Quick 2-minute drill on Louisiana Tech football:

• For Tech football fans, Saturday’s game against New Mexico State, 6:30 p.m. kick in Ruston’s Aillet Stadium, should complete enough sample size to give them a fightin’-man’s chance of deciding whether the Dogs have a good chance of winning their swan song (unofficially) in Conference USA — or not. …
• From what we’ve seen of Tech’s veteran defense so far — the Dogs blanked Southeastern, 24-0, and lost to LSU, 23-7 — you’d think the Bulldogs would be in every game from here on out, favored in each one except maybe Liberty and probably Washington State, and should finish no worse than the middle of the pack. Which isn’t terrible. But which most definitely IS …
• … kissing-your-sister territory. Nothing against my sisters, who I love. It’s just that “middle of the pack” and “3 wins in a whole year” and all that is SO yesteryear. Tech fans and anyone with a heart who has watched the past four seasons would rather eat a bowl of horse triggies, whatever that is, than to go through THAT again. So what’s it gonna be, Top Dog or “Thank You For Playing”? 
• College football’s lack of preseason games (a blessing and a curse) makes it hard to tell, especially so this year with Tech, because you figured in July the Dogs would be 1-1 now, which they are, HOWEVER …
• Tech beat Southeastern but Southeastern is an FCS program; Tech lost at LSU, a “good” loss if there is such a thing, a 38-point underdog losing by 16 on the road in that iconic stadium — although not an iconic atmosphere, not Saturday night, thanks to a Tech defense that gave the Tigers all they wanted and the fans nothing they wanted, which is why about 40,000 of them left at halftime. This is how good the defense was in giving up just 23 points:
• LSU had the ball almost 37 minutes;
• Tech punted to end eight straight possessions, forcing the defense, its collective tongue hanging down like a necktie, to trot back out;
• Held the Tigers to three field goals and two touchdowns in five red zone trips, handy considering the time of possession and Tech’s number of punts AND penalty yardage, a brutal 140 yards. Makes you wonder how the defense did it, and whether or not they just might be THAT good. Consider that no Dogs left to follow last year’s defensive coordinator, Jeremiah Johnson, to Coastal Carolina. The Dogs that stay together, bite and fight together, or something like that. Some of us love defense, so Saturday night was like Christmas to me.
• Final LSU thingy: LSU rushed for 128 yards — but 91 of those came on two plays. That leaves 37 yards on 32 carries. Stifling. Tech has numbers up front, all-star linebackers, and vets, speed, and a freakish athlete or two in the secondary…
• True, the Tech offense never made it past Krotz Springs. BUT…
• No turnovers for the second straight game, and,
• Starting center Landon Nelson was sidelined with a bad tummy but Roy Brackins III, a sophomore playing in the shadow of Woodlawn, his Baton Rouge high school, and Jonathan Denis, a first year Dog, played well in his absence against a millions-of-dollars-defensive-line, and,
• Tech converted a fourth-and-1, YES!, which was a nightmare down many times last year when Tech had no short yardage personality or confidence.
• Remember, Tech won just five games last year BUT …
• Lost on a Hail/Hell Mary (to league champ Jacksonville State), missed a chip shot field goal that would have won a game at the buzzer, and screwed up a handoff exchange inside the 5-yard-line to alter the outcome of another game. Tech beat last year’s CUSA runner-up (Western Kentucky) on the road. So …
• Maybe the football gods will decide otherwise this year. Or …
• Maybe Tech will decide otherwise. Maybe everyone’s tired of “almost” this and “Hail Mary” that and “I just got called for another unsportsmanlike penalty so why do the coaches keep playing me because I have GOT to be the most selfish player ever” and all like that. Maybe …
• Tech covers the 10-point spread against New Mexico State. Star QB Diego Pavia, who left with his spectacular name for Vandy, is long gone, but former Fresno State slinger Logan Fife is competent and has a compelling mustache — tip of the hat — that demands double coverage, even when he’s not on the field. It’s some solid facial hair, is what we’re saying. The Aggie linebackers are good too, but …
• Tech’s offense is not going to see a defense better than the one it faced in Tiger Stadium. If it can oil its krotzed springs and get going, just put a few first downs together …
• Maybe this could be a fun team to watch. Maybe a winning team. Maybe a TEAM team. Maybe …
• Tech could kiss the conference and say goodbye, like a champ.

Contact Teddy at teddy@latech.edu