NEVADA WOLF PACK (6-3, 3-2 WAC) vs. LOUISIANA TECH BULLDOGS (3-7, 1-4 WAC)
Saturday, Nov. 19, 2006 w 5 p.m. PT w Joe Aillet Stadium (30,600) w Ruston, La.
TELEVISION: www.wac.tv
RADIO: Wolf Pack Sports Network (ESPN Radio 630 AM, Reno). Don Marchand (play-by-play) & Bill Daniel (analyst)
SERIES HISTORY: Louisiana Tech leads 4-2
LAST MEETING: Jeff Rowe threw for two scores and ran for two more as Nevada rolled up 458 yards of offense and held Tech to just 229 in a 37-27 win on Oct. 15, 2005 in Reno.
STORYLINES
Nevada, co-champions of the Western Athletic Conference last season, is looking for its fifth consecutive WAC win as it travels to Ruston, La., for a matchup with the Louisiana Tech Bulldogs...Nevada is coming off a 42-0 blanking of Utah State, its first shutout since 1998, and the Wolf Pack has won four in a row and seven of its last eight...Louisiana Tech is coming off a 61-17 loss at Hawaii...Louisiana Tech is Nevada’s fourth opponent in a row that lost that to Hawaii prior to playing the Wolf Pack...Nevada does not have any players from Louisiana and Louisiana Tech does not have any players from Nevada...None of Nevada’s coaches has ever coached at Louisiana Tech and none of Tech’s coaches have been at Nevada.
IN THE SERIES WITH LOUISIANA TECH
Louisiana Tech leads the all-time series with Nevada 4-2, though Nevada won the last meeting, 37-27 in Ruston, La., last season...Nevada coach Chris Ault is 2-1 in his career against Tech, having beaten the Bulldogs last season and in the first-ever meeting between the schools in 1995. Ault’s lone loss was his first game back on the sidelines in 2004 after and eight-year coaching hiatus...Nevada’s victory over Louisiana Tech in 1995 marks the only time Nevada has ever beaten the Bulldogs in Ruston...Nevada’s victory over Tech last year ended a four-game losing streak to the Bulldogs...Louisiana Tech coach Jack Bicknell is 4-1 in his career against Nevada...The home team has only won three meetings (50 percent) in the series between the schools.
THE SEASON SO FAR
Nevada has won four in a row since its bye week after last week’s 42-0 victory over Utah State at Mackay Stadium. The Wolf Pack led 14-0 at halftime and never looked back as the defense posted its first shutout since 1998. Sophomore running back Luke Lippincott led the way offensively with 25 carries for 144 yards (both career highs) and two touchdowns.
That win was on the heels of a 45-7 victory at Idaho. Nevada jumped out to a 31-0 lead at halftime as quarterback Jeff Rowe threw for three first-half scores and ran the fourth touchdown in himself. The Wolf Pack defense was stellar again, holding the Vandals to a mere 22 total yards in the first half and just 209 yards for the game.
Prior to the road trip, Nevada won twice at home with victories over New Mexico State and San Jose State. Nevada set a season high for points and rushing yards (236) in its 48-21 victory over New Mexic State and held the nation’s top passing attack (at the time) to 143 yards below its average.
Before that, Nevada scored its first WAC victory of the season with a 23-7 victory over San Jose State at Mackay Stadium on Oct. 21, marking Nevada’s third straight Homecoming victory. Senior quarterback Travis Moore made his first career start in place of Jeff Rowe (hamstring) and completed 20-of-28 for 178 yards and a touchdown. The Wolf Pack defense stymied San Jose State, holding the Spartans to just 239 total yards and just 77 passing yards.
Before its bye week, Nevada fell 41-34 at Hawaii despite a strong fourth-quarter comeback attempt. Nevada trailed by 20 points in the fourth quarter but got within a touchdown of the Warriors. The loss snapped the Wolf Pack’s three-game win streak, the last of which was a 31-3 routing of in-state rival UNLV that allowed Nevada to retain possession of the Fremont Cannon. It was Nevada’s first victory in Las Vegas since 1998.
After dropping its first two games against Fresno State and Arizona State - both on the road - to open the season, the Wolf Pack rebounded at home. Nevada made history at Mackay Stadium, beating Colorado State for the first time in school history before claiming its first-ever win over a Big Ten school with a 10-point victory over Northwestern. Those two victories gave Nevada momentum for its road victory at UNLV.
With 38 returning letterwinners and 14 returning starters, 22nd-year head coach Chris Ault and the Wolf Pack is coming off the team’s best season in nine years after turning in a 9-3 overall record and earning a share of the school’s first WAC title as well as an invitation to the Sheraton Hawaii Bowl last season. Nevada was picked to finish third in the WAC in this year’s preseason polls.
EXPOSURE
Saturday’s game is one of just four this season that will not have any television coverage available in Northern Nevada. Eight of Nevada’s 12 games have been or will be televised this year.
KREN, Nevada’s flagship television station, televised the Arizona State, Hawaii and Idaho games. Dan Gustin, the “Voice of the Wolf Pack,” handles the play-by-play on KREN with Nevada Hall of Fame member and ex-quarterback Chris Vargas providing commentary.
The San Jose State game was broadcast regionally on ABC, the second straight season that the network has shown that game. Four of Nevada’s games are national television appearances as ESPN broadcast the Fresno State game and ESPN2 carried the Northwestern game. One of the ESPN networks will broadcast the Boise State game and the Wolf Pack’s win over in-state rival UNLV was on the new MTN network.
Nevada’s flagship radio station, ESPN 630 AM, will broadcast all 12 regular-season games this year with Gustin (play-by-play) and Bill Daniel (analyst) calling the action. When Gustin is handling TV duties, Dan Marchand will handle the play-by-play on the radio. Fans can watch live video streaming of non-televised WAC games on the internet on a pay-per-view basis this season by logging on to www.WAC.tv.
TEAM CAPTAINS
Senior quarterback Jeff Rowe, senior tight end Anthony Pudewell, junior defensive tackle Matt Hines and senior cornerback Joe Garcia will serve as Nevada’s team captains this season as voted on by their teammates. Pudewell and Garcia are Nevada’s field captains for the coin toss.
SHUTOUT STREAK
Nevada has never been shutout as a member of Division I-A and has not been shutout since Sept. 27, 1980, a streak of 314 games that is the longest in the nation. The last time Nevada was blanked was at Weber State, a 10-0 loss. That is the only shutout loss ever suffered by Hall of Fame coach Chris Ault. During the streak, Nevada has shutout seven opponents, the last being a 42-0 win over Utah State last week at Mackay Stadium. Nevada nearly shutout UNLV earlier this year but the Rebels kicked a field goal late in the game to avoid the blanking. Nevada has held four opponents to just one score or fewer this year (UNLV, San Jose State, Idaho and Utah State).
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