The Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Association (SIAA) came to life in 1894 inside a meeting room in Atlanta, Georgia – a moment that sparked the first true attempt at organized college athletics in the South.
Its charter members read like a who’s who of early southern powers: Alabama, Auburn, Georgia, Georgia Tech, North Carolina, and Vanderbilt. New schools joined at a steady clip in the years that followed.
But by 1924, nearly all those founding giants had moved on, leaving the door open for a new generation of programs. Two of those newcomers were Louisiana Polytechnic Institute and Southwestern Louisiana Institute.
Or as we know them today: Louisiana Tech and UL-Lafayette.
The first season of their rivalry came in 1926. Records reveal no dates, no box scores, not even final tallies from those four matchups – just the outcomes. And those outcomes say one thing: Louisiana Tech swept all four.
And with that, a 100-year rivalry was born.
North Louisiana versus South Louisiana.
Bulldogs versus Bulldogs – until 1974, when ULL officially transformed into the Ragin’ Cajuns.
They met everywhere:
Tech Gym. Memorial Gymnasium. The Thomas Assembly Center.
Earl K. Long Gym. Blackham Coliseum. The Cajundome.
Over half a century, only World War II managed to pause the series. Between 1926 and 1973, they played almost every year – often twice a season – forging one of the region’s most consistent, fiery basketball matchups.
It was arguably at its peak in 1971 when 6,000 people crammed inside Memorial Gym for a glimpse of 8th-ranked LA Tech’s 103-94 victory over No. 1 ULL, a win that propelled the Bulldogs to the top of the ranking’s mountain.
After a brief two-year interruption due to ULL not fielding a team as part of an NCAA ban, the rivalry picked right back up from 1975 through 2001. During that span, the two battled as members of six different conferences: the SIAA, Louisiana Intercollegiate Conference, Gulf States Conference, Southland Conference, America South Conference, and the Sun Belt Conference.
Around the turn of the century, LA Tech departed for the Western Athletic Conference. But even conference realignment couldn’t cool the feud. The teams have met 18 times as non-conference opponents since, including a steady home-and-home series every year since 2013.
The series record currently stands at LA Tech 93, ULL 77.
And the rivalry has stayed razor close in recent history.
Since 2000, LA Tech owns only a 12–11 edge, and the scoring margin across those games is nearly identical: LA Tech 1,695, ULL 1,675. Neither side has managed a three-game win streak in the series since the 1990s.
And the matchups within the matchup over the years? Legendary.
Jackie Moreland versus Bill McHorris.
Mike Green versus Dwight “Bo” Lamar.
Victor King versus Andrew Toney.
P.J. Brown versus Kevin Brooks.
Speedy Smith versus Elfrid Payton.
Kenneth Lofton Jr. versus Jordan Brown.
Just to name a few.
Saturday at 2 p.m. CT inside the Thomas Assembly Center on Karl Malone Court will mark the 171st chapter of this century-old saga. More chapters are sure to come with LA Tech rejoining the Sun Belt, reuniting the two programs in the league in which they shared for a decade.
Needless to say, the rivalry isn’t fading. It’s deepening.
