Oct. 7, 2011

RUSTON, La. - Louisiana Tech will begin a seven-week stretch with only one home Saturday when the Bulldogs hit the road to face Idaho at the Kibbie Dome in Moscow, Idaho. Kickoff is slated for 4 p.m. CT/2 p.m. PT.

During the upcoming seven weeks, Louisiana Tech (1-4, 0-1 WAC) will only return home once for an Oct. 29 date against San Jose State then head back out on the road for an additional three weeks with trips to Fresno State, Ole Miss and Nevada.

But this weekend's match-up against Idaho (1-4, 0-1 WAC) isn't easy as Tech faces a senior quarterback for the sixth time in six games this season. This actually marks the eighth consecutive game Tech has faced a senior quarterback dating back to last season. LA Tech faced senior quarterbacks from San Jose State (Jordan La Secla) and Nevada (Colin Kaepernick) to end the 2010 campaign.

"He played against us last year and is a good player," Louisiana Tech head coach Sonny Dykes said of Idaho quarterback Brian Reader. "He throws the ball well. He is a good football player, has good size and a nice strong arm. They do a good job and have good coaches over there that know what they are doing offensively and manipulating you and creating extra lanes in the run game. Then throw a play action against you. They hurt us last year with their vertical passing game in the middle of the field and that is something we are going to defend against this year."

On the flip side, Louisiana Tech's true freshman quarterback (Nick Isham) will play his first collegiate game as a legal adult as the young gunslinger turns 18 on Friday, Tech's travel day to Idaho.

Both teams are coming off tough starts to the season with identical 1-4 records with close losses to good teams. Louisiana Tech has dropped close decisions to Southern Miss, Houston and Mississippi State while Idaho recently fell in overtime at Virginia.

"They probably feel like they had a couple of games that could have swung either way and are probably looking to bounce back against us," linebacker Adrien Cole said of Idaho. "So I don't expect anything less than great competition and a good game. I am pretty sure they want it just as much as we do."

Both teams will bring an experienced and talented group of special teams units to the game. Louisiana Tech has blocked three kicks and returned a kickoff for a touchdown and has one of the top return teams in the country while Idaho's coverage and block units are also among the top in the nation.

"To me Idaho is an improved team and they played well against Virginia," said Dykes. "They have done well on their special teams. They blocked a punt against Virginia and returned it for a touchdown and have blocked some field goals. To me they are really playing aggressively in their special teams and it is really paying off for them. I know their return units are good and coverage units are good. They are going to be a challenge for us in a special teams stand point."

The game can be heard statewide on the LA Tech Sports Network as Dave Nitz, Teddy Allen, Max Causey and Bennie Thornell will team up to provide all the live play-by-play, color commentary and more. The show will start with a one-hour pregame and will conclude with a 30-minute postgame.

For the 13th straight year, KXKZ 107.5 FM (Ruston) will serve as the flagship station for Bulldog football. Joining KXKZ on the network this year are KLKL 95.7 FM (Shreveport/Bossier City), KTKC 92.9 FM (Springhill), KJVC 92.7 FM (Mansfield), KVCL 92.1 FM (Winnfield), KBEF 104.5 FM (Minden), WUBR 910 AM (Baton Rouge, Zachary) and KTTP 1110 AM (Alexandria).

Throughout the year, Tech fans can also access the audio for away games and audio/video for home games by purchasing a subscription to LA Tech All-Access by logging onto www.latechsports.com.

The game at Idaho will not be televised but fans can listen to the action on the LA Tech Sports Network or participate in the live in-game chat at LATechSports.com.

For complete coverage of Bulldog Football, follow @LATechPWalsh on Twitter or visit the official home of Louisiana Tech Athletics at LATechSports.com.