Boxscore

Ryan Moats might have won the award for best performance but the Louisiana Tech defense stole the show Monday as the Bulldogs downed Nevada 38-21 before 21,127 fans at Joe Aillet Stadium.

Moats tied his career high with three rushing touchdowns and finished the afternoon with 257 yards rushing on 33 carries, the fourth best single game rushing total in Louisiana Tech history.

It was the Barry Sanders-look-alike who gave the Bulldogs a 14-0 lead on a 12-yard run in the first quarter and a three-yard burst in the second. A Donald Allen three-yard touchdown run on a bootleg with 2:23 remaining in the first half gave Tech a commanding 21-0 halftime advantage.

?He?s just a fantastic player,? said Tech head coach Jack Bicknell. ?I kept telling him that he can?t get tired. He responded just like any great back. I?m really excited about the season I think he can have.?

As impressive as the Dallas, Texas, native was on the afternoon the Louisiana Tech defense was equally as impressive.

Nevada?s first two touchdowns came on a 15-yard drive following a fumble on the opening kickoff of the second half and a 29-yard drive following yet another Bulldog turnover early in the fourth quarter.

By the time the Wolf Pack added a late scoring toss with 1:58 left in the game, Tech had already sealed the victory, the first ever on national television.

The Bulldogs? new 3-4 defensive scheme seemed to keep Nevada on its heels all afternoon. Led by senior end Jemelle Cage, who registered a career-high four sacks on the day, the Tech defensive unit totaled nine sacks of Wolf Pack quarterbacks, only seven less than the team?s entire total of 16 in 2003.

?I was a little surprised (by our success of constant pressure),? Bicknell said. ?We were doing a great job early on. We were getting a tremendous amount of pressure on their quarterback. The defense did an outstanding job.?

Cage, who finished the day with six tackles, said he wasn?t surprised by his teammates effort.

?We wanted to rattle (their quarterback) early and that is what we did,? Cage said. ?After we got to him early, he started making some bad throws and that was a big part of the game.?

Allen and Matt Kubik played about equal snaps during the contest, with Kubik leading Tech down the field on their opening drive of the game and a 7-0 lead. However, Allen answered the call, leading the Bulldogs to their final four scores of the afternoon.

On the day, Allen completed 5-of-8 passes for 101 yards while Kubik finished 3-of-8 for 48 yards and one interception.

The Bulldogs added second half touchdowns with a 45-yard Moats burst, a 20-yard touchdown score by senior Danny Wilson and a 36-yard field goal by freshman kicker Brad Oestriecher.

Tech returns to action Saturday when the Bulldogs host UL-Lafayette at 6 p.m. at Joe Aillet Stadium.