Louisiana Tech bounced back in grand fashion with a 51-21 victory over Northwestern State on Saturday night.

The Bulldogs are now 2-1 overall with a huge game against North Texas looming on Saturday in Ruston.

Three Things We Learned

1 -- Good Crowds still Exist

There were 19,152 fans inside Joe Aillet Stadium for the matchup between Louisiana Tech and Northwestern State on Saturday night.

That's the largest crowd since 22,792 fans saw the 'Dogs knock of North Texas 52-17 on November 9, 2019.

Listen, there's always room for improvement but the students showed up in a big way and stayed for nearly the entirety of the 30-point blowout.

Kudos to you, Tech fans.

2 -- Keith Willis takes Advantage of Opportunity

The true freshman running back got an opportunity to shine and responded with 13 carries for 188 yards and 2 TDs.

While Willis might look like a bruiser in the backfield, he showcased legit speed on touchdown runs of 68 and 65 yards.

While Tyre Shelton returned to lineup with 62 yards and a TD on Saturday, Willis certainly made a strong argument to continue getting an opportunity to tote the rock.

3 -- Defense continues to play well

On the surface one might think that allowing 21 points to an FCS opponent is nothing to write home about, but when you look under the hood Scott Power's unit played well against Saturday night.

The 'Dogs piled up 12 TFLs and 4 sacks against the Demons.

Northwestern State was also limited to only 4 yards per play.

While there were a couple of breakdowns early in the game, the in-game adjustments were fantastic and the unit will continue to give Tech a chance to win every week.

Two Questions Going Forward

1 -- When will the passing game find its rhythm?

There's no reason to complain about much in a 30-point victory, but it's fair to ask what is missing from the passing game at this juncture.

Hank Bachmeier finished 9/18 for 104 yards and 1 TD in the win.

Point blank, he did what was asked of him on a night when the Bulldogs rushed for 357 yards on the ground.

Cyrus Allen. Tru Edwards. Kyle Maxwell. That group is three of your top four outside receivers entering the season that have missed time due to injury at one point or another through three weeks.

Is it as simple as getting healthy? Or is there a bigger issue? We'll find out in the coming weeks, but Smoke Harris needs others to step up so that he can have more room to operate.

2 -- Biggest Tech football game since....????

Wait. What? It's only the 4th game of the season.

Forget that, this is a massive game for Louisiana Tech on Saturday night against North Texas.

Get to 3-1 and the confidence continues to infiltrate the Tech locker room. Fall to 2-2 and questions remain about what this season can really become.

Handle. Business.

Get. It. Done.

One Prediction for This Week

Tech moves to 3-1 for the first time since 2019.

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