Three takeaways from La Tech football's dominate 52-17 win over Stephen F. Austin

RUSTON – Louisiana Tech football welcomed Stephen F. Austin to Joe Aillet Stadium for coach Sonny Cumbie’s first home game, resulting in a bulldozing 52-17 victory on Saturday.

Cumbie said that his first career win with the Bulldogs (1-1) does not belong to him but rather to everyone who played a part, especially the players.

“That’s why it’s exciting,” Cumbie said. “It’s because you want young kids to have success, and they were able to have success tonight.”

As Cumbie assembled his coaching staff for his first season leading the Bulldogs, he whisked away various coaches and players from the Stephen F. Austin program.

Cumbie came to Louisiana Tech football after a stint at Texas Tech, where he was offensive coordinator turned interim head coach for the final five games of the 2021 season. Cumbie previously spent two years at TCU.

After he was named skipper for the Bulldogs, defensive coordinator and linebackers coach Scott Power, offensive line coach Nathan Young, cornerbacks coach Marcus Walker and linebackers Myles Brook and Willie Roberts all joined Louisiana Tech from the Lumberjacks (1-2).

This was the third meetings between the programs, with Louisiana Tech taking the 2-1 series lead. The last time they met ended in a 34-31 double-overtime Louisiana Tech loss in 2000. The Lumberjacks came off a 31-27 loss to Alcorn State, and the Bulldogs lost 52-24 to Missouri.

Louisiana Tech rolled to a 31-point lead going into halftime, the biggest margin since Sept. 26, 2020, against Houston Baptist. The Bulldogs travel to South Carolina on Sept. 17 (7 p.m., ACC Network) to face Clemson.

Here are three things learned from the win over Stephen F. Austin.

Quarterback improvement

Cumbie wanted the quarterback room to make progress, and it did just that. Parker McNeil got the start and finished 11-for-22 with 197 yards for three TDs and an interception.

“(McNeil) did a nice job of taking the gifts whenever we had them and getting them out to our playmakers and letting those guys make plays,” Cumbie said.

Matthew Downing came in the second half finishing 1-for-3 for 3 yards. Freshman Landry Lyddy saw the field for the first time, finishing 2-for-2 for 16 yards and rushed for 6 yards.

Offense gaining production

Louisiana Tech put up 515 yards in 70 plays, running for 302 yards. Marquis Crosby led ground game with 198 yards in 16 carries for two TDs.

“Just have got to play your game no matter who you’re playing against,” Crosby said.

On the other hand, Cumbie was not surprised by his performance.

“I told him after the game, ‘Marquis we’re not surprised, you do this, you perform how you practice,'” Cumbie said.

Tre Harris led the air raid with five receptions for 91 yards and a TD.

Big plays of defense

Defensive lineman J’Dan Burnett took a fumble 30 yards for a touchdown in the third quarter, his first fumble return for a TD since high school. He also had three tackles, two for loss, a quarterback hurry and two forced fumbles.

“It was the best feeling in the world,” Burnett said. “I honestly didn’t know, I thought he was going to catch it.”

The Bulldogs defense held the Lumberjacks to two touchdowns with 161 passing yards and 144 rushing yards. They racked up 63 tackles, two sacks, six tackles for loss, an interception, four broken-up passes, seven quarterback hurries and three forced fumbles.

“I think they played physical on defense, and that was good to see,” Cumbie said.

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This article originally appeared on Monroe News-Star: Three lessons from La Tech football's 52-17 win over Stephen F. Austin