Bulldogs Hold Off Army For 31-29 Victory In Home Return

Saturday, October 3

Ruston, La.

6:30 PM

Louisiana Tech University

2-2 , 0-0

Army

2-2 , 1-1

Team	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	Final F
Army West Point	7	0	8	14	29
Louisiana Tech	7	7	14	3	31

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Photo by: Josh McDaniel

Bulldogs Hold Off Army For 31-29 Victory In Home Return

10/3/2026 11:44:00 PM | Football

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Running back Dylone Brooks had a career night with 200 all-purpose yards along with a 72-yard rushing touchdown and a 74-yard receiving touchdown.

By: Drew Parsley

RUSTON -- Louisiana Tech used an explosive offensive performance and held off a late Army rally to earn a 31-29 victory Saturday night at Origin Bank Field at Joe Aillet Stadium.

The Bulldogs (2-2) piled up 503 yards of total offense, including 244 on the ground and 259 through the air, while averaging 8.8 yards per play. It marked Louisiana Tech's second 500-yard performance of the season, joining its 528-yard outing against Northwestern State on Sept. 5.

The victory marked Louisiana Tech's first in four all-time meetings against Army (2-2) and extended the Bulldogs' home winning streak to four games.

Louisiana Tech struck first with an 83-yard opening drive that ended with Sergio Snider breaking free for a 24-yard touchdown untouched by a defender on fourth down. Snider entered the night with just 17 rushing yards on the season before recording his second rushing touchdown of the year. The score extended Tech's streak to seven consecutive home games scoring on its opening possession and six straight with an opening-drive touchdown.

Army answered with Zach Mundell's 21-yard touchdown run, but Louisiana Tech regained the advantage late in the second quarter. Starting at its own 4-yard line, the Bulldogs needed just four plays to travel 96 yards as Dylone Brooks broke loose for a 72-yard touchdown, sending Tech into halftime with a 14-7 advantage. Brooks appeared to have gotten stuck in a pile of linemen, but somehow broke free for the long run and score.

After Army opened the second half with a 54-yard touchdown run by Samari Howard and a successful two-point conversion to take a 15-14 lead, the Bulldogs responded immediately.
On the ensuing possession, wide receiver Marcus Calwise Jr. connected with Brooks for a 74-yard touchdown on his first career touchdown pass. Trey Kukuk tossed a lateral pass to the right side of the field to Calwise, who then launched a pass across the field to a wide-open Brooks for his second score of the game.

Kukuk then found Jalen Mickens for the two-point conversion to put Tech back in front, 22-15. Brooks' touchdown gave him the first multi-touchdown game of his career and marked his first game with both a rushing and receiving score.

The Bulldogs stretched the advantage to 28-15 later in the third when Kukuk capped a 65-yard drive with a 7-yard touchdown run.

Army cut the deficit to 28-22 early in the fourth quarter, but Louisiana Tech answered with a 10-play, 61-yard possession that took 5:43 off the clock. Hunter Rioux finished the drive with a 32-yard field goal to push the advantage back to nine with 7:28 remaining.

The Black Knights pulled within two on Cale Hellums' 6-yard touchdown pass to Parker Poloskey with 1:07 remaining, but Louisiana Tech secured the ensuing onside kick attempt and ran out the remaining time to seal the victory.

Brooks powered the Tech offense with a career night, rushing for 119 yards on seven carries while adding 81 receiving yards on two catches to finish with exactly 200 all-purpose yards. He became the first Bulldog to eclipse 200 all-purpose yards in a game since Smoke Harris totaled 208 against Western Kentucky on Oct. 5, 2023.

Kukuk completed 16 of 22 passes for 185 yards while adding 40 rushing yards and a touchdown. Mickens recorded a career-high and game-high eight receptions despite being held to a season-low 45 receiving yards, while Eli Finley added four receptions for 79 yards.

Defensively, Jadon Mayfield and Kolbe Fields each recorded a game-high 13 tackles. Alonzo Jackson Jr. registered Tech's lone sack, while Jordan McRae intercepted Hellums late in the second quarter. Punter Lexington Matthews was only called on to punt twice in Saturday's win, tying his season low for punts in a single game. However, Matthews tied his season high with each of his punts landing inside the 20-yard line, along with his fifth boot of at least 50 yards.

Louisiana Tech's 31 points were its most ever against Army, surpassing the previous high of 16 in the 2013 neutral-site meeting in Dallas. The victory was also the Bulldogs' second in program history over a U.S. service academy, joining the 48-45 win over No. 25 Navy in the 2016 Armed Forces Bowl. Tech improved to 3-5 all-time against teams from the American Athletic Conference.

The Bulldogs now look ahead to their first-ever Sun Belt game when they open conference play against in-state rival UL-Lafayette on Saturday, October 10. The Bulldogs' and Ragin' Cajuns' first meeting since 2015 is set for 6:30 p.m. CT on ESPN+, with LA Tech entering boasting an eight-game winning streak against ULL. The Bulldogs lead the all-time series, 48-33-6.

NOTABLES

Louisiana Tech improved to 2-2 overall and extended its home winning streak to four games.
The Bulldogs defeated Army for the first time in program history, improving to 1-3 in the all-time series.
Tech earned its second win over a U.S. service academy, joining its 48-45 victory over No. 25 Navy in the 2016 Armed Forces Bowl.
The Bulldogs improved to 3-5 all-time against current American Athletic Conference opponents.
Louisiana Tech's 31 points were its most ever against Army, surpassing its previous high of 16 in 2013.
Tech scored on its opening drive for the seventh consecutive home game and scored a touchdown on its opening possession for the sixth straight home game.
Sergio Snider's 24-yard touchdown run was his second rushing touchdown of the season. Snider entered the game with 17 rushing yards on the year.
Louisiana Tech finished with 503 total yards, its second 500-yard performance of the season after recording 528 against Northwestern State on Sept. 5.
The Bulldogs also eclipsed 200 rushing yards and 250 passing yards in the same game for the second time this season, joining the Northwestern State game. Tech finished with 244 rushing yards and 259 passing yards.
Louisiana Tech surpassed 280 yards of total offense in the first half for the second time this season, joining its 414-yard first half against Northwestern State.
Dylone Brooks finished with 200 all-purpose yards, totaling 119 rushing and 81 receiving. He became the first Bulldog with 200-plus all-purpose yards since Smoke Harris recorded 208 against Western Kentucky on Oct. 5, 2023.
Brooks recorded the first multi-touchdown game of his career and his first game with both a rushing and receiving touchdown.
Brooks' touchdowns covered 72 yards on the ground and 74 yards through the air.
Marcus Calwise Jr. threw his first career touchdown pass, connecting with Brooks for 74 yards in the third quarter.
Jalen Mickens recorded a career-high and game-high eight receptions for 45 yards.
Jadon Mayfield and Kolbe Fields tied for the game high with 13 tackles apiece. Mayfield added 1.5 tackles for loss, while Fields recorded two quarterback hurries.
Jordan McRae recorded his second interception of the season, while Alonzo Jackson Jr. added his fourth sack.

QUOTABLES

Head Coach Sonny Cumbie

OPENING STATEMENT
"I'm extremely excited for our football team, our players and our coaches. We knew with it being Army and having experience against them in the bowl game two years ago that they would be a tough matchup, just from the brand of football they play from a physicality standpoint. We were aware of that and I think our coaches defensively, offensively and on special teams did a tremendous job of preparing our players to go out and be successful today. We have the second toughest non-conference schedule in the Group of 6 and I have been so proud of how our players have approached it. This game was physical because we have played Baylor and LSU, it helped our guys practice and play with a mindset of physicality. We are not just here to play hard; we are here to win football games and they did that tonight. Our sideline was great, our crowd was incredible, especially on third and fourth downs. Our student section, our band made so much noise and it made it very difficult for Army to communicate in a huddle. Such a huge advantage for our team, they feed off of that."

On running back room performance this week…
"Dylone had two great weeks of practice, he works extremely hard. The game is slowing down for him and we have been challenging him, knowing that he has big play ability. You can see that with his incredible run there in the second quarter. No idea how he got out of that, but I am glad he did. It was a tremendous call by Coach Young, it was executed perfectly. Andrew [Burnette] had some tough yards, Trey did as well. When you run the football like we did it opens a lot of play action."

On Trey Kukuk's passing performance this week…
"I'm extremely pleased. It is one of the things that he has gotten more comfortable with and he has gotten better and better. In the spring he took every rep and, in the summer, he took most of the reps and just got better. It's great to see it come alive in live competition and to see it in his second year at this level. The confidence is showing and his decision making has gotten better. This really was a Trey Kukuk kind of game."

Defensive Back Jordan McRae

On adjusting to Army's offensive scheme…
"Coming out of the bye week we had extra time to practice what they were going to do. We had to make sure our eyes were in the right spot in order to make the play."

On returning to Ruston after two road games…
"The environment was great. The fans showed out and supported our brand of football. No team can beat that."

Running Back Dylone Brooks

On what the running back room proved tonight…
We proved a lot. We showed we can be physical when we run the ball and be reliable in moving the ball.

On getting the opportunity to make explosive plays…
Felt great, felt like getting back to being me. I sat out last year and took notes, learned and waited my turn. I am just capitalizing on the opportunities that are given to me.

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