Louisiana Tech–Northwestern State football rivalry

The Louisiana Tech–Northwestern State football rivalry is an American college football rivalry between the Louisiana Tech Bulldogs and the Northwestern State Demons. The rivalry stems from the proximity of the two colleges, as well as the two teams sharing multiple conferences including the LIAA (1915–24), the SIAA (1928–38), the Louisiana Intercollegiate Conference (1942–57), and the Gulf States Conference (1948–70). The Demons and the Bulldogs often met at the Louisiana State Fair in Shreveport, playing there annually from 1946 to 1987.[1] The game has been infrequently played since 1987, following Louisiana Tech's transition to the NCAA's Football Bowl Subdivision. No future matchups have been scheduled.

Louisiana Tech–Northwestern State football rivalry
SportFootball
First meeting1907
Louisiana Industrial, 43–4
Latest meetingSeptember 9, 2023
Louisiana Tech, 51–21
Next meetingSeptember 12, 2026
TrophyNone
Statistics
Meetings total80
All-time seriesLouisiana Tech leads, 55–20–5
Largest victoryLouisiana Tech, 45–0 (1909)
Longest win streakLouisiana Tech, 9 (1945–1952)
Longest unbeaten streakLouisiana Tech, 11 (1944–1952)
Current win streakLouisiana Tech, 2 (2017–present)
Louisiana Tech–Northwestern State football rivalry is located in Louisiana
Louisiana Tech University
Louisiana Tech University
Northwestern State University
Northwestern State University
Locations in Louisiana

History and notable games

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The two teams have met 80 times on the football field, with Louisiana Tech currently holding a 55–20–5 edge in the all-time series.[2] For the majority of the rivalry, games were held during the State Fair of Louisiana in Shreveport, which is about 75 miles from both Ruston and Natchitoches.

  • 1907: Louisiana Industrial and Louisiana State Normal meet for the first time in Natchitoches, with Louisiana Industrial winning 43–4.[3]
  • November 4, 1911: The two schools meet for the first time in Shreveport, with Louisiana Industrial winning 39–0.
  • October 26, 1946: While the two teams had met in Shreveport in the past, this game began a 31-year streak of playing at the state fair. Louisiana Tech beat Louisiana State Normal 14–7.[4]
  • October 19, 1968: With 25 seconds remaining, Tech quarterback Terry Bradshaw completes a touchdown pass to Ken Liberto, winning 42–39 and snapping a 2 loss streak against the Demons.[5]
  • October 24, 1987: In the final game in the Shreveport series, Louisiana Tech beat Northwestern State 23–0.[6] This would be the last game between the two schools for many years, as Tech would begin transitioning to FBS the following year.
  • September 20, 2014: After a 20-year hiatus, the two schools met in Ruston, with Northwestern State winning 30–27.[7]

Game results

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Louisiana Tech victoriesNorthwestern State victoriesTie games
No.DateLocationWinnerScore
1 October 25, 1907 Ruston, LA Louisiana Industrial 43–4
2 November 19, 1909 Ruston, LA Louisiana Industrial 45–0
3 November 19, 1910 Ruston, LA Louisiana Industrial 32–0
4 November 4, 1911 Ruston, LA Louisiana Industrial 39–0
5 November 3, 1913 Ruston, LA Louisiana Industrial 40–0
6 November 6, 1915 Shreveport, LA Louisiana Industrial 20–7
7 November 4, 1916 Shreveport, LA Louisiana Industrial 24–0
8 November 3, 1917 Shreveport, LA Louisiana State Normal 7–0
9 November 8, 1919 Ruston, LA Louisiana State Normal 27–0
10 October 30, 1920 Ruston, LA Louisiana State Normal 12–0
11 November 19, 1921 Ruston, LA Louisiana Tech 17–0
12 October 19, 1922 Ruston, LA Tie0–0
13 November 10, 1923 Ruston, LA Louisiana Tech 33–2
14 October 2, 1926 Ruston, LA Louisiana Tech 28–0
15 October 15, 1927 Natchitoches, LA Louisiana Tech 33–0
16 October 13, 1928 Ruston, LA Louisiana State Normal 6–0
17 November 1, 1929 Ruston, LA Tie0–0
18 October 31, 1930 Natchitoches, LA Louisiana State Normal 19–14
19 October 30, 1931 Ruston, LA Louisiana Tech 18–2
20 October 28, 1932 Natchitoches, LA Louisiana State Normal 33–0
21 October 28, 1933 Ruston, LA Louisiana Tech 6–0
22 October 26, 1934 Natchitoches, LA Louisiana State Normal 6–0
23 October 26, 1935 Ruston, LA Louisiana Tech 33–6
24 October 23, 1936 Ruston, LA Louisiana Tech 32–0
25 October 23, 1937 Shreveport, LA Louisiana Tech 14–0
26 October 22, 1938 Shreveport, LA Louisiana State Normal 7–6
27 October 21, 1939 Shreveport, LA Louisiana State Normal 26–0
28 October 19, 1940 Shreveport, LA Louisiana State Normal 13–0
29 October 18, 1941 Shreveport, LA Louisiana Tech 10–0
30 October 24, 1942 Shreveport, LA Louisiana State Normal 10–6
31 October 28, 1944 Natchitoches, LA Louisiana Tech 21–7
32 November 11, 1944 Ruston, LA Tie0–0
33 October 27, 1945 Ruston, LA Louisiana Tech 18–7
34 November 10, 1945 Natchitoches, LA Louisiana Tech 7–2
35 October 26, 1946 Shreveport, LA Louisiana Tech 14–7
36 October 25, 1947 Shreveport, LA Louisiana Tech 24–0
37 October 23, 1948 Shreveport, LA Louisiana Tech 10–7
38 October 21, 1949 Shreveport, LA Louisiana Tech 28–21
39 October 21, 1950 Shreveport, LA Louisiana Tech 15–7
40 October 20, 1951 Shreveport, LA Louisiana Tech 21–6
41 October 18, 1952 Shreveport, LA Louisiana Tech 22–0
No.DateLocationWinnerScore
42 October 23, 1953 Shreveport, LA Northwestern State 15–7
43 October 23, 1954 Shreveport, LA Louisiana Tech 13–6
44 October 22, 1955 Shreveport, LA Louisiana Tech 21–20
45 October 20, 1956 Shreveport, LATie0–0
46 October 19, 1957 Shreveport, LA Louisiana Tech 20–13
47 October 18, 1958 Shreveport, LA Northwestern State 18–14
48 October 24, 1959 Shreveport, LA Louisiana Tech 27–14
49 October 22, 1960 Shreveport, LA Louisiana Tech 13–7
50 October 21, 1961 Shreveport, LA Northwestern State 19–7
51 October 20, 1962 Shreveport, LA Northwestern State 19–2
52 October 18, 1963 Shreveport, LA Louisiana Tech 27–13
53 October 24, 1964 Shreveport, LA Louisiana Tech 16–7
54 October 23, 1965 Shreveport, LA Louisiana Tech 42–14
55 October 22, 1966 Shreveport, LA Northwestern State 28–7
56 October 21, 1967 Shreveport, LA Northwestern State 7–0
57 October 19, 1968 Shreveport, LA Louisiana Tech 42–39
58 October 18, 1969 Shreveport, LA Louisiana Tech 42–21
59 October 24, 1970 Shreveport, LA Northwestern State 20–17
60 October 23, 1971 Shreveport, LA Louisiana Tech 33–21
61 October 21, 1972 Shreveport, LA Louisiana Tech 20–16
62 October 20, 1973 Shreveport, LA Louisiana Tech 26–7
63 October 19, 1974 Shreveport, LA Louisiana Tech 34–0
64 October 18, 1975 Shreveport, LA Louisiana Tech 41–14
65 October 23, 1976 Shreveport, LA Louisiana Tech 35–6
66 October 22, 1977 Shreveport, LA Louisiana Tech 30–8
67 October 20, 1978 Shreveport, LA Louisiana Tech 45–20
68 October 20, 1979 Shreveport, LA Northwestern State 25–21
69 October 18, 1980 Shreveport, LA Louisiana Tech 27–23
70 October 24, 1981 Shreveport, LA Louisiana Tech 37–33
71 October 23, 1982 Shreveport, LA Louisiana Tech 33–0
72 October 22, 1983 Shreveport, LA Louisiana Tech 21–10
73 October 20, 1984 Shreveport, LA Louisiana Tech 5–0
74 October 26, 1985 Shreveport, LA Louisiana Tech 33–17
75 October 25, 1986 Shreveport, LATie13–13
76 October 24, 1987 Shreveport, LA Louisiana Tech 23–0
77 November 5, 1994 Ruston, LA Louisiana Tech 38–28
78 September 20, 2014 Ruston, LA Northwestern State 30–27
79 September 2, 2017 Ruston, LA Louisiana Tech 52–24
80 September 9, 2023 Ruston, LA Louisiana Tech 51–21
Series: Louisiana Tech leads 55–20–5

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "La. Tech, NSU alum share memories of rivalry". September 16, 2014. Retrieved September 7, 2023.
  2. ^ "Winsipedia – Louisiana Tech Head-To-Head Records". Winsipedia.
  3. ^ "Ruston Beats State Normal". The Times. Shreveport, Louisiana. October 27, 1907. p. 9. Retrieved September 7, 2023 – via Newspapers.com  .
  4. ^ "Tech forced hard to beat Demons". The Times. October 27, 1946. Retrieved September 7, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. ^ "Bradshaw's bomb topples Northwestern". The Alexandria Daily Town Talk. October 20, 1968. Retrieved September 7, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  6. ^ "Defense lifts Tech by NSU". The Shreveport Times. October 25, 1987. Retrieved September 7, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  7. ^ "What we learned from La. Tech's shocking loss to NSU". The News Star. September 24, 2014. Retrieved September 7, 2023.
  8. ^ "l.asp2023 Louisiana Tech Football Record Book". Ruston, Louisiana: Louisiana Tech University. Retrieved September 7, 2023.
  9. ^ "Demon Football History vs Louisiana Tech from Oct 19, 1922 – Sep 2, 2017". Natchitoches, Louisiana: Northwestern State University. Retrieved September 7, 2023.