As Louisiana Tech celebrates its unexpected opportunity to play in a bowl game, it’s hard to ignore what it’s blissfully signed up for. In the 48th edition of the Independence Bowl, Tech will face off against Army, perhaps one of the toughest opponents it could have drawn.
Even after their loss to Navy, Army remains ranked at #39 in SP+. Of the 38 teams ranked above Army, 30 are playing each other in the College Football Playoff or other bowl games. The remaining 8 are facing teams ranked no lower than 61st, with the sole exception of #34 Auburn, which ended the season at 5-7.
In other words, no Group of Five team that squeaked into a bowl game with a 6-6 or 7-5 record will have as tough of a test as the Bulldogs will on Saturday night.
If there’s any silver lining in this matchup, it’s that Army’s offense is built around a strong, run-heavy attack—something Louisiana Tech has excelled at defending this season. This should be no surprise, as in recent years, running the football has been the sole identity of the Army offense:
Fortunately for Tech, stopping the run has been a strength for their defense throughout the season. Against FBS opponents, the Bulldogs rank 19th in the nation in yards allowed per game, giving up only 3.5 yards per carry. However, with several key defensive players departing via the transfer portal, the big question is whether the Bulldogs can still muster that same level of defensive dominance against an Army team that will relentlessly look to run the ball.
But that same transfer portal cuts both ways. As challenging as it may be for Tech, the transfer portal also hit Army. The Black Knights lost their leading backfield rusher, Kanye Udoh, to Arizona State. While QB Bryson Daily, who finished sixth place for the Heisman, leads the team in rush attempts and yards, Army will be missing some crucial production in the backfield on Saturday.
There’s no denying that Louisiana Tech will face a tough matchup in this bowl game. Without the meddling of the transfer portal, this would have been an interesting matchup to see if Jeremiah Johnson’s run defense was as potent as it sometimes looked.
But regardless of the result, when the stadium lights shut off in Shreveport on Sunday, the Bulldogs that will be back for the 2025 season will have that much more practice and game experience than they would have otherwise.
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Nathan is also a contributor to gtpdd.dog, a lighthearted Louisiana Tech blog. Be sure to check out @gotechplsdntdie on Twitter.
