The trio of northeast Louisiana programs and LSU helped salvage an otherwise rough Week 4 for the state’s Division-I college programs.
Louisiana Tech and ULM started strong at home and on the road, respectively, and held off rally attempts to secure wins vs. Southern Miss and at UTEP. And Grambling State scored the final 10 points at home to upend visiting East Texas A&M.
Here’s a look at all those games, plus tough losses for Tulane, Louisiana (Lafayette), McNeese State, Nicholls State and Northwestern State.
[Click here for more on LSU’s 56-10 roll past Southeastern Louisiana.]
LOUISIANA TECH NOTCHES BIG WIN VS. SOUTHERN MISS
A 48-yard pick-six by linebacker Kolbe Fields (Archbishop Rummel) highlighted 20 unanswered Louisiana Tech points before halftime to notch a big early-season win against Southern Miss, 30-20.
A touchdown run late in the first quarter by Omiri Wiggins (Acadiana), the Fields score on the Eagles’ following possession and then a Clay Thevenin goal-line run just before the break combined to open a 10-10 tie into a 30-10 advantage.
And though the Bulldogs (3-1) slogged through a scoreless second half on offense, their defense continued to slow Southern Miss (2-2) enough to hang on for the victory.
Blake Baker finished 15-for-21 for 239 yards and rushed 13 times for 29 yards and a score, and Eli Finley caught six passes for 155 yards.
Fields finished with a team-high nine tackles.
ULM HOLDS OFF UTEP
ULM (2-1) opened a three-score lead by halftime and four-score lead by midway through the third quarter Saturday in El Paso, then came up with two final defensive stops to hold off a UTEP (1-3) comeback, 31-25.
The Miners threatened to spoil the Warhawks’ road trip with a third-quarter field goal and pair of fourth-quarter touchdowns to slash a 31-7 margin to just 31-25.
But Lynard Harris (Destrehan) and David Godsey Jr. intercepted UTEP quarterback Malachi Nelson on back-to-back possessions to help preserve the victory.
Braylon McReynolds rushed 18 times for 107 yards and a score, and Aidan Armenta finished 8-for-14 for 136 yards and touchdowns to Jake Godfrey and Jonathan Bibbs.
Hunter Herring (Ouachita Christian) rushed four times for 16 yards and a score and completed a 13-yard pass.
GRAMBLING’S CLUTCH COMEBACK VS. EAST TEXAS A&M
East Texas A&M (0-3) scored the game’s first two touchdowns and led by seven again early in the fourth when Grambling State (3-1) roared back.
Former Scotlandville quarterback C’Zavian Teasett led a pair of fourth-quarter drives for a combined 18 plays, 128 yards, a field goal and a game-winning Clyde McClendon Jr. goal-line touchdown with 1:56.
The 31-28 victory marked the Tigers’ second-straight fourth-quarter comeback after topping Kentucky State in overtime last week.
Teasett finished 14-for-26 for 179 yards and a touchdown and rushed eight times for 13 yards and another score.
Byron Eaton Jr. rushed six times for 69 yards and a touchdown, and Tyson George (Zachary) caught three passes for 59 yards.
Jamal Jordan (Evangel Christian) and Bryce Cage (Scotlandville) led the defense with eight and seven tackles, respectively.
And Warren Robinson, a transfer from East Texas A&M, wrapped up a late sack that helped stall his former team’s potential response and set up a missed field goal that could have forced overtime.
TULANE OPPORTUNITY TURNS LONG DAY AT OLE MISS
Tulane saw a prime opportunity evaporate into a long, frustrating afternoon in Oxford, Miss.
The Green Wave (3-1) struggled to find any semblance of a passing game or sustain more than a couple drives against No. 13 Ole Miss (4-0), while the Rebels meanwhile marched their way up and down their home field for scores on eight of their first nine possessions.
Tulane stumbled to its first loss of the season, 45-10 — the program’s most lopsided defeat since a a 61-21 loss on the same field in 2021.
Quarterbacks Jake Retzlaff and Brendan Sullivan finished a combined 10-for-29 for 104 yards and a late touchdown from Sullivan to Anthony Brown-Stephens.
Retzlaff and former Booker T. Washington (New Orleans) standout Arnold Barnes III led the rushing attack with 51 and 47 carries, respectively.
Tulane visits Tulsa (2-2, 0-1) next Saturday to open conference play.
CAJUNS SUFFER HEARTBREAK IN YPSILANTI
Louisiana (Lafayette) pieced together a quick, 65-yard drive in the final minutes to pull back even with 47 seconds left in a back-and-forth battle at Eastern Michigan.
But the home Eagles answered with a 41-yard drive to set up a 42-yard Rudy Kessinger field goal for a 34-31 win.
Former Franklin star Zylan Perry racked up 110 yards and two touchdowns on 15 carries, and Elijah “Bill” Davis (Riverside Academy) added another 78 yards and a score on 11 attempts.
Redshirt freshman quarterback Daniel Beale, the former Catholic-Baton Rouge star, completed 20 for his 33 passes for 222 yards, no touchdowns and two interceptions.
And another former Catholic-BR star, LSU transfer Shelton Sampson Jr., led the team with three catches for 87 yards, including a late 43-yarder to set up Perry’s game-tying score.
Freshman defensive back Brent Gordon Jr., out of Cecilia, finished with a game-high 10 tackles, and senior corner Courtline Flowers had a 35-yard pick-six that provided the Ragin’ Cajuns a 24-21 lead in the third quarter.
SOUTHLAND GOES 0-FOR-4 ON ROAD
Southeastern Louisiana wasn’t alone in its road woes Saturday, as Southland rivals McNeese State, Nicholls State and Northwestern State each fell as well.
McNeese State (1-3) lost, 48-7, at Utah State (3-1). Nicholls State (1-3) fell, 35-3, to Texas State (3-1). And Northwestern State (1-3) couldn’t come back against Prairie View A&M (2-2) in a 27-24 loss.
