The Bulldogs desperately need a win tomorrow... morning?? in Birmingham. UAB is looking to keep their West division dreams alive. What can the Bulldogs do to get things moving in the right direction?

No Mistakes

If you've watched Tech football at all this year, I don't need to tell you this: The Bulldogs have shot themselves in the foot WAY too many times. In fact, one of last week's keys to victory was... don't shoot ourselves in the foot. Luckily, this week we're playing a team that seems to thrive in spite of their own penalty issues. As Nathan pointed out in his Stat Attack post this week, the Blazers are the most heavily penalized team we'll face this season. To beat an undisciplined team, you've got to remain disciplined yourselves. We've seen what happens when the dogs get behind the sticks, and we've seen what happens when teams' drives get to continue on stupid penalties. Tech needs to play a clean game to have a chance.

Leadership on the Field

Last year when the Blazers came to Ruston, the third quarter wasn't going well. Tech's defense was getting gashed by Spencer Brown and DeWayne McBride. Hell, if you'd put me out there in a green and gold uniform I probably would've gained at least 10 yards. Don't ask me how many carries that would've taken... but you get the point. Then, Milton Williams stepped up. When his team needed him most, he decided that he and his boys weren't there to get pushed around all day. After a routine tackle, he stood up celebrating. Riling up his teammates. Not showboating, but showing that we got this. That's exactly the kind of confidence, bravado, machismo that this 2021 team has been missing. And at 2-6, it's hard to blame them... But it's an intangible that won us the game in 2020, and it's an intangible that we'll need this season to have a chance.

Pass the football

I'm pretty much a broken record at this point... But Tech can't run the football. We just can't. If you look at base stats... Tech hasn't had a single 100 yard rusher this season. Marcus Williams Jr. has looked promising at times, but it hasn't translated to statbook success. The advanced stats tell a similar tale: the Bulldogs now have an expected points added of -0.168 when they run the ball (127th in the nation). That means every time we run the ball, our opponent is expected to gain an advantage of nearly 0.2 points. When we pass, it's not great either, but at 0.128 expected points added, at least we're in the positive? (and 70th overall). On the other side of the ball, teams running against UAB are expected to lose 0.234 points per run, which is THIRD best in the nation. When teams pass, they gain 0.139 points per play. So uh.... pass.

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Evan is also a contributor to gtpdd.dog, a lighthearted Louisiana Tech blog. Be sure to check out @gotechplsdntdie on Twitter, play the gtpdd Contest and CUSA Pick'Em, and listen to the gtpdd Podcast!