College Football First Look: Louisiana Tech vs. UTEP 10/16/2021 College Football Picks, Prediction, and Preview
Louisiana Tech visits UTEP on 10/16/2021 at 9:00PM.
Louisiana Tech and UTEP face off in a regular season matchup. Games are on campuses and crowds are full once again! Louisiana Tech sports a record of 2-3 this season. UTEP is 5-1 this season. Enough preamble… Let’s get to the preview… 
Louisiana Tech Team Defense Preview
Louisiana Tech has had 66 total defensive drives this season and they yield 6.52 plays per drive. The struggle is real. Louisiana Tech struggles to find a way to get opposing offenses off the field. Three and outs are not common and this means that when a three-and-out is necessary late in a game to get the ball back, it is just not happening. Offensive Coordinators have had no trouble with this season defense, this is one of the worst defenses in the country. The Defensive Coordinator coaching search threads onLouisiana Techmessage boards are flights of fantasy. Louisiana Tech opponents passes the football 61.63% of the time.They are a team that faces a lot of Air Raid Offenses.
This is a pushover defense. Not enough push from the Defensive Line and not enough imagination from the Defensive Coordinator to cause chaos in the backfield.Opponent rushing yards attributed to their offensive line this season comes out to 3.58 yards per carry. Sorry to say this about their front seven, but the best way to make an average offensive line look good is for them to face this season ‘s horrid front seven. This is a team that is getting gashed too much for the tastes of their base. Linebackers are not stopping the bleeding well enough. Opponents have had shown a relatively average level of explosiveness in the running game, maybe there will be a breakout rushing play against them.
This is not a disruptive Defense and they get pushed over way too easily. Perhaps they are too vanilla with playcalling. Their front seven is simply unable to make an impact, something must change or else the problems will repeat. Louisiana Tech has had shown themselves to be better at stopping the pass than the run this season .
Louisiana Tech Team Offense Preview
Louisiana Tech has had 61 total drives this season and they generate 5.97 plays per drive. Louisiana Tech run a lot of plays per drive and this could wear an opposing defense down. Struggles to get ahead of the chains and convert on third and fourth down are common, the offense can stagnate. Louisiana Tech passes the football 51.65% of the time.Relatively speaking, this is a team that favors run/pass balance.
Louisiana Tech struggles with running the ball, getting zero or negative yard plays is disspiriting and the offensive line is not effectively making a good push. Poor playcalling, pre-snap adjustments or post-snap reads may be responsible and this could fall on the Quarterback, Offensive Coordinator, and Head Coach. How effective is the offensive line given what we know about their ability to prevent negative yards on rushing plays? More than you think, thanks to the Adjusted Line Yards metric. Louisiana Tech can take credit for 2.69 yards per carry. So what does this mean? It means that the offensive line has had been incredibly disappointing in their contribution to the ground game. When it comes to getting to that second level where linebackers have not crashed down on the line of scrimmage, they are getting stopped with ease. With a relatively average explosiveness in the running game, breakout rushing plays are possible, but it is not something to count on from them.
Defenses have had trouble making big, disruptive plays against Louisiana Tech this season. They have had done a relatively good job done by this Offensive Line to prevent opposing front sevens from causing problems consistently. Louisiana Tech is a better passing team than running team this season .
UTEP Team Defense Preview
UTEP has had 69 defensive drives in non-garbage time minutes and they yield 5.09 plays per drive. Relatively speaking, UTEP are not a team that allows many plays per drive. The defense either gives up big plays quickly or induces a lot of three-and-outs, we shall find out more. Third and long situations are common against this season ‘s defense. This is a defense that forces opponents to commit penalties, have compromised offensive line play, and fail to convert on crunch possessions. Passing plays are 52.14% of their opponents’ play calls.UTEP tends to face teams that prefer to air it out or opponents wanted to air it out against them.
UTEP opponents have had struggled with running the ball and the defense crushed the spirits of their opponents with zero or negative yard plays. 4th and Short is not a cake walk, maybe passing on 4th and Short or having some sort of RPO is the way to go because if an Offensive Coordinator thinks that they can just line up and run a Quarterback Sneak or hand it off to a tailback against this season ‘s defense, they are mistaken. Opponent rushing yards attributed to their offensive line this season comes out to 2.61 yards per carry. Opponent offensive lines have had been simply unable to support their running games against their defense. When it comes to getting to that second level, running backs are getting stopped. This defense does not allow themselves to be gashed. The breakout rushing plays are simply not happening, it is a massive reach to expect them to give up big rushing plays.
Disruptive plays are a part of the fabric of this team’s defensive effort. Game changing plays that drive Offensive Coordinators and Quarterbacks crazy, they find ways to deliver. Getting more specific, this front seven is a cause of a lot of headaches for offenses. They may be good enough to cause trouble in pass rush with just four rushers!UTEP is better at stopping the run than the pass this season .
UTEP Team Offense Preview
UTEP has had 69 drives in non-garbage time minutes and they average 4.68 plays per drive. Relatively speaking, UTEP is not a team that runs many plays per drive. The offense is either prone to faltering and struggles to notch first downs or extremely explosive, we will need to find out a bit more to get answers. Struggles to get ahead of the chains and convert on third and fourth down are common, the offense can stagnate. UTEP passes the football 37.46% of the time.They favors running the ball as opposed airing it out.
UTEP struggles with running the ball, getting zero or negative yard plays is disspiriting and the offensive line is not effectively making a good push. Poor playcalling, pre-snap adjustments or post-snap reads may be responsible and this could fall on the Quarterback, Offensive Coordinator, and Head Coach. How effective is the offensive line given what we know about their ability to prevent negative yards on rushing plays? More than you think, thanks to the Adjusted Line Yards metric. UTEP can take credit for 2.63 yards per carry. So what does this mean? It means that the offensive line has had been incredibly disappointing in their contribution to the ground game. When it comes to getting to that second level where linebackers have not crashed down on the line of scrimmage, they are getting stopped with ease. With a relatively average explosiveness in the running game, breakout rushing plays are possible, but it is not something to count on from them.
Defenses have had average success disrupting the flow of the UTEP Offense. They have had done a relatively good job done by this Offensive Line to prevent opposing front sevens from causing problems consistently. UTEP is a better passing team than running team this season .
The Louisiana Tech Roster
The Players to Watch for Louisiana Tech
Austin Kendall QB 6’2″ 212 Senior
Austin Kendall put up 1165 yards, tossed 10 touchdowns, and he threw 5 interceptions this season. He threw deep and medium passes to receivers more often than not. His average completed pass was 8.0 yards. The zone read is a common part of the offense and mobility is used as part of the offense, but not necessarily the focus of the offense. His average rush was 5.1 yards.
Marcus Williams Jr. RB 5’10” 204 Senior
Marcus Williams Jr. had 315 rushing yards on 73 carries. Was he able to get to the end zone on the ground? He had 2 rushing touchdowns. He is considered one of the workhorse running backs of College Football returning this season. His average rush was 4.3 yards. He is a consistent option in the passing game considering that he is a running back. When he catches a pass, he generates on average 4.3 yards.
Jerrod Means WR 6’2″ 214 Freshman
Jerrod Means picked up 282 yards through the air. He caught the ball 15 times this season. He reached the end zone 2 times. He was a consistent option in the passing game this season. When he catches a pass, he generates on average 18.8 yards.
Deshon Hall DL 6’3″ 257 Sophomore
The leading tackler among Defensive Tackles for Louisiana Tech, Deshon Hall, had 21 tackles this season.Among Defensive Tackles/Nose Tackles, he was clogging the gaps and playing disruptive proving he is one of the best at forcing lost yardage, he had 3 tackles for loss this season.He was a non-factor as far as sacking Quarterbacks was concerned this season.
Baylen Buchanan DB 5’11” 186 Senior
The leading tackler among Defensive Backs for Louisiana Tech, Baylen Buchanan, had 27 tackles this season.He forced 0 tackles for loss this season.He had 0.0 sacks this season.
The UTEP Roster
The Players to Watch for UTEP
Gavin Hardison QB 6’3″ 205 Sophomore
Gavin Hardison put up 1266 yards, tossed 8 touchdowns, and he threw 6 interceptions. He was considered one of the gunslingers of College Football this season. His average completed pass was 9.9 yards. His mobility and the staff’s willingness to use it for the purposes of generating yardage is average. His average rush was -1.0 yards.
Ronald Awatt RB 6’0″ 205 Junior
Ronald Awatt had 437 rushing yards on 74 carries. Was he able to get to the end zone on the ground? He had 3 rushing touchdowns. He is considered one of the workhorse running backs of College Football returning this season. His average rush was 5.9 yards. He was average among running backs when it comes to his role as a receiver in the offense. When he catches a pass, he generates on average 5.9 yards.
Jacob Cowing WR 5’11” 170 Sophomore
Jacob Cowing picked up 609 yards through the air. He caught the ball 26 times this season. He reached the end zone 4 times. He is a go-to in the passing game. When he catches a pass, he generates on average 23.4 yards.
Keenan Stewart DT 6’2″ 305 Sophomore
The leading tackler among Defensive Tackles for UTEP, Keenan Stewart, had 14 tackles this season.Among Defensive Tackles/Nose Tackles, he was clogging the gaps and playing disruptive proving he is one of the best at forcing lost yardage, he had 4 tackles for loss this season.He was among the best at disrupting things up the middle and getting to QBs, he had 2 sacks this season.
Praise Amaewhule DE 6’3″ 245 Sophomore
The leading tackler among Defensive Tackles for UTEP, Praise Amaewhule, had 22 tackles this season.Among Defensive Tackles/Nose Tackles, he was clogging the gaps and playing disruptive proving he is one of the best at forcing lost yardage, he had 8 tackles for loss this season.He was among the best at disrupting things up the middle and getting to QBs, he had 4 sacks this season.
Dy’Vonne Inyang DB 6’1″ 180 Senior
The leading tackler among Defensive Backs for UTEP, Dy’Vonne Inyang, had 23 tackles this season.Among Defensive Backs, he was very active and disruptive in the backfield, he had 3 tackles for loss this season.He was among the best at disrupting things up the middle and getting to QBs, he had 1.0 sacks this season.
Torey Richardson CB 5’11” 176 Freshman
The leading tackler among Cornerbacks for UTEP, Torey Richardson, had 9 tackles this season.He forced 0 tackles for loss this season.He had 0.0 pick-offs this season.
Louisiana Tech vs. UTEP Prediction, Picks, and Odds
Prediction: Louisiana Tech 36 UTEP 21
Spread Pick: Louisiana Tech -6.5 -115 Bovada Get $250 by signing up now.
Moneyline Pick: Louisiana Tech -250 BetAnySports
Over Pick: Over 55.5 -115 BetOnline Get Up to a Grand in Your Hand Now!