San Jose State hosts Louisiana Tech in a Western Athletic Conference battle this Saturday night and I have made this match my Game of the Year for 2006. Louisiana Tech has been beaten by giants all season. They were crushed by Nebraska, Texas A&M, Clemson and Boise State (all currently in the AP top 25). Last week, the Bulldogs captured their first league win of the season with a 48-35 loss to Utah State.
The San Jose State Spartans have no momentum on their side heading into this one. They ran a four-game winning streak until last week before being silenced by the Nevada wolf pack. San Jose State has a narrow history on its side this week, as the Spartans lead the all-time series against the Bulldogs three games to two, but Louisiana Tech has won two of the last three meetings, including a 31-14 victory. from last season.
Last week, the Bulldogs scored 48 points, which was their highest point total in two seasons. They did most of their offensive damage on the ground rushing for 344 yards, which was the most of any team in the WAC this season. Despite last week’s big offensive explosion, the Bulldogs are eighth in the conference to score an average of 18.7 points per game. Maybe last week’s game was his coming out party. If that’s the case, the Spartans will have to pay close attention to both Daniel Porter and Patrick Jackson outside the backfield. Jackson leads the Bulldogs in rushing with 441 yards and five touchdowns, but Porter is getting strong, averaging nearly seven yards per carry. QB Zac Champion had a breakthrough game throwing for 226 yards and four touchdowns, but he still has one touchdown fewer than interceptions on the season. Some of this has to do with the high-caliber non-conference schedule the Bulldogs have played, but I think it will be the running game that will give them the best chance against the Spartans on Saturday night.
San Jose state was dominated by Nevada last week, but they should be able to score on the Louisiana Tech defense. How much they score will largely depend on quarterback Adam Tafralis, who threw just 68 yards last week. The running game is also the Spartans’ strong suit. Yonus Davis racked up 100 yards rushing last week despite the Spartans possessing the ball for just 20 minutes. One big advantage the Spartans have is Dwight Lowery, who made his eighth pick of the season last week and seems to make a great play in every game. Champion will have to stay away from him. He should have time to do so, as the Spartans are one of the worst teams in the nation to put pressure on the quarterback. In fact, they rank 117th in the country in catches.
How important will the momentum be? How important will the home field be? Is history an indicator? I have analyzed Saturday’s Game of the Year 2006 inside and out and am ready to deliver my biggest winner of the year.
