SportsDirect Inc. staff
Sep 12, 2013
Tulane 24, Louisiana Tech 15: Nick Montana passed for 235 yards and a pair of touchdowns while the defense forced two turnovers as the visiting Green Wave held off the Bulldogs.
Montana was 20-of-36 and Ryan Grant caught seven passes for 79 yards and a score for Tulane (2-1), which picked up its first road win since Sept. 17, 2011. The Green Wave forced a fumble deep in Louisiana Tech territory in the fourth quarter before Orleans Darkwa burst up the middle for a 2-yard touchdown with 6:03 left to help put away the game.
Scotty Young completed 9-of-28 passes for 108 yards before being replaced by redshirt freshman Ryan Higgins for the Bulldogs. Higgins passed for 57 yards and guided the team on its lone touchdown drive late in the fourth, finding Trent Taylor for an 8-yard score with 3:44 remaining to provide the final margin.
Louisiana Tech (1-2) began its first two possessions at midfield or closer and settled for field goals each time as Young struggled to find a rhythm. Tulane took the lead on Montana’s 24-yard scoring strike to Grant with 3:18 left in the first before turning the ball over on three of its first four possessions in the second quarter.
The Bulldogs made use of one of those turnovers, kicking a 27-yard field goal, but settled for a 9-7 lead at the half. The Green Wave took the lead on a 51-yard field goal four minutes into the third and made it a 17-9 gap when Xavier Rush caught a short pass and turned it into a 38-yard touchdown later in the quarter.