You can excuse the good people of Ruston, Louisiana if they feel that any game played by their Louisiana Tech Bulldogs is not over until the Bulldogs come from behind to win. That would be because the Bulldogs logged their 7th come-from-behind victory of the season in the Independence Bowl Saturday (12-28-08), beating Northern Illinois 17-10.
The win was sweet for Derek Dooley as it represented his first bowl victory as a head coach. Dooley is none other than a former protégé of Alabama head coach Nick Saban and son of the legendary Georgia coach and athletic director Vince Dooley. Young Dooley used his special teams, defense and a running game to turn back Northern Illinois.
Senior defensive back Weldon Brown proved to be the Bulldogs big stopper. Brown stopped one Husky scoring threat with a shoestring tackle to set up a 4th down, then batted down the ensuing pass. He also recovered a fumbled punt to set up a field goal attempt, and ended one of two late Husky drives with an interception when the game was on the line. Brown finished with 14 tackles and the Most Valuable Defensive Player award.
On special teams, sophomore wide receiver Phil Livas took a kickoff return to the house for a 97-yard score, and junior running back Dan Porter rushed for 78 yards and a touchdown.
The postseason win was Louisiana Tech's first in 31 years; their last win also came in the Independence Bowl in 1977. The victory left the Bulldogs with their first 8-win season in 9 years. They finished the year at 8-5 while Northern Illinois slid to 6-7.
Louisiana Tech was not even expected to be in a bowl game but was selected when neither the Southeastern Conference (SEC) nor Big 12 could produce a participant.
Derek Dooley inherited a team that went 3-10. He improved the Bulldogs to 5-7 last year and now has them at 8-5 and a bowl victory in his second full season. Dooley's Bulldogs upset Mississippi State to kick off this season and then won 4 of their last 5 games to get to the Independence Bowl and generate more glory for the Bulldog faithful.
Louisiana Tech and Derek Dooley are on the way up. We know this because the Bulldogs scored 8 non-offensive touchdowns this season to tie for the most in major college football. When you score on defense or special teams, everyone gets excited.
In addition to Livas' 97-yard TD return in the Independence Bowl, he returned 2 punts for touchdowns during the regular season. The last player to return a kickoff for a touchdown in the Independence Bowl was a guy named Deuce McAllister who did it for Mississippi 10 years ago.
