Louisiana Tech earned a 40-24 victory over Middle Tennessee inside Joe Aillet Stadium on Saturday afternoon.

After two consecutive overtime losses, Sonny Cumbie's squad showed a lot of resiliency to dig deeper and find a way to win.

The Bulldogs will travel to UTSA for a Conference USA match-up next Saturday. Kickoff is scheduled for 2:30 PM on ESPN+.

Three Things We Learned

1 -- Parker McNeil Returns

Parker McNeil returned to the starting lineup at quarterback after missing the FIU game last week.

McNeil completed 14/33 passes for 285 yards, 3 TDs and 1 INT in the victory.

Beyond the stats, it was just a gutsy effort for the senior.

It was obvious that McNeil was playing at far less than 100% with a shoulder injury, and he suffered some sort of hand/thumb/finger injury in the 2nd quarter but it didn't matter.

The Austin, TX native continued to pop back up off the turf when he took hits and led his team to a much needed victory.

Gutsy.

2 -- Tre Harris gonna Tre Harris

We are in the midst of a breakout season for the redshirt sophomore out of Lafayette, LA.

Harris hauled in 7 passes for 157 yards and 2 TDs on Saturday afternoon.

It didn't matter where the ball was thrown, Harris made the play.

Harris is now ranked third nationally with nine touchdown catches in 2022.

STUD.

3 -- Defense continues to improve

Scott Power deserves a lot of credit.

After limiting FIU to only 2.2 yards per carry last week, the Tech defense forced 5 turnovers, had 5 TFL, and 4 sacks for an encore against Middle Tennessee on Saturday.

Myles Brooks had two interceptions, and Willie Roberts had one of his own that went back for a touchdown.

Cecil Singleton, Khiry Morrison, Keivie Rose, and Zion Nason all had sacks on the afternoon.

It hasn't always been pretty, but it's become pretty evident over the last couple of weeks that the Bulldogs defense is improving.

Two Questions Going Forward

1 -- Could Louisiana Tech have a 1,000-yard rusher and 1,000-yard receiver in 2022?

Marquis Crosby and Tre Harris have an opportunity to become the first pair of Bulldogs to go over 1,000 yards rushing & receiving in a season since Jarred Craft did it at running back and Trent Taylor & Carlos Henderson did it at receiver in 2016.

Crosby is 306 yards away from 1,000 yards rushing with 3 games remaining.

Harris needs only 197 yards for his first career 1,000-yard season at receiver.

2 -- Can the Bulldogs pull off the upset at UTSA?

UTSA 7-2 overall and 5-0 in Conference USA play in 2022.

Jeff Traylor's club has won the last two games in the series, including last year's 45-16 win in Ruston, but Tech leads the overall series at 7-3.

Upsetting UTSA in San Antonio would be a huge win for Sonny Cumbie and his team as they look to stay in the mix for a bowl game this season.

One Prediction for Next Week

Marquis Crosby goes over 100 yards rushing for a 3rd consecutive week.

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