Four First-Half Turnovers Forced Not Enough To Hold Off No. 8 LSU In Baton Rouge

Saturday, September 12

Baton Rouge, La.

6:30 p.m.

Louisiana Tech University

1-1 , 0-0

LSU

2-0 , 0-0

Team	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	Final F
Louisiana Tech	0	7	0	7	14
LSU	10	0	14	21	45

Photo by: Josh McDaniel

Four First-Half Turnovers Forced Not Enough To Hold Off No. 8 LSU In Baton Rouge

9/12/2026 11:41:00 PM | Football

Box Score Game Book

Jordan McRae created two turnovers—forcing a fumble and making program history with a 100-yard interception return for a touchdown in Saturday night’s game at Tiger Stadium.

By: Drew Parsley

BATON ROUGE, La. – Louisiana Tech's defense created opportunities throughout the night, including Jordan McRae who delivered a piece of program history, but the Bulldogs fell 45-14 to No. 8 LSU Saturday night at Tiger Stadium.

McRae provided Tech's (1-1) lone touchdown of the first half when he intercepted LSU (2-0) quarterback Sam Leavitt and returned it 100 yards for a touchdown with 1:53 remaining in the second quarter. The return marked the longest interception or fumble return in Louisiana Tech program history.

The Bulldogs forced four LSU turnovers in the first half, marking the most turnovers LA Tech had forced in a game since Sept. 22, 2012, when the Bulldogs forced six turnovers against Illinois. Louisiana Tech recorded three interceptions and recovered one fumble in the first half, with Zheric Hill, McRae and Kam Franklin accounting for the interceptions. McRae forced the fumble which was recovered by Janard Lockhardt and returned 35 yards.

The defense also established itself early against the Tigers' rushing attack. LSU was held to just 13 rushing yards in the first quarter, its fewest in the opening quarter since recording 10 yards against Southeastern on Sept. 20, 2025. The Bulldogs limited LSU to 44 rushing yards in the first half, LSU's lowest first-half rushing total since it recorded 29 yards against Nicholls on Sept. 7, 2024.

The Bulldogs continued to create disruption up front, recording 11 tackles for loss in the contest. Louisiana Tech's previous game with 10 tackles for loss came against Western Kentucky on Oct. 21, 2025. The Bulldogs had not recorded double-digit tackles for loss in consecutive games since 2019, when they did so against UMass on Oct. 12 and Southern Miss on Oct. 19.

McRae finished with 11 tackles, including five solo stops and six assists, while Alonzo Jackson Jr. led Louisiana Tech with 12 tackles and added three sacks and 3.5 tackles for loss.

Offensively, Jalen Mickens provided Louisiana Tech's biggest spark, hauling in six passes for 101 yards and a 67-yard touchdown from Blake Baker in the fourth quarter. Baker completed 11 of 21 passes for 128 yards and one touchdown, while Trey Kukuk added three completions for 15 yards.

Mickens is the first Bulldog with consecutive games posting 100 receiving yards since Tru Edwards in 2024. He had 127 yards receiving on six catches with a touchdown against Middle Tennessee followed with nine catches for 110 yards and two scores at New Mexico State.

Louisiana Tech was held to 132 total yards of offense, its lowest total since recording 154 yards at LSU on Sept. 6, 2025.

The Bulldogs are back on the road next week, heading to Waco, Texas to face Baylor at McLane Stadium on Saturday, September 19. It will be the seventh all-time meeting between the two programs, and the first meeting since 1996. The Bulldogs have not made a visit to the Bears in Waco since 1994.

Notables

Longest interception or fumble return in program history by Jordan McRae (100 yards)
Four first-half turnovers (most forced in a game since Sept. 22, 2012 – forced 6 turnovers against Illinois – 5 fumbles, 1 INT; first half had 3 fumbles, two fumbles and INT in second half)
Held LSU to 13 rushing yards in first quarter—least LSU has been held to in 1Q since they had 10 yards against Southeastern (Sept. 20, 2025)
Held LSU to 44 yards rushing in first half—lowest since recording 29 first-half rushing yards vs. Nicholls (Sept. 7, 2024)
Last time LA Tech had 10 tackles for a loss was Oct. 21, 2025 vs. Western Kentucky, and have back-to-back games with 10 tackles for a loss since 2019 (Oct. 12 vs. UMass and Oct. 19 vs. Southern Miss)
LA Tech held to 132 total yards of offense—lowest since having 154 total yards at LSU last year (Sept. 6, 2025)
Most points scored against LSU since 2009 (Scored 16, lost 24-16)
Jalen Mickens is the first Bulldog with back-to-back 100-yard receiving games since Tru Edwards in 2024 (9 rec, 127 yds, 1 TD vs. Middle Tennessee – Oct. 10; 9 rec, 110 yds, 2 TD at New Mexico State – Oct. 15)

Quotables

Head Coach Sonny Cumbie:
"Well, I was very proud of how hard our guys played for four quarters. I think throughout the course of the week, we talked about what it is going to take to win this football game, and we were going to have to score first. We were going to have to make sure that we took care of the football, and we were going to have to take the football away. We're going to try and make them play our best snap, one snap at a time, and then get the game in the 4th quarter. We weren't quite able to do that. I think defensively we just played a tremendous performance. I think we got tired late. We did a great job of keeping their quarterback on his heels in terms of throwing a football. We knew he was going to make plays with his feet. He's very dynamic and a really great runner. He hurt us a couple of times there. I think defensively we did a nice job of keeping him on his heels. We just didn't play enough offense. I also think that the team we are going against is probably one of the best defenses that I've ever seen. They're really fast. They're big. They're athletic. We had our opportunities early in the game and didn't create much momentum as we would have liked to. Got to be better there with the long-range field goal. I told our kids that I was proud of the things that they did. We can focus on what we didn't do as we watch the film and learn from it, but they played extremely hard for four quarters. When you think about the last week, it's a completely different deal, and you're playing really hard; you're straining, and you're putting things on the field hard for four quarters. It's a little bit different at the end, but our kids fought. They strained their bodies. They laid it on the line, and we just didn't make enough plays from an offensive standpoint to keep us in the game. Also, it's a credit to them. They're a really good football team."

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