Louisiana Tech routs Northwestern State 80-6
Team pages: Northwestern State · Louisiana Tech
Louisiana Tech routed Northwestern State 80-6. Share this game
We had Louisiana Tech favored. It won.
Next: Northwestern State lost to East Texas A&M 38-14, Sat Sep 12
How it swung
Before kickoff, our ratings gave Louisiana Tech a 90% chance, and the closing betting line (Louisiana Tech was a 44.5-point favorite) put it above 99%.
Louisiana Tech led by 18 after the first quarter and by 60 at the half.
Louisiana Tech · Q1 8:48Punt return TDLouisiana Tech · Q2 6:17Louisiana Tech 80-6 Northwestern State
Louisiana Tech wonMove across the chart, or tap a numbered swing, to see any play.Northwestern State 6-80 Louisiana TechNorthwestern State lostMove across the chart, or tap a numbered swing, to see any play.No single play moved the chance by 20 points.
No single play moved the chance by 20 points.
How to read this chart
Starts from the pregame line (Louisiana Tech -44.5), at 99% for Louisiana Tech (the play-by-play feed's kickoff number, moved to match the line; our model's and the betting line's own numbers are in “The betting line, and the fans”). Dots are the biggest swings; ticks under the chart are scores. Outlined diamonds mark rare plays.Every drive
Louisiana Tech scored on 11 of its 14 drives; Northwestern State on 3 of its 15.
Louisiana Tech’s drives are teal, Northwestern State’s amber. A line runs from where a drive started to where it ended; a filled dot means it scored.
The loudest stretch
The middle of the game is where fans had the most to say.
- early
- middle
- late
- final stretch
How we know
We look at when the most different fans were posting during the game thread, then name the part of the game it falls in. Only threads with a clear peak and enough fans get a word.
Box score
Louisiana Tech 80, Northwestern State 6
Louisiana Tech covered −44.5 by 29.5. The total, 86, went over 56.5.
| Team totals | Northwestern State | Louisiana Tech |
|---|---|---|
| Total yards | 129 | 528 |
| Passing | 5 of 16, 43 yds | 17 of 22, 296 yds |
| Rushing | 45 for 86 yds | 37 for 232 yds |
| First downs | 7 | 23 |
| Third down | 4 of 18 | 7 of 11 |
| Fourth down | 0 of 1 | 1 of 1 |
| Turnovers | 1 | 0 |
| Penalties | 6 for 64 yds | 2 for 15 yds |
| Time of possession | 35:08 | 24:52 |
Northwestern State leaders
- Passing Abram Johnston 5 of 13, 43 yds, 1 INT
- Rushing Sage Ingram 13 for 48 yds; Zach Wilcke 6 for 43 yds
- Receiving Dylan Rhodes 2 for 25 yds; Zay Davis 2 for 11 yds
Louisiana Tech leaders
- Passing Blake Baker 10 of 14, 232 yds, 3 TD
- Rushing Trey Kukuk 5 for 50 yds; Dylone Brooks 6 for 48 yds, 1 TD
- Receiving Jalen Mickens 3 for 133 yds, 1 TD; Eli Finley 4 for 52 yds, 1 TD
Feels like 86° to 102° through the game
94° at kickoff · feels like 86° to 102° · no rain recorded
A feels-like 102° is hotter than the peak in 99% of games since 2018.
Each gray tick is one game. The black line is the typical game.
Warmer than 9 in 10 of the 54 other games played at Joe Aillet Stadium since 2016 (airport temperature during the game window). The usual here around this date is 78°, with about 7 in 10 games between 74° and 82°.
September game-day temperatures at Joe Aillet Stadium
Drag along the chart, or step through the game.
Where this weather comes from
Measured at Ruston airport, 4.1 miles away. The paler thunder bar is thunder reported in the vicinity of an airport. Rain is NOAA's radar-and-gauge estimate at the stadium and wind is an airport reading; neither is measured on the field. Game times come from the play-by-play, good to a minute or two. Source: National Weather Service, through the Iowa Environmental Mesonet; rain radar from NOAA MRMS, through Iowa State University. Field direction from OpenStreetMap contributors.Before kickoff
Recent games, the series and the betting line below are as they stood going in; the season profile is the season so far.
Recent games
Last three games · 2025 season
Northwestern State · 1-11
Rated 261st in our preseason ratings, 261st now.
Three straight losses.
L 14-62 vs Stephen F. Austin #69 of 667
lost by 48 as a 37.5-point underdog
L 21-26 @ Nicholls #202 of 667
lost by 5 as a 23.5-point underdog
L 3-38 vs Incarnate Word #160 of 667
lost by 35 as a 24.5-point underdog
L 3-50 @ McNeese #220 of 667
lost by 47 as a 16.5-point underdog
L 14-41 vs Lamar #139 of 667
lost by 27 as a 24.5-point underdog
L 0-49 @ SE Louisiana #106 of 667
lost by 49 as a 31-point underdog
L 17-20 @ Houston Christian #233 of 667
lost by 3 as a 12.5-point underdog
L 10-40 vs East Texas A&M #184 of 667
lost by 30 as a 7-point underdog
L 24-27 @ Prairie View A&M #192 of 667
lost by 3 as a 10.5-point underdog
L 0-70 @ CincinnatiTop 25 #42 of 667
lost by 70 as a 48.5-point underdog
L 0-66 @ Minnesota #23 of 667
lost by 66 as a 43-point underdog
W 20-10 vs Alcorn State #195 of 667
won by 10 as a 10.5-point underdog
Last three games · 2025 season
Louisiana Tech · 8-5
Rated 88th in our preseason ratings.
W 23-14 vs Coastal Carolina #181 of 667
won by 9 as a 10-point favorite
W 42-30 @ Missouri State #140 of 667
won by 12 as a 2.5-point underdog
W 34-28 vs Liberty #122 of 667
won by 6 as a 1.5-point underdog
L 3-28 @ Washington State #59 of 667
lost by 25 as a 10.5-point underdog
L 24-25 @ Delaware #157 of 667
lost by 1 as a 5.5-point favorite
W 55-14 vs Sam Houston #227 of 667
won by 41 as a 16.5-point favorite
L 27-28 vs Western Kentucky #113 of 667
lost by 1 as a 4.5-point favorite
L 7-35 @ Kennesaw State #124 of 667
lost by 28 as a 5.5-point favorite
W 30-11 @ UTEP #119 of 667
won by 19 as a 3.5-point favorite
W 30-20 vs Southern Miss #111 of 667
won by 10 as a 3.5-point favorite
W 49-14 vs New Mexico State #217 of 667
won by 35 as a 10.5-point favorite
L 7-23 @ LSUTop 25 #11 of 667
lost by 16 as a 36.5-point underdog
W 24-0 vs SE Louisiana #167 of 667
won by 24 as a 14.5-point favorite
The series
Louisiana Tech leads the series 9-2
11 meetings since 1975 · Louisiana Tech has won the last 2
- 2023Louisiana Tech 51-21
- 2017Louisiana Tech 52-24
- 2014Northwestern State 30-27
- 1994Louisiana Tech 38-28
- 1981Louisiana Tech 37-33
Each line is Louisiana Tech’s chance to win through that meeting. Older meetings have no play by play, so no line.
Line, fans and home field
The betting line, and the fans
Our model and the betting line don’t fully agree on Louisiana Tech’s chances here.
Louisiana Tech favored by 44.5 · Total 56.5
How games like this usually go
Louisiana Tech by 44.5, and it went to form
Half of games8 in 10 gamesThis game
The band is where a favorite’s chance ran in the 411 games since 2025 with a favorite of 21.5 points or more.
The market
The spread moved 3 points toward Louisiana Tech.
The total rose 4 points.
Spread: −41.5 → −44.5 · Total: 52.5 → 56.5
Weather at kickoff
Hot and dry. Feels like 92° at kickoff.
Northwestern State at Louisiana Tech · Saturday, Sept. 5, 2026 · Joe Aillet Stadium, Ruston
- 92°feels like at kickoff
- Dryno rain at kickoff
- 61weather score, Rough
- 2ndbest of the day's 7 kickoff times
At kickoff, Sept. 5, 2026.
Weather score: 0 to 100, higher is better, for the first 3 hours and 20 minutes of the game. Ideal is 100, Comfortable 90 to 99, Mixed 75 to 89, Rough 50 to 74, Harsh under 50.
Later kickoff times scored higher that Saturday
Games in this time zone used 7 kickoff times that day, local time (kickoffs within 30 minutes of each other count as one). This game, ringed, was the second best of the day's seven kickoff times. At Joe Aillet Stadium that day, a 7 pm kickoff would have scored 78, against 61 at 6 pm.
- 11 am: 41, Harsh
- noon: 39, Harsh
- 2:30 pm: 26, Harsh
- 3:15 pm: 26, Harsh
- 4 pm: 28, Harsh
- 6 pm: 61, Rough (this game)
- 7 pm: 78, Mixed
Weather score at each kickoff time.
Tap a dot to read that kickoff time.
At kickoff, Sept. 5, 2026. Wind is not drawn here; gusts are in each score.
Home field
Louisiana Tech is worth +7.5 points (±3.7) more at home than on the road since 2018 — top tenth of FBS, 97th percentile.
61% at home, 27% on the road against FBS opponents (23-15 home, 14-37 away).
Our model gives every stadium the same flat 2.3-point home edge (why); the books use about 3. Against the closing line this stadium reads +3.4 at home vs. away over 97 games — inside the ±5.8 noise, so the flat number is the honest one here.
Night kickoff — historically worth about half a point more to the home side against the number, and not much more than that. The visitors travel about 60 miles to get here.