I listened to the latest episode of Bleed Tech Blue radio, and I decided to go down the rabbit hole of Louisiana Tech quarterbacks in the last five seasons.
Since 2020, 12 quarterbacks have appeared in at least one game and thrown at least one pass at Louisiana Tech. That list of Louisiana Tech QBs is:
Of those 12 quarterbacks, three remain at Louisiana Tech as QB1/QB2/QB3, two graduated, and seven transferred out.
Of the 7 QBs that transferred out, three performed well enough in the FCS ranks to earn postseason or preseason awards (Westin Elliott, Aaron Allen, and Matthew Downing). Three transferred to other FBS programs, but saw limited action at best (Luke Anthony had no snaps at Baylor, JD Head had no snaps at North Texas, Lyddy had limited snaps at UAB last year.) Only Bachmeier became a starting QB at another FBS school at Wake Forest.
Louisiana Tech has had no quarterbacks earn Conference USA postseason honors since 2019. From 2014-2019, four QBs from Louisiana Tech received postseason awards (Sokol was Newcomer of the Year in 2014, Driskel was Newcomer of the Year in 2015, Higgins was CUSA Offense 1st-Team and Offensive MVP in 2016, and J'Mar Smith was CUSA Offensive 1st-Team in 2019).
Blame the players. Blame the coaching staffs. Blame player development. Blame injuries. Blame random dumb luck. For one reason or another, Louisiana Tech hasn't had a DUDE at quarterback since J'Mar Smith in 2019. Not only have they not been great at Louisiana Tech, but they haven't been great at any other FBS program after they left Tech (with only three succeeding at the FCS ranks).
Since 2020, 12 quarterbacks have appeared in at least one game and thrown at least one pass at Louisiana Tech. That list of Louisiana Tech QBs is:
| Year: | Quarterback: | How QB was recruited to Tech: | Outcome: |
| 2020 | Luke Anthony | Transfer from Abilene Christian (2017-19) | Transferred to Baylor (2022) |
| 2020 | Westin Elliott | Transfer from Blinn College (2016) | Transferred to Merrimack (2021) |
| 2020-2021 | Aaron Allen | 2018 Recruit - Louisiana Tech | Transferred to Alcorn State (2022) |
| 2020-2021 | JD Head | 2020 Recruit - Louisiana Tech | Transferred to North Texas (2022) |
| 2021 | Austin Kendall | Transfer from West Virginia (2019-20) | Graduated - 2021 |
| 2022 | Parker McNeil | Transfer from Texas Tech (2021) | Graduated - 2022 |
| 2022 | Landry Lyddy | 2022 Recruit - Louisiana Tech | Transferred to UAB (2023) |
| 2022 | Matthew Downing | Transfer from TCU (2020-21) | Transferred to Elon (2023) |
| 2022-2024 | Jack Turner | Transfer from Navarro JC (2020-21) | Louisiana Tech QB1 |
| 2023 | Hank Bachmeier | Transfer from Boise State (2019-22) | Transferred to Wake Forest (2024) |
| 2023 | Evan Bullock | 2023 Recruit - Louisiana Tech | Louisiana Tech QB3 |
| 2024 | Blake Baker | 2023 Recruit - Louisiana Tech | Louisiana Tech QB2 |
Of those 12 quarterbacks, three remain at Louisiana Tech as QB1/QB2/QB3, two graduated, and seven transferred out.
Of the 7 QBs that transferred out, three performed well enough in the FCS ranks to earn postseason or preseason awards (Westin Elliott, Aaron Allen, and Matthew Downing). Three transferred to other FBS programs, but saw limited action at best (Luke Anthony had no snaps at Baylor, JD Head had no snaps at North Texas, Lyddy had limited snaps at UAB last year.) Only Bachmeier became a starting QB at another FBS school at Wake Forest.
Louisiana Tech has had no quarterbacks earn Conference USA postseason honors since 2019. From 2014-2019, four QBs from Louisiana Tech received postseason awards (Sokol was Newcomer of the Year in 2014, Driskel was Newcomer of the Year in 2015, Higgins was CUSA Offense 1st-Team and Offensive MVP in 2016, and J'Mar Smith was CUSA Offensive 1st-Team in 2019).
Blame the players. Blame the coaching staffs. Blame player development. Blame injuries. Blame random dumb luck. For one reason or another, Louisiana Tech hasn't had a DUDE at quarterback since J'Mar Smith in 2019. Not only have they not been great at Louisiana Tech, but they haven't been great at any other FBS program after they left Tech (with only three succeeding at the FCS ranks).
