Bulldogs ready for Panthers
MIAMI – Louisiana Tech (4-3, 2-1) will return to conference play this weekend when the Bulldogs head to Miami to take on the FIU Panthers (3-4, 3-0) at 6 p.m. tonight at Ocean Bank Field at FIU Stadium.
The Conference USA matchup between Louisiana Tech and FIU will be available to stream live on WatchESPN and the ESPN app.
“FIU is a difficult team to prepare for,” head coach Skip Holtz said. “It should be a great challenge for our players and we just have to stay focused on our players and what we need to do.
“I am impressed with the job their staff has done. They have turned a difficult situation into an incredibly positive one.
“We have to find a way to go down there and win a football game this week. That is our sole focus. It will be a great challenge but it is nice to get back into conference play.”
Saturday’s game marks the third meeting all time between Louisiana Tech and FIU with the Bulldogs having won the two previous meetings. In 2013, LA Tech traveled to Miami and came home with a 23-7 road victory, while the most recent meeting resulted in a 27-17 win for the Bulldogs in Ruston last season.
LA Tech enters the weekend with one of the best offenses in the country, as the Bulldogs are ranked second nationally in passing offense and fourth in total offense.
Quarterback Ryan Higgins is currently ranked second in the country among FBS players with an average of 392.2 passing yards per game, while receivers Carlos Henderson and Trent Taylor are ranked first and second nationally in receiving yards per game with 147.3 and 141.0 yards per game average, respectively.
FIU comes into Saturday’s contest with a perfect 3-0 mark in league play, including a 27-26 victory over Charlotte last weekend on the road.
Since making a coaching change earlier in the season, the Panthers have not lost under the direction of interim head coach Ron Cooper with wins over Florida Atlantic, UTEP and Charlotte.
FIU comes into tonight’s game averaging 21.3 pointsper-game and 361.3 yards of total offense per game.
The Panthers are led by Alex McGough, who has thrown for 1,303 yards and seven touchdowns in 2016.
Defensively, Treyvon Williams is ranked 10th nationally with 10.7 tackles per game.