By Drew Parsley, Louisiana Tech Associate Director for Strategic Communications; featured photo by Josh McDaniel
TROY, Ala. — Louisiana Tech continued its unbeaten start to Sun Belt Conference play Saturday afternoon, forcing five turnovers and scoring 21 unanswered points in the second half to defeat Troy, 41-17, in the first-ever meeting between the two programs at Veterans Memorial Stadium.
The Bulldogs (7-2, 5-0 SBC) extended their winning streak to six games and improved to 5-0 in conference play for the first time since 2019. Troy fell to 4-5 overall and 2-3 in league play.
Linebacker Alonzo Jackson Jr. led a dominant defensive effort with a game-high 11 tackles, 2.5 tackles for loss, two sacks, a forced fumble and a 66-yard fumble return for a touchdown. Kolbe Fields added 10 tackles, two tackles for loss, a sack and a forced fumble, while Janard Lockhardtrecorded an interception, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery.
Offensively, Marcus Calwise Jr. established career highs with nine receptions and 137 receiving yards, including a 28-yard touchdown reception. Quarterback Blake Baker completed 16 of 19 passes for 177 yards and a touchdown, while Trey Kukukadded 68 passing yards, a touchdown and 26 rushing yards.
Louisiana Tech opened the scoring on its first possession, marching 53 yards in nine plays before Kaegan Kent connected on a career-long 45-yard field goal to give the Bulldogs a 3-0 advantage.
Troy responded with a 15-play, 83-yard drive that ended with a 2-yard touchdown run by Gavin Griffin, giving the Trojans a 7-3 lead with 4:14 remaining in the opening quarter.
The Bulldogs answered with a nine-play, 77-yard possession that carried into the second quarter. Baker connected with Calwise on a 28-yard touchdown pass on the first play of the period, putting Louisiana Tech back in front, 10-7.
Louisiana Tech’s defense immediately created another scoring opportunity when Jojo Odom recovered a Troy fumble at the Trojans’ 20-yard line. Kent converted a 28-yard field goal five plays later to extend the lead to 13-7.
The Bulldogs forced another turnover on Troy’s ensuing possession when Jackson recorded a sack and forced fumble that Ayden Combs recovered at the Troy 12-yard line. However, the Trojans recovered a Louisiana Tech fumble three plays later to prevent another score.
After forcing a three-and-out, Louisiana Tech took advantage of a 17-yard punt return by Dedrick Latulas to begin its next possession at the Troy 43-yard line. The Bulldogs moved 43 yards in seven plays, capped by Sergio Snider’s 7-yard touchdown run to extend their advantage to 20-7 with 5:06 remaining before halftime.
Troy answered with a 41-yard field goal from Hayden Wolfe, cutting Louisiana Tech’s lead to 20-10 with 3:42 remaining in the second quarter.
The Bulldogs carried the 10-point advantage into halftime after outgaining Troy 225-115 in total offense and forcing two turnovers in the opening 30 minutes.
Troy narrowed the deficit early in the third quarter when Delvin Whitaker recovered a Louisiana Tech fumble in the end zone for a touchdown, bringing the Trojans within three points at 20-17.
Louisiana Tech responded with its longest scoring possession of the afternoon, driving 74 yards in 15 plays while taking 7:01 off the clock. Kukuk connected with Eli Finley on a 2-yard touchdown pass to extend the Bulldogs’ lead to 27-17 with 5:43 remaining in the third quarter.
The Bulldogs’ defense delivered another pivotal play on Troy’s next possession when Lockhardt intercepted Tucker Kilcrease and returned the ball 27 yards to the Troy 11-yard line. Andrew Burnette scored on an 11-yard touchdown run on the following play, pushing Louisiana Tech’s advantage to 34-17 just 17 seconds after Finley’s touchdown.
Louisiana Tech continued to control the game defensively in the fourth quarter, limiting Troy’s opportunities while maintaining its three-score advantage.
Jackson provided the final highlight with 1:05 remaining, recovering a Troy fumble and returning it 66 yards for a touchdown to seal the 41-17 victory.
The Bulldogs finished with 351 yards of total offense, including 245 passing yards, while limiting Troy to 262 total yards and just 47 rushing yards. Louisiana Tech recorded eight tackles for loss, three sacks and five takeaways, including four fumble recoveries and an interception.
The victory marked Louisiana Tech’s first six-game winning streak since 2019 and gave the Bulldogs their seventh victory of the season, continuing their strong start to their inaugural Sun Belt campaign.
QUOTABLES
Head Coach Sonny Cumbie
Opening Statement
“It was a great team win. I was really excited how our football team came out on the road for the second week in a row. Coming to a place like here at Troy—I think they’ve won over 70% of their games at home over the last few seasons. We were here for Homecoming; it was a great crowd. Going up against a team that just went up and beat James Madison at their place, and they’re also the defending SBC West Division champs in terms of last year. They’re a really good football team that our guys were able to beat today, and the good news is we have a better one in our locker room. I’m proud of how they played—defensively, offensively and special teams—obviously, there’s going to be things you’d like to do different. You’d like to finish, and score and hold the ball a little bit better in the second half. I think the first half, Blake was really into it. It’s amazing some of the throws he was making—he was throwing the football really well with accuracy. The timing he was getting the ball out of his hands with was really good. Our guys were making plays. Defensively, the story of the game was the takeaways. The physicality our guys played with and being able to get the points at the end was great. Kaegen Kent is continuing the make a kicking streak and has done a great job there. There’s things we have to be smarter about on special teams, and we’ll figure all that out on the bus ride home. But we came out and we were able to get this win, go 1-0 this week and 5-0 in conference play with a football team that is playing really well and finding ways to win. I’m just really proud of our coaches and players and the game plan they put together as well as our guys executing it.”
Cumbie on Alonzo Jackson Jr. and the rest of the linebacker room creating havoc…
“It’s a group of guys that are really athletic, and they’re great players. The scheme fits them really well. Their football IQ is what makes them even better with their ability to anticipate. This is what separates them from the rest of the group—they watched the first-half film from last week and knew they played hesitant, knew they didn’t play as fast for whatever reason, and they were determined to show how they can play for four quarters. Alonzo is extremely athletic, a guy from Haynesville that just continues to get better. I’m really proud of how they played.”
Cumbie on how Marcus Calwise Jr. has become a weapon for the Bulldog offense…
“Marcus was making plays like that in fall camp against our defense, and you see how good they are, and he was doing that regularly until he got injured, and that really set him back. But, now he’s back and in the mix. He’s great with the ball in his hands—he has strong hands to make catches over the middle, makes people miss, breaks tackles—he’s a really good receiver. The fortunate thing right now for us, and for the guys making those plays, they are even better people, day in and day out. They work hard, they’re great teammates, and they’re involved with what is going on in the community. I think that’s the fun thing about our team is it’s a unique group of people. They’re playing like that, obviously, and they’re a joy to be around every day. I think Marcus is going to continue to make plays. [Offensive coordinator] Nathan [Young] has done a great job of getting him the ball, and the quarterbacks for finding him and I think it just continues to add to the layers of our playmakers.”