NCAA LA Tech vs Southern Miss live streaming Free NCAA Playoffs Online, Saturday 17 November 2018, Time: 02:30 pm et. NCAA online live with HD quality on PC, Laptop, iPhone, Ipad and Android over the Internet broadcast on FB.
Southern Miss has its back against the wall for the final home game of the season against Louisiana Tech Saturday at M.M. Roberts Stadium.
A win will keep alive the team’s hopes for receiving a fourth straight bowl bid. A loss assures the Golden Eagles' first losing season since 2014.
There is much Southern Miss (4-5, 3-3 C-USA West) can take away from last weekend’s 26-23 road loss to UAB in overtime, mainly that USM is good enough to hang with the best teams in the league despite injuries to key players. And that’s a good thing, considering Louisiana Tech definitely fits into that category.
Skip Holtz has Louisiana Tech (7-3, 5-1 C-USA West) back on track after a rebuilding year in 2017. Holtz led the Bulldogs to nine wins each season from 2014-2016 before they finished 7-6 a year ago with a win in the Frisco Bowl.
His 2018 Bulldogs have already matched that win total and are looking for more with Saturday’s game in Hattiesburg and next week’s home finale against a woeful Western Kentucky team.
Louisiana Tech is a team built much like Southern Miss, with a run-first offense that has struggled when it can’t find running room and a defense that has played extremely well.
The Bulldogs rank 94th nationally in rushing, averaging 142.4 yards a game, and 58th in passing at 239 yards. They own the nation’s 93rd best scoring offense with 25.5 points a game, almost identical to Southern Miss (25.3).
They did not play well offensively in wins over UTEP and FAU and a loss to Mississippi State from Week 7 to Week 10, but bounced back with a 423-yard performance in last week’s 28-13 win over Rice.
“They aren’t much different than they were last year,” Southern Miss defensive coordinator Tim Billings said. “They’ve got pretty much everyone back – o-line, receivers and at quarterback – and they’ve got the same offensive coordinator. They are doing what they’ve done. They’ve got a good system and they’ve been very successful.”
Southern Miss counters with a defense that continues to climb in the national rankings. Following that loss to UAB last week, the Golden Eagles are the 9th-stingiest defense in the country, giving up just 284.9 yards per game. Opposing teams have collectively scored 21.2 points per game against them, and there are only 27 with a better average.
As Holtz pointed out Monday, Southern Miss isn’t just Conference USA-good on defense. He believes they are one of the best units in the country.
“Defensively right now is where this team's bread is buttered,” Holtz said. “This defense is playing really good. When you look at them, they are like third in the country in third downs given up with like 14 a game. They are I think like fifth or sixth in the country in total defense.”
The Golden Eagle offense has been in turmoil since starting quarterback Jack Abraham was sidelined with a bone bruise on his right knee. Southern Miss was averaging better than 400 yards per game with Abraham behind center, and it's gained just shy of 400 total yards in its last two games without him.
FBS teams with Abraham under center (33.3 percent) and 11-of-30 with freshman Tate Whatley (36.6 percent) taking snaps. But the ability to move the chains and control the clock has deteriorated. After the Golden Eagles averaged 23 first downs per game through their first seven games, that number has dropped to 14 per game in the last two weeks.
The Golden Eagles haven’t reached 100 yards rushing since Oct. 27 at Charlotte, and they have not topped 50 in three of their last six games.
Louisiana Tech’s defense has been consistent and opportunistic. It gave up 348 yards against FAU on Oct. 26, but that’s the most it has allowed in its last five Conference USA games. The Bulldogs rank 46th nationally in scoring defense, allowing 23.4 points a game, and they’ve created 17 turnovers.
Southern Miss has its back against the wall for the final home game of the season against Louisiana Tech Saturday at M.M. Roberts Stadium.
A win will keep alive the team’s hopes for receiving a fourth straight bowl bid. A loss assures the Golden Eagles' first losing season since 2014.
There is much Southern Miss (4-5, 3-3 C-USA West) can take away from last weekend’s 26-23 road loss to UAB in overtime, mainly that USM is good enough to hang with the best teams in the league despite injuries to key players. And that’s a good thing, considering Louisiana Tech definitely fits into that category.
Skip Holtz has Louisiana Tech (7-3, 5-1 C-USA West) back on track after a rebuilding year in 2017. Holtz led the Bulldogs to nine wins each season from 2014-2016 before they finished 7-6 a year ago with a win in the Frisco Bowl.
His 2018 Bulldogs have already matched that win total and are looking for more with Saturday’s game in Hattiesburg and next week’s home finale against a woeful Western Kentucky team.
Louisiana Tech is a team built much like Southern Miss, with a run-first offense that has struggled when it can’t find running room and a defense that has played extremely well.
The Bulldogs rank 94th nationally in rushing, averaging 142.4 yards a game, and 58th in passing at 239 yards. They own the nation’s 93rd best scoring offense with 25.5 points a game, almost identical to Southern Miss (25.3).
They did not play well offensively in wins over UTEP and FAU and a loss to Mississippi State from Week 7 to Week 10, but bounced back with a 423-yard performance in last week’s 28-13 win over Rice.
“They aren’t much different than they were last year,” Southern Miss defensive coordinator Tim Billings said. “They’ve got pretty much everyone back – o-line, receivers and at quarterback – and they’ve got the same offensive coordinator. They are doing what they’ve done. They’ve got a good system and they’ve been very successful.”
Southern Miss counters with a defense that continues to climb in the national rankings. Following that loss to UAB last week, the Golden Eagles are the 9th-stingiest defense in the country, giving up just 284.9 yards per game. Opposing teams have collectively scored 21.2 points per game against them, and there are only 27 with a better average.
As Holtz pointed out Monday, Southern Miss isn’t just Conference USA-good on defense. He believes they are one of the best units in the country.
“Defensively right now is where this team's bread is buttered,” Holtz said. “This defense is playing really good. When you look at them, they are like third in the country in third downs given up with like 14 a game. They are I think like fifth or sixth in the country in total defense.”
The Golden Eagle offense has been in turmoil since starting quarterback Jack Abraham was sidelined with a bone bruise on his right knee. Southern Miss was averaging better than 400 yards per game with Abraham behind center, and it's gained just shy of 400 total yards in its last two games without him.
FBS teams with Abraham under center (33.3 percent) and 11-of-30 with freshman Tate Whatley (36.6 percent) taking snaps. But the ability to move the chains and control the clock has deteriorated. After the Golden Eagles averaged 23 first downs per game through their first seven games, that number has dropped to 14 per game in the last two weeks.
The Golden Eagles haven’t reached 100 yards rushing since Oct. 27 at Charlotte, and they have not topped 50 in three of their last six games.
Louisiana Tech’s defense has been consistent and opportunistic. It gave up 348 yards against FAU on Oct. 26, but that’s the most it has allowed in its last five Conference USA games. The Bulldogs rank 46th nationally in scoring defense, allowing 23.4 points a game, and they’ve created 17 turnovers.
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