WKU Football: Hilltoppers vs. Louisiana Tech — Initial Thoughts
This week, the Hilltoppers will turn their focus from the disappointing output in Champaign into a game that was highlighted by many as one…
This week, the Hilltoppers will turn their focus from the disappointing output in Champaign into a game that was highlighted by many as one of the must-watch conference games of the season as Louisiana Tech comes to Bowling Green this weekend.
This game is still interesting, but for very different reasons. Both teams rolled to victories over FCS schools in week one but fell very flat in highly anticipated matchups against P5 schools in week two (the Tops mustered a single touchdown against Illinois while La Tech became an instant meme in their 57–21 loss to Mississippi State).
Before we begin our week of content and coverage leading up to Saturday’s game, here are some initial thoughts I have at the start of game week:
How will the change at left tackle change the dynamic of that offensive line? Mike White has had little to no time to allow routes to develop, and if something is tweaked, what will the total impact be?
How will WKU respond? It seems like a simple enough question, but putting up only seven points against a team you were favored to beat by eight can’t be an easy thing in the back of their mind. While they played well (mostly on the defensive front) that offense doesn’t look like it’s totally clicking yet. Everyone on this writing staff, at the very least, was hoping for a breakout day from Quinton Baker and it didn’t come, and the rushing game in total finished in the single digits. There’s a lot of responding that needs to happen, and hopefully most of it is good.
What will Tech’s response be following the home blowout to the hands of Mississippi State? Sure, Mississippi St. is a far more formidable opponent than Illinois, but I’ll be shocked if that’s the result La Tech fans were expecting.
Here’s the thing — WKU vs. La Tech games have been super duper fun, sans the demolishing in Ruston back in 2014. Last year’s game was one of my favorite games I think I’ve ever seen the Hilltoppers play, and I’ll be damned if this year’s doesn’t become another instant classic.
What will the fan turnout be? There was a lot of vocal WKU fans saying that La Tech should be a sellout (spoiler alert: it still should be), and I’m willing to bet a good number of the excitement heading into a potential sellout was hinged on coming home following a Big Ten win. While half of that isn’t the case, the Topper faithful should still come out. I’ll be shocked if the crowd is anything over 19,500 but I’ll never be so happy to be so wrong. Chad has been saying it over the last two days, and I’m going to reiterate here — just because the Tops have had a slow start to the year, doesn’t mean the year is over.
What say you? What are your initial thoughts heading into the La Tech game? Let us know in a comment below, via Twitter at @TheTowelRackWKU or on our Facebook page.