(This post is adapted from one I originally wrote in 2018).
This Saturday, Tech and LSU are gearing up for their 21st meeting on the gridiron. But instead of previewing today’s matchup between the #3 Tigers and the #95 Bulldogs, let’s take a look back at how the first twenty games went for Louisiana Tech.
Short answer? Not great.
Long answer? Well, here they are:
September 22, 2018: 21-38 Loss in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
November 14, 2009: 16-24 Loss in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
November 10, 2007: 10-58 Loss in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
November 01, 2003: 10-49 Loss in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
September 20, 1941: 0-25 Loss in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
September 21, 1940: 7-39 Loss in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
September 27, 1930: 0-71 Loss in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
October 25, 1929: 7-53 Loss in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
September 24, 1927: 0-45 Loss in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
October 03, 1914: 0-60 Loss in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
October 4, 1913: 10-58 Loss in Ruston, Louisiana.
November 04, 1909: 0-23 Loss in Alexandria, Louisiana.
November 23, 1908: 0-22 Loss in Ruston, Louisiana.
October 11, 1907: 0-28 Loss in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
November 9, 1906: 0-17 Loss in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
November 18, 1905: 0-16 Loss in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
October 23, 1904: 10-58 Win! in Ruston, Louisiana.
October 16, 1904: 0-17 Loss in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
October 30, 1903: 0-16 Loss in Ruston, Louisiana.
October 28, 1901: 0-57 Loss in Ruston, Louisiana.
In case you were too busy scanning the endless sea of losses, yes, Tech did manage to defeat LSU. Once. In 1904.
Of course, the game of football was very different in 1904.
No modern conditioning – Gatorade wouldn’t even be invented until 1965.
No modern helmets – the first Riddell helmets would come in 1940.
And no forward passing – it wouldn’t be introduced at the college level until two years later.
Football looked a lot more like rugby at the time. The concept of blocking had only just been introduced, and already, formations like the Flying Wedge turned a dangerous game deadly. President Teddy Roosevelt threatened to outlaw the sport entirely in 1905.
Scoring was different, too. Touchdowns were worth five points. But like today, it could be increased by one with an extra point attempt. Field Goals were worth four points.
The Louisiana Tech (then Louisiana Industrial Institute) football team had only been around since 1901, a full 32 years after Rutgers and Princeton first showcased the game to the world. The Bulldog football team had purchased and fenced in an athletic field and even built a grandstand for the crowds. But in 1904, only one (known) game would be played on this surface.
The season started with a 22-0 road loss to the (assumed) juggernaut Shreveport Athletic Association. The next week, the Bulldogs traveled down to Baton Rouge and fell to LSU 17-0. After that, the road trip continued to New Orleans, where an 11-0 defeat awaited the Bulldogs.
But on October 29th, 1904, Tech hosted LSU and got their revenge – shutting out the Tigers and scoring the first 6 points Tech scored in their first four games.
The next week, the Bulldogs would travel to Starkville and suffer their largest defeat of the season – 32 to 5.
But who cares? They had just taken down LSU.
There’s a fun hypothetical in sports – would you exchange a nearly winless season for a guaranteed win over a rival? Would Oklahoma State go 1-11 if it meant winning Bedlam?
Well, the hypothetical wasn’t so hypothetical in 1904. Tech went 1-4 and beat the biggest name on their schedule.
Now in 2025, hopes are not the highest for this year’s Tech team, even after an opening win over Southeastern. So would you trade a loss in every game for the rest of the season for a win over LSU today?
Because I know I would.