Is there anything more annoying than forcing your opponent into a third-down situation just for them to convert?

Unfortunately for the Bulldogs, Tech’s opponent this week knows exactly how to do that:

Granted, third-down conversions don’t happen in a vacuum. Usually, teams that are good on third down are just good at executing their offense regardless of the down.

For example, let’s look at 3rd and short. On those plays where everyone in the building knows you’re going to run it up the gut. How often can you still find success?

Well, UTSA excels at not getting stuffed at the line of scrimmage. The Roadrunners gain at least one yard on 89.4% of their runs, good for 7th best in college football:

But what about the other end of the 3rd down spectrum: 3rd and long?

Let’s take a look at what advanced stats call “passing downs.” These are plays where the defense can safely assume the offense will be passing. So this will be 2nd down and seven or more, 3rd down and five or more, or 4th down and five or more.

Even when the defense doesn’t need to worry about the run, the UTSA offense is still effective enough to either pick up the first down on 3rd or 4th down or at least get most of the way there on 2nd down:

So the Roadrunners can execute both on 3rd and long and 3rd and short. This dangerous combination keeps drives alive and the Tech offense on the sideline.

And that’s not all. As you get closer to the endzone, picking up an extra first down or two inside the 40-yard line can often be the difference between a touchdown or a field goal:

So long story short, the Tech defense has its work cut out for them. To have a chance as 18-point underdogs, the Bulldog defense will need to do something that no other team has been able to accomplish: get UTSA off the field on third down.

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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.