Tech dismisses the notion of a slip up vs. Southern
RUSTON – At this time 11 months ago, Jeff Driskel spent his fall in a Florida Gators uniform nearly 1,000 miles away from Louisiana Tech.
The fifth-year senior quarterback wasn’t present for Tech’s 30-27 upset loss against Northwestern State last September, but he’s heard enough from his teammates inside the Bulldogs’ locker room about the unnerving defeat to an in-state FCS opponent.
In other words, there should be no issue getting up for Saturday’s season opener against Southern, which just so happens to be another in-state FCS foe.
“A lot of the guys still have that bad taste in their mouth. Especially with this being the first game, if you have difficulty getting excited for a first game, there is something wrong with you,” Driskel said Monday.
“Obviously, I was not here for that game, but that is something that you don’t forget. Going into a game you are supposed to win and should win because you are more talented than the other team, but that is why you play the game. We are not going to go out and roll a helmet out there and win. We understand that.”
This year’s game can hardly be used in the same sentence with the 2014 letdown. That particular loss came in week four of the season after emotional wins against UL Lafayette and North Texas.
Southern, meanwhile, serves as the season opener in what could amount to the largest crowd since 1997 when 28,714 packed Joe Aillet Stadium to see Tech beat ULM.
Throw in the unveiling of Tech’s new $22 million end zone facility and preseason projects that tabbed the Bulldogs as the favorite to repeat as Conference USA West Division champs and the Bulldogs would be hard-pressed to stumble again on such a large stage.
Tech coach Skip Holtz backed up Driskel’s statement with the usual coach speak of not overlooking opponents, citing his respect for Southern’s program and head coach Dawson Odums, who has led the Jaguars to back-to-back SWAC title games.
Southern finished 9-4 last year and returns nine offensive starters on offense, including quarterback Austin Howard, running back Lenard Tillery and wide receiver Willie Quinn.
“You are also playing a team that is really good when you look at the success they have had. I do not expect a letdown,” Holtz said. “You watch the film and see that they are very productive. I think they will get our best shot.”
Holtz’s comments stopped short of any Northwestern State comparison, though. Instead, he referenced two of Tech’s losses — NSU and Old Dominion — where the Bulldogs failed to play up to potential.
Two weeks after Tech stumbled against NSU, it ripped off five straight wins to put itself in the C-USA West driver’s seat. However, a road loss to Old Dominion thwarted earlier championship celebrations, instead forcing the Bulldogs to win the following weekend against Rice to clinch the division.
“This is not the game to just refer back to Northwestern State last year. This is a game we have talked to our team about playing with that edge,” Holtz said. “We want to eliminate those games this year. We talked about the maturity it is going to take and the depth it is going to take. It is also going to take focus for us as a football team. I do not think this is about an FCS opponent.”
That’s exactly what Holtz wants to avoid.
The third-year coach still can’t figure out what caused the losses, but whatever the case may be he’s convinced Tech can’t be “up and down.”
“Games where we thought we should win, we did not go out and play as well,” he said. “I do not know if it was just losing the edge. I do not think they did not play hard or not care. You just lose that edge. You have to play every week on edge.”
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