Preview: LA Tech at South Alabama

RUSTON -- Louisiana Tech will look to extend its four-game winning streak and remain unbeaten in Sun Belt Conference play when the Bulldogs travel to Mobile, Alabama, to face South Alabama on Saturday at Hancock Whitney Stadium.

GAMEDAY INFORMATION
Date: Saturday, Oct. 31
Time: 2 p.m. CT
Location: Mobile, Ala. (Hancock Whitney Stadium)
TV: ESPN+
Live Stats: LATechSports.com/Stats
Radio: Z107.5 | LA Tech Sports Network | LA Tech Athletics App

SERIES HISTORY
Series: LA Tech leads 2-1
In Mobile: Tied 1-1
Streak: L1

The Bulldogs (5-2, 3-0 SBC) enter the matchup following consecutive shutout victories over ULM and Old Dominion, marking the first time Louisiana Tech has recorded back-to-back shutouts since 1959. Tech's defense has been a driving force behind its recent success, holding Old Dominion to just 141 total yards, including minus-13 rushing yards, in last Saturday's 26-0 Homecoming victory.

Saturday will be the first time the Bulldogs and Jaguars take the field together since 2022, when South Alabama (4-3, 2-1 SBC) secured their lone win of the series by a score of 28-14 in Mobile to snap a two-game winning streak for LA Tech through their first two meetings.

ELI FOR 1K
Fourth-year tight end Eli Finley eclipsed 100 career receptions as well as 1,000 career receiving yards following his dominant performance on Oct. 24 against Old Dominion. He is the 25th Bulldog in program history to reach both milestones, and the first to do so since Tru Edwards (2022-24).

DEFENSE PITCHING GOOSE EGGS
For the first time since 1959, Louisiana Tech has consecutive shutouts following a 24-0 win at ULM and a 26-0 win over Old Dominion for Homecoming in Ruston. During that 1959 season, LA Tech had three separate occasions of shutting out opponents in back-to-back games.

LET BLAKE BAKE
Quarterback Blake Baker is off to a strong start in conference play, with 800 passing yards on a completion rate of 77.3% and an efficiency rating of 167.00, 10 total touchdowns and no turnovers. He had a career day in the program's first-ever Sun Belt game with 319 passing yards on a career-best 76.2% completion rate (min. 25 attempts) along with 3 passing touchdowns and 1 rushing score. It was just the second time in his career with 300+ passing yards and the first time to do so along with multiple passing touchdowns. His three scores through the air tied his career high from the season-opening win over Northwestern State and his 54 rushing yards marked a season high for the Cypress, Texas native.

Baker continued to dominate through the air, posting his third game of the season (and his career) with 300+ passing yards and his third consecutive game with multiple touchdowns and no turnovers. His 82.4% completion rate is a new single-game career high for the Cypress, Texas native, who leads all SBC quarterbacks with a 77.3% completion rate and is among the top 2 in average passing yards per game (266.7) and passer efficiency (167.0) in SBC-only contests this year.

SPREADING THE WEALTH
Over the past three weeks, Lousiana Tech has seen five separate 100-yard receving performances, two of which were during the Bulldogs' inaugural Sun Belt win over the Ragin' Cajuns of UL-Lafayette and two more in LA Tech's shutout victory over Old Dominion. Eli Finley (9 rec., 114 yards, 2 TD) and Talyn Shettron (8 rec., 102 yards) were the duo in the SBC opener, followed with Marcus Calwise Jr. (8 rec., 119 yards) putting on a show against ULM in Monroe on Oct. 17. Calwise Jr.'s performance set new single-game career highs in catches and yardage, as well as giving Tech it's SBC-leading fifth 100-yard receiving game by four different receivers, which is also the most for a single team in the conference. It is also the first time since 2022 the Bulldogs have at least four different receivers with a 100-yard receiving performance through the first six games (Cyrus Allen at Missouri; Griffin Hebert at No. 4 Clemson; Tre Harris vs. UTEP; Smoke Harris at North Texas).

The Bulldogs followed with a pair of 100-yard receiving performances by Mickens (8 rec., 110 yds) and Finley (10 rec., 128 yds, 1 TD) in LA Tech's 26-0 win over Old Dominion. Finley is the first SBC pass catcher to eclipse double-digit receptions in a single game this season, and Mickens leads the conference with three 100-yard performances. Mickens and Finley are the only duo in the Sun Belt with multiple such performances for one team, with the Bulldogs leading the conference with seven 100-yard performances by their receivers.

TECH #TAKERS
The Bulldogs have 10 consecutive games forcing a turnover dating back to the 2025 season, with 17 interceptions and four fumble recoveries in that span. LA Tech also has a turnover forced in 18 of their last 20 games since the start of last year. Among those contests, the Bulldogs have forced multiple turnovers in 10 of them. Since the start of 2025, the Bulldogs have picked off opponents on 32 separate occasions along with six fumble recoveries. Since the start of 2025, the Bulldogs have nine games with multiple interceptions--tied with Notre Dame for the most in the country over that span.

SWARMING DEFENSE
Louisiana Tech's defense enters Week 9 tied for the Sun Belt lead with 10 interceptions, a conference-best 8.6 TFLs/game and 60 total team TFLs for the second-most. The Bulldogs also lead the Sun Belt in passing defense (198.0 yds/game) and in conference-only contests, lead the league in total defense (256.0), scoring defense (10.33), rushing defense (70.0) and defensive passing efficiency (102.5), and are tied for the most interceptions (5). Overall, the Bulldogs are among the top 2 in the Sun Belt this season in total defense (323.43), scoring defense (21.0) and rushing defense (125.43). Alonzo Jackson leads the SBC with 12.5 TFLs, 6.5 sacks and an average of 1.79 TFLs/game. Janard Lockhardt (8) and Jordan McRae (7) are amongst the top 5 in the league in passes defended.

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Players Mentioned

Blake Baker

Marcus Calwise Jr.

Eli Finley

Janard Lockhardt

Jordan McRae

Talyn Shettron

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