Coming off a year where Louisiana Tech started with three tough losses in its first four games, then turned it around to win the WAC championship and end the season with a well played game against TCU in the Poinsettia Bowl, the Bulldogs look to continue to make strides to get national attention and defend their championship this year before moving to Conference USA next year. Louisiana Tech did lose freshman quarterback Nick Isham to transfer, but Colby Cameron returns to continue where he left off last year. Quinton Patton and Ray Holley also return to the offense, and the team should still be pretty set on the defensive side on the ball as well. If Tech does get in trouble on offense, the Ray Guy Award winner from last year, punter Ryan Allen, will be back to help them out. The Dawgs start with an interesting non-conference schedule where they have a good chance to be successful, before entering a depleted WAC schedule that lacks the former powerhouses of Fresno State, Hawaii, and Nevada. Taking a look at the schedule Tech has a very good chance to defend the WAC championship and get a better bowl berth than Tech has seen in a few years. Let's take a look at the 2012-2013 schedule game by game:
Week 1: vs. Texas A&M Aggies
The Dawgs open up week 1 on a Thursday night in Shreveport, LA against a new look Aggie team. The Aggies are moving into the SEC with a new head coach and new quarterback, since Ryan Tannehill is now in the NFL. New coach Kevin Sumlin comes over from Houston to coach the Aggies, bringing his high octane passing offense with him. This game could be a track meet with a very high score, and will probably come down to which offense plays better that night. With Tech having home field advantage, being only an hour away from Ruston, they have a good chance to walk away with a win in Sumlin's debut.
Week 2: at University of Houston Cougars
Louisiana Tech moves on to week 2 to play Houston at their place. Houston is another team with a new quarterback replacing Case Keenum, who finished a very productive college career last year. The Dawgs should be the favorite in this game and they are going to be looking for revenge after blowing a 34-7 lead to Houston in the fourth quarter last year.
Week 3: vs. Rice University Owls
Sonny Dykes and the Bulldogs play their first home game of the season in Ruston against their future Conference USA opponent, the Rice Owls. Rice is not typically a strong football school and should allow Tech to win their home opener, but this will definitely be a trap game that the Dawgs cannot afford to overlook.
Week 4: at Illinois Fightin' Illini
This will be the first true road test for the Dawgs this season, when they have to travel to Champaign to take on the Illini. Illinois is usually in the middle to the bottom of the Big Ten conference and gives Tech another good chance at a win if they show up and play good offense. This is not going to be a gimme game by any means and would be a huge road win for the Dawgs if they could get it.
Week 5: at Virginia Cavaliers
The Dawgs have their second consecutive road game as they travel to Charlottesville, VA to take on the Cavaliers. Virginia is a scary team because you never know which team is going to show up, the good or the bad. Depending on which Virginia team shows up, depends on if the Bulldogs can leave Charlottesville with the win.
Week 6: vs. UNLV Rebels
Lousiana Tech returns home to face UNLV in Ruston for their sixth game. UNLV is coming off a two win season in 2011, so the Dawgs should have a good chance of getting another win at home and keep their hopes of a good bowl alive.
Week 7: vs. Idaho Vandals
Idaho comes to Ruston to play the Bulldogs in week 7 and this is the first conference game in which Tech begins their WAC title defense. The Vandals are also coming off a two win season, but always seems to give the Bulldogs a good game. I believe Tech will come away with the win and move on to week 8.
Week 8: at New Mexico State Aggies
Tech travels to Las Cruces, NM to play the Aggies which they beat 44-0 in 2011. This should be another easy win for the Dawgs to move to 2-0 in the WAC.
Week 9: vs. UTSA Roadrunners
The Roadrunners are new to the WAC this year, moving up from Division II where they only won four games last season. UTSA gets its first look at the defending WAC champions and first taste of the better part of the WAC. The Dawgs should give the newcomers a rude welcoming, bringing their conference record to 3-0
Week 10: at Texas State Bobcats
Texas State is another newcomer to the WAC. They are coached by new head coach former Texas A&M head coach, Dennis Franchione. The Bobcats come up from Division II as well, coming off a 6-6 record. This could be one of the tougher games in the WAC for the Dawgs, but they should come away with the win, to continue to be undefeated in the WAC.
Week 11: vs. Utah State Aggies
This will be the toughest WAC game for the Bulldogs this season. Utah State comes off a 2011 season where they went 7-5. They gave the Dawgs a good game last season, with Tech coming out on top 24-17. This game could be for the WAC championship, with just one game to go after their meeting. The game is in Ruston this year so at least Tech will have the home crowd behind them.
Week 12: at San Jose State Spartans
For the last game of the regular season, Tech travels west to San Jose to play the Spartans. San Jose State went 5-7 last season, with one loss coming to the Dawgs by 10 points. Tech cannot afford to show up unprepared for this game, or they could very well get beat and end a good season on a bad note.
So looking back on the whole schedule, the Dawgs should end the season 10-2 and win their second consecutive WAC championship as they leave the conference with the trophy. With a 10-2 record, Louisiana Tech should look to get a better bowl than the Poinsettia Bowl by replacing one of the teams that goes to a BCS bowl. The key to accomplishing this is to lose no more than two of their non-conference games. Look for the Bulldogs to be a surprise team this year and accomplish more than any Louisiana Tech team in the last couple of years.
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