Get to know SMU’s Week 1 opponent: Louisiana Tech
SMU Football opens up the season with Louisiana Tech on Saturday at 11 a.m. CT on ESPNU. To preview the matchup, BleedTechBlue.com’s Ben Carlisle spoke with On The Pony Express about the Bulldogs.
1. How would you summarize Louisiana Tech’s season opener compared to how you expected it to go?
BC: That’s a good question. I think the expectations around the program are that the Bulldogs will be back in a bowl game at a minimum in 2023. Did Tech look like a bowl team for 60 minutes on Saturday night? Probably not. But it was the first game of the season with a new starting quarterback that had not seen game action since last October + a defense that was almost completely revamped personnel wise in the off-season. The offense flashed with 448 total yard but struggled to finish with points. The defense allowed 14 points and 107 total yards in the first quarter but was able to respond by allowed only 3 points and 73 yards over the final three quarters. All in all, it wasn’t pretty but to grind one out late was big for the confidence of this football team.
2. What was your biggest takeaway from the game? What is the biggest thing you still need to learn about the team?
BC: Tech had lost 19 straight games when trailing at the half prior to the win over FIU on Saturday. That’s my biggest takeaway. It’s a program that only has 6 combined wins over the last two seasons and needed something to go right. To win in that manner late might have been more important for the confidence of the team than a blowout win would’ve been. What do I still need to learn about this Tech team? It was FIU. Not a great program by any stretch of the imagination. SMU will be a step up in competition on Saturday afternoon, can the Bulldogs continue to move the football and play good sound defense? That’s what I’ll have my eye on.
3. Smoke Harris is so dynamic and is a tough cover. How has his role changed from what you saw in Game 1 and who else needs to step up around him?
BC: Smoke is obviously the #1 receiver in this offense out of the slot. Sonny Cumbie will move him all over the field in order to try to gain a matchup advantage and get him the ball in space. He’s doesn’t have elite vertical speed, but he’s special when it comes to forcing missed tackles in small areas and picking up an extra 5-6 yards. Cyrus Allen is the #2 guy at WR and nearly 23 yards per catch as a freshman in 2022. He can blow the top off a defense in a hurry. In week zero, FIU shaded over the top of him and Tech struggled to find anything down the field to anyone other than Smoke Harris. Tru Edwards, Kyle Maxwell, Decoldest Crawford, and TE Nate Jones have to force DCs to respect them in the passing game before Tech’s offense will be defended in a different manner.
4. Cecil Singleton and Myles Heard are legit defenders, but FIU is also expected to struggle this year. What did the defense show and are they as impressive as they looked? What’d they show you?
BC: I don’t know that they are necessarily as impressive as they looked on Saturday, but the defense will be massively improved from a season ago when they allowed over 37 points per game.
They hit the transfer portal hard with an idea of adding more speed and athleticism to the unit. I think that’s what they showed on Saturday. The DL had 2 sacks after combing for only 5.5 sacks as a unit a season ago. Brevin Randle and Jeslord Boateng combined for 15 tackles at the LB spot, and the secondary obviously only allowed 4 yards passing. The 4 passing yards allowed is an anomaly which is why I’m eager to see how they’ll fare against a talented SMU WR group.
5. How do you see this one playing out with SMU? Got a score prediction?
BC: I wonder how much of an advantage Tech has with having already played a game this season. If Tech could force a turnover or two early on while Preston Stone and the SMU offense is still trying to settle in, I think it could be one of the more entertaining games of week one. However, I think the Mustangs ultimately outlast the Bulldogs in a 42-31 win.
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