RUSTON – The Louisiana Tech football team opens its 121st season of play this Saturday by hosting FIU for an 8 p.m. Conference USA clash inside Joe Aillet Stadium. The game will be televised nationally on CBS Sports Network.
 
GAMEDAY INFORMATION
Date: Saturday, Aug. 26
Time: 8 p.m. (CT)
Location: Ruston, La. (Joe Aillet Stadium)
Live Stats: LaTechSports.com/stats
Radio: LA Tech Sports Network (KXKZ 107.5 FM)
TV: CBS Sports Network
Program: LA Tech vs. FIU
 
SERIES HISTORY
Series: LA Tech leads, 4-1
In Ruston: 2-0
In Miami: 2-1
 
ABOUT LA TECH (0-0)
The Bulldogs enter the 2023 season with a revamped roster as head coach Sonny Cumbie, and staff welcomed 65 newcomers, including 31 transfers in the offseason to complement their 48 returnees. LA Tech returns 13 total starters, including seven offensive, four defensive, and two special teams starters. 
 
Quarterback Hank Bachmeier will make his Louisiana Tech debut on Saturday after transferring from Boise State, where he threw for 6,605 yards and 41 touchdowns during his four seasons as a Bronco. Bachmeier's career average of 227.8 passing yards a contest ranks 14th nationally and leads all CUSA quarterbacks. 
 
Wide receivers Smoke Harris and Cyrus Allen are the Bulldogs' top returning targets in the passing game.
 
Harris enters the season as one of the most decorated active FBS players in the country. Harris has tallied 224 career receptions for 2,112 yards and 19 touchdowns during his five years at LA Tech. The St. Francisville native's streak of 32 games with a reception is the seventh-longest streak nationally. In the return game, he is one of two returning FBS players who tallied 500+ kickoff return yards and 200+ punt return yards in 2022. Harris was tabbed as the CUSA Preseason Special Teams Player of the Year, ahead of the 2023 season.
 
Allen is coming off a breakout 2023 season in which he totaled 22 receptions for 500 yards and four touchdowns. His 500 receiving yards ranked sixth nationally among all FBS freshmen, while his 22.73 yards per reception ranked second among all FBS players.
 
Experience will be a strength on the offensive line as the LA Tech line has a combined 228 career games played entering the season, which leads Conference USA and ranks sixth nationally among all FBS programs. The Bulldogs return a combined 34 starts from a year ago. Abraham Delfin is the group's most experienced member. The seventh-year senior has appeared in 51 games and recorded 25 career starts. 
 
With running back Marquis Crosby out for the opener, Charvis Thornton, Miami (Ohio) transfer Tyre Shelton, and true freshman Keith Willis Jr. will form the Dogs' rushing attack.
 
Defensively, Louisiana Tech is projected to start seven returnees and four transfers. Linebacker Hugh Davis returns after leading the Bulldogs with 79 total tackles a year ago. Davis led the team in single-game tackles twice last year and started all 12 games.
 
Preseason Jim Thorpe Award Watch List selection Willie Roberts will be one of the leaders of the LA Tech secondary. Roberts made 11 starts a year ago while leading the Bulldogs and ranking 22nd nationally with four interceptions.
 
Cecil Singleton Jr. and Myles Heard will also be impact players in the secondary. 
 
Singleton Jr. tallied 56 total tackles and ranked 13th nationally with three forced fumbles in 2022. Heard arrives in Ruston after a stellar career at Stephen F. Austin, where he tallied 211 total tackles, including nine tackles for loss, one sack, eight pass breakups, and three interceptions during his four-year career as a Lumberjack. 
 
Deshon Hall Jr. and Mykol Clark are expected to be the leaders of the defensive front. 
 
Hall Jr. garnered preseason recognition from numerous media outlets. A 2023 Conference USA Preseason Watch List selection, Hall was named Third-team All-CUSA by Phil Steele and earned second-team honors from Athlon Sports. The senior had 29 tackles a year ago, including four for loss, two pass breakups, two quarterback hurries, and a blocked kick. 
 
Clark has appeared in 35 games while making 16 starts. The redshirt junior has tallied 64 total tackles, 10.5 tackles-for-loss, and 3.5 sacks during his Tech career.
 
Kickers Jacob Barnes and Buck Buchanan make up the LA Tech kicking game. Barnes will handle the majority of field goals, with Buchanan specializing in kickoffs and long-range field goal attempts. Eastern Michigan transfer Blake Oschendorf is projected as the starting punter in the opener.
 
Cumbie enters his second season at the helm of the LA Tech football program after posting a 3-9 mark in 2022. Cumbie holds a career record of 5-12 after spending the latter half of the 2021 season as the interim head coach at Texas Tech when he led the Red Raiders to a victory in the Autozone Liberty Bowl.
 
ABOUT FIU (0-0)
FIU is coming off a 4-8 campaign that featured a 2-6 mark in CUSA play during head coach Mike MacIntyre's inaugural season in 2022. The Panthers return 15 starters from last season's squad, with six offensive, five defensive, and four special teams starters returning in 2023. FIU has 57 lettermen returning and 55 newcomers (32 freshmen, 23 transfers).
 
MacIntyre recently named junior Grayson James as the Panthers' starting quarterback in his weekly press conference. James started 10 games last season, completing 209 of his 357 passing attempts for 1,962 yards with 11 touchdowns and 11 interceptions.
 
Kris Mitchell is the Panthers returning leader at wide receiver. The junior made eight starts last season while hauling in 23 passes for 348 yards and four touchdowns.
 
Shomari Lawrence is expected to start at running back in the opener. Lawrence rushed for 597 total yards on 107 carries and three touchdowns as a redshirt freshman in 2022.
 
Senior linebacker Donovan Manuel will highlight the FIU defense. Manuel tallied 97 total tackles, including 8.5 for loss, on his way to earning All-CUSA honorable mention honors in 2022.
 
FIU is led by head coach Mike MacIntyre, who is in his second year at the helm. The Miami native is in his 11th year as a head coach with an overall record of 50-73. Before FIU, MacIntyre served as the head coach at Colorado (2013-28) and San Jose State (2010-12).
   
For all the latest in Bulldog Football, follow them on Twitter (@LATechFB), Instagram (@LATechFB) and Facebook (LATechFootball) or visit the official website at LATechSports.com.