan Allen for an 81-yard touchdown with 3:35 left in the fourth quarter to make the final score 24–11 Louisiana Tech.[37]

Hunter Lee received a majority of the carries for Louisiana Tech in place of Lennon Creer and rushed 28 times for 134 yards.[37] Nick Isham was 25/39 for 163 yards and 2 touchdowns (1 rushing, 1 passing).[37] Ryan Allen was named the WAC Special Teams Player of the Week for his punting performance against Idaho.[3] He punted the ball ten times for an average for 48 yards, including 6 downed balls inside the opponent's 20-yard line.[37]

Utah State

1 234Total
LA Tech 7 0710 24
Utah St 7 370 17
  • Date: October 22
  • Location: Romney Stadium, Logan, Utah
  • Game start: 1:05 pm
  • Elapsed time: 3:04
  • Game attendance: 16,037
  • Game weather: 64°F, clear skies
  • Referee: Jim Farmer
  • TV announcers (ESPN3): Trey Bender (play-by-play), Jay Taylor (analyst)

Sources:[38]

After a bye week after the Idaho game, Louisiana Tech played Utah State at Logan, Utah. Louisiana Tech's 24–17 victory over Utah State marked their ssecond straight victory this season and the first time that Louisiana Tech has won four consecutive WAC road games since joining the conference in 2001.[38] The game also featured a quarterback change for Louisiana Tech when Colby Cameron substituted for Nick Isham late in the third quarter.[38]

Louisiana Tech took the first lead of the game after Lennon Creer ran for a 3-yard touchdown to make the score Louisiana Tech 7–0 at the 8:22 mark in the first quarter.[38] Utah State responded with a 1-yard touchdown run by Robert Turpin to tie the game at 7–7 with 3:20 left in the first quarter.[38] Utah State took a 10–7 lead after Josh Thompson hit a 43-yard field goal with 7:57 left in the second quarter.[38] Louisiana Tech retook the lead from Utah State with 11:36 left in the third quarter after Terry Carter intercepted a pass by Chuckie Keeton and returned it 22 yards for a touchdown to make the score 14–10 for Louisiana Tech.[38] Utah State captured the lead again after Chuckie Keeton scored on a 29-yard touchdown run with 7:41 left in the third quarter to make the score 17–14 Utah State.[38] The Bulldogs took a 21–17 lead after Hunter Lee scored an 8-yard touchdown run with 10:14 left in the fourth quarter.[38] Matt Nelson connected on a 24-yard field goal with 2:46 left in the game to make the final score 24–17 Louisiana Tech.[38]

Colby Cameron came into the game for Louisiana Tech late in the third quarter after Nick Isham struggled for most of the game at quarterback.[38] This was the first game in which Cameron completed a pass since September 18, 2010 against Navy.[38] Adrian Cole was named the WAC Defensive Player of the Week, and Ryan Allen was named the WAC Special Teams Player of the Week for their performances against Utah State.[4]

San Jose State

1 234Total
SJSU 7 786 28
LA Tech 3 21140 38
  • Date: October 29
  • Location: Joe Aillet Stadium, Ruston, Louisiana
  • Game start: 3:07 pm
  • Elapsed time: 3:20
  • Game attendance: 19,642
  • Game weather: 78°F, clear skies
  • Referee: Stacy Hardin

Sources:[39]

Louisiana Tech hosted the San Jose State Spartans at Joe Aillet Stadium in Ruston, Louisiana for their annual Homecoming game. Louisiana Tech defeated the Spartans 38–38 to win their third consecutive game this season and improved their record to 4–4 (3–1 in conference play) for the 2011 season.[39] Colby Cameron started at quarterback for Louisiana Tech in place of the injured Nick Isham.[39]

Louisiana Tech took the first lead with 8:59 left in the third quarter when Matt Nelson hit a 25-yard field goal to make the score 3–0.[39] San Jose State took a 7–3 lead at the 6:50 mark in the first quarter when Brandon Rutley ran for a 1-yard touchdown.[39] Louisiana Tech retook the lead at the 10:31 mark in the second quarter when Richie Casey ran for a 21-yard touchdown to make the score 10–7 in favor of the Bulldogs.[39] With 8:29 remaining in the second quarter, San Jose State took a 14–10 lead after Matt Faulkner threw a 60-yard touchdown to Noel Grigsby.[39] Louisiana Tech took a 17–14 lead at the 7:20 mark in the second quarter after Colby Cameron threw a 90-yard touchdown pass to Quinton Patton.[39] Tech scored another touchdown on a 2-yard pass from Cameron to Quinton Patton to extend the lead to 24–14 going into the half.[39]

The Bulldogs started the second half with a 1-yard touchdown run by Lennon Creer to take a 31–14 lead with 11:15 left in the third quarter.[39] Jay Dudley intercepted a pass by Matt Faulkner and returned it for a 36-yard touchdown to make the score 38–14 for Louisiana Tech.[39] Dudley's interception return for a touchdown marked the second INT return for a touchdown in the last three games.[39] San Jose State scored a touchdown and a two-point conversion with 43 seconds left in the third quarter to trim Louisiana Tech's lead to 38–22.[39] San Jose State would score another touchdown with a 20-yard touchdown reception to Ryan Otten to make the final score Louisiana Tech 38–28.[39]

In his first start in 2011, Colby Cameron was 17/27 for 237 yards, and 2 touchdowns.[39] Lennon Creer ran the ball 31 times for 112 yards, and 1 touchdown.[39] Quinton Patton had 5 receptions for 116 yards and 2 touchdowns.[39] The 90-yard touchdown pass from Cameron to Patton was the fifth-longest reception in Louisiana Tech history and the longest touchdown of the 2011 season for Louisiana Tech.[39] Tech's defense held San Jose State to a season-low 12 yards rushing and forced five turnovers, including four interceptions.[39]

Fresno State

See also: 2011 Fresno State Bulldogs football team and Battle for the Bone
Battle for the Bone
1 234Total
LA Tech 14 2070 41
Fresno St 0 777 21
  • Date: November 5
  • Location: Bulldog Stadium, Fresno, California
  • Game start: 7:32 PM
  • Elapsed time: 3:23
  • Game attendance: 27,965
  • Game weather: 53°F, calm winds, mostly cloudy skies
  • Referee: Jim Farmer
  • Television network: ESPNU

Sources:[40]

Louisiana Tech traveled to Fresno, California to face the Fresno State Bulldogs in the Battle for the Bone rivalry game. With Fresno State moving to the Mountain West Conference after the 2011–12 season, this game was probably the final meeting between the two teams for the foreseeable future. Louisiana Tech defeated Fresno State 41–21 to win their fourth consecutive game and improve the season record to 5–4 (4–1 in WAC play).[40]

Louisiana Tech took a 7–0 lead at the 10:01 mark in the first quarter when Colby Cameron threw a 45-yard touchdown pass to Quinton Patton.[40] Tech extended the lead to 14–0 when Cameron threw a 22-yard touchdown pass to Quinton Patton with 4:40 left in the first quarter.[40] Matt Nelson hit a 26-yard field goal to increase LA Tech's lead to 17–0 with 14:19 remaining in the second quarter.[40] Fresno State scored a touchdown on a 6-yard pass from Derek Carr to Victor Dean to cut Louisiana Tech's lead to 17–7 with 9:40 left in the second quarter.[40] Louisiana Tech responded with a 53-yard rushing touchdown by Lennon Creer and a 75-yard touchdown pass from Colby Cameron to Myles White to make the score Louisiana Tech 31–7 with 5:23 left in the second quarter.[40] Matt Nelson hit a 40-yard field goal at the end of the second quarter to make the score Louisiana Tech 34–7.[40]

Louisiana Tech extended their lead to 41–7 at the 10:26 mark in the third quarter after Colby Cameron threw a 6-yard touchdown pass to Richie Casey.[40] Fresno State cut the lead to 41–14 when Derek Carr threw a 16-yard touchdown pass to Jalen Saunders with 7:03 remaining in the third quarter.[40] Fresno State scored one more touchdown at the 6:14 mark in the fourth quarter when Derek Carr threw a 24-yard pass to Devon White to make the final score of the game Louisiana Tech 41, Fresno State 21.[40]

Colby Cameron was named the WAC Offensive Player of the Week after his performance in the Fresno State game. Cameron was 19/33 for 376 yards, 4 TDs, and no INTs.[40] Lennon Creer had 17 carries for 116 yards and one TD.[40] Quinton Patton had 6 receptions for 97 yards and 2 TDs, and Myles White had 2 catches for 130 yards, and 1 TD.[40]

Ole Miss

1 234Total
LA Tech 0 10107 27
Ole Miss 7 000 7
  • Date: November 12
  • Location: Vaught–Hemingway Stadium, Oxford, Mississippi
  • Game start: 6:35p.m.
  • Elapsed time: 3:11
  • Game attendance: 44,123
  • Game weather: 59°F, fair, winds S at 3 mph
  • Referee: David Smith
  • Television network: CSS/CST/ESPN3

Sources:

Nevada

1 234Total
LA Tech 0 0321 24
Nevada 7 067 20
  • Date: November 19
  • Location: Mackay Stadium, Reno, Nevada
  • Game start: 1:05 PM
  • Elapsed time: 2:57
  • Game attendance: 11,639
  • Game weather: 41°F, mostly cloudy, winds 2–5 mph
  • Referee: Bill Athan

Sources:

New Mexico State

1 234Total
NM State 0 000 0
LA Tech 9 14210 44
  • Date: November 26
  • Location: Joe Aillet Stadium, Ruston, Louisiana
  • Game start: 3:00 PM
  • Elapsed time: 3:13
  • Game attendance: 17,458
  • Game weather: 68°F, rainy, winds S 5–10 mph
  • Referee: Clair Gausman
  • Television network: ESPN+/CST/ALT 2

Sources:

TCU

Main article: 2011 Poinsettia Bowl
Poinsettia Bowl
1 234Total
#15 TCU 0 10714 31
LA Tech 3 7140 24
  • Date: December 21
  • Location: Snapdragon Stadium, San Diego
  • Game start: 5:06 PM
  • Elapsed time: 3:29
  • Game attendance: 24,607
  • Game weather: 57°F, partly cloudy, winds WSW at 5 mph
  • Referee: Todd Geerlings
  • TV announcers (ESPN): Joe Tessitore (Play-by-Play), Lou Holtz and Mark May (Analysts), Samantha Steele (Sidelines)

Sources:

The Louisiana Tech Bulldogs accepted an invitation to the 2011 Poinsettia Bowl after defeating New Mexico State and winning the WAC Championship in their regular season finale on November 25.

Statistics

Team

LA Tech Opp
Scoring 391 301
  Points per Game 30.1 23.2
First Downs 261 262
  Rushing 111 106
  Passing 133 140
  Penalty 17 16
Total Offense 5130 4894
  Avg per Play 5.2 4.9
  Avg per Game 394.6 376.5
Fumbles-Lost 18-9 18-10
Penalties-Yards 89-796 78-655
  Avg per Game 61.2 50.4
LA Tech Opp
Punts-Yards 85-3908 87-3780
  Avg per Punt 46.0 43.4
Time of Possession/Game 28:22 31:38
3rd Down Conversions 79/216 68/211
4th Down Conversions 10/17 11/22
Touchdowns Scored 50 37
Field Goals-Attempts-Long 15-21 14-21
PAT-Attempts 46-48 31-32
Attendance 107,592 192,545
  Games/Avg per Game 5/21,518 7/27,506
  Neutral Site Games 1/24,607

Scores by quarter

1 2 3 4OT Total
LA Tech 66 109 149 616 391
Opponents 65 63 82 856 301

Offense

Rushing

Name GP-GS Att Gain Loss Net Avg TD Long Avg/G
Lennon Creer 10- 198 878 40 838 4.2 9 53 83.8
Hunter Lee 13- 135 671 21 650 4.8 5 48 50.0
Colby Cameron 7- 43 217 37 180 4.2 0 27 25.7
Ray Holley 4- 36 156 12 144 4.0 4 17 36.0
Lyle Fitte 6- 12 81 0 81 6.8 0 15 13.5
Quinton Patton 13- 10 42 0 42 4.2 0 9 3.2
Richie Casey 13- 2 21 3 18 9.0 1 21 1.4
Taulib Ikharo 13- 2 6 1 5 2.5 0 6 0.4
Rickey Courtney 2- 4 7 2 5 1.2 0 4 2.5
Tyrone Duplessis 2- 7 12 15 -3 -0.4 0 7 -1.5
Brock Waters 3- 4 2 10 -8 -2.0 0 2 -2.7
Nick Isham 10- 49 126 145 -19 -0.4 2 13 -1.9
TEAM 7- 7 0 32 -32 -4.6 0 0 -4.6
Total 13- 509 2219 318 1901 3.7 21 53 146.2

Passing

Name GP-GS Effic Att-Cmp-Int Pct Yds TD Lng Avg/G
Nick Isham 10- 112.8 155-257-7 60.3 1457 8 72 145.7
Colby Cameron 7- 137.2 118-215-3 54.9 1667 13 90 238.1
Myles White 10- 59.2 1-2-1 50.0 26 0 26 2.6
Richie Casey 13- 478.0 1-1-0 100.0 45 0 45 3.5
Ray Holley 4- 125.2 1-1-0 100.0 3 0 3 0.8
Brock Waters 3- 259.6 1-1-0 100.0 19 0 19 6.3
Taylor Burch 12- 200.8 1-1-0 100.0 12 0 12 1.0
Total 13- 124.8 278-478-11 58.2 3229 21 90 248.4

Receiving

Name GP-GS No. Yds Avg TD Long Avg/G
Quinton Patton 13- 79 1202 15.2 11 90 92.5
Taulib Ikharo 13- 54 537 9.9 4 35 41.3
Myles White 10- 30 414 13.8 3 75 41.4
David Gru 13- 26 339 13.0 1 45 26.1
Richie Casey 13- 19 213 11.2 1 26 16.4
Lennon Creer 10- 18 93 5.2 1 13 9.3
Hunter Lee 13- 13 126 9.7 0 28 9.7
Andrew Guillot 8- 12 118 9.8 0 33 14.8
Lyle Fitte 6- 12 60 5.0 0 9 10.0
Jacarri Jackson 11- 6 62 10.3 0 25 5.6
Ray Holley 4- 4 29 7.2 0 10 7.2
Nick Isham 10- 2 13 6.5 0 8 1.3
Malon Lee 8- 2 11 5.5 0 7 1.4
Matt Broha 13- 1 12 12.0 0 12 0.9
Total 13- 278 3229 11.6 21 90 248.4

Defense

Name GP Tackles Sacks Pass Defense Interceptions Fumbles Blkd
Kick
Solo Ast Total TFL-Yds No-Yds BrUp QBH No.-Yds Avg TD Long Rcv-Yds FF
Adrien Cole 13 79 49 128 13.0-49 2.0-15 5 4 1-45 45 1-0 1 3
Jay Dudley 13 55 47 102 8.0-32 3 1 4-94 1-0
Total

Special teams

Name Punting Kickoffs
No. Yds Avg Long TB FC I20 Blkd No. Yds Avg TB OB
Ryan Allen 83 3828 46.1 72 5 28 39 0
Nick Isham 2 77 38.5 41 2 0 0 0
TEAM 0 3 0.0 3 0 0 0 1
Matt Nelson 77 4673 60.7 10 0
Total 85 3908 46.0 72 7 28 39 1 77 4673 60.7 10 0
Name Punt Returns Kick Returns
No. Yds Avg TD Long No. Yds Avg TD Long
Andrew Guillot 14 168 12.0 0 52 1 16 16.0 0 16
Quinton Patton 8 27 3.4 0 17 6 98 16.3 0 33
Craig Johnson 4 80 20.0 1 82
Jay Dudley 1 4 4.0 0 4
Terry Carter 1 -10 -10.0 0 0
Lyle Fitte 22 575 26.1 1 86
Levander Liggins 18 409 22.7 0 40
Chandler Spence 3 48 16.0 0 18
Richie Casey 2 30 15.0 0 16
Total 28 269 9.6 1 82 52 1176 22.6 1 86

References

General

Specific

  1. http://louisianatech.scout.com/2/1062087.html
  2. Paige, Molton Dismissed from Team
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  5. "Ryan Allen Named a Finalist for the Ray Guy Award". Augusta Sports Council. November 21, 2011. Retrieved November 21, 2011.
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  31. 2011 Louisiana Tech Football Media Guide, p. 148
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