2024 Independence Bowl Lines - Louisiana Tech vs. Army

Independence Bowl Lines - Louisiana Tech vs. Army

In normal times, a team that goes 10-3, wins a conference championship and goes to a bowl game goes down in the history books of the institution that it represents. Indeed, the Marshall Thundering Herd will go down in history. But they will do so for all of the wrong reasons. Marshall went 10-3 and won the Sun Belt Conference championship in a 31-3 blowout over the Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns. As a result, the Thundering Herd accepted an invitation to play in the Independence Bowl against the Army Black Knights. But on Saturday, Marshall was forced to opt-out. Head coach Charles Huff departed after a contract dispute to become HC of the Southern Miss Eagles. Subsequently, a flood of Marshall players entered the transfer portal. Now, Marshall can’t field a team to compete in the Independence Bowl and be forced to opt-out. The Louisiana Tech Bulldogs will take Marshall’s place. If there is anything that epitomizes how the NCAA has failed college football, this bowl game opt-out by a conference champion is it.

2024 Independence Bowl at a Glance

Date: Saturday, December 28, 2024

Time (ET) / TV: 9:15 PM / ESPN

Venue: Independence Stadium, Shreveport, Louisiana

Matchup: Louisiana Tech Bulldogs vs. Army Black Knights

College Football Betting Lines

Louisiana Tech Bulldogs +17

Army Black Knights -17

Over/Under: 44

Independence Bowl Preview

Last game, the Louisiana Tech Bulldogs won 33-0 against the Kennesaw State Owls as 11-point home favorites. The game went under the total of 41. Louisiana Tech has a record of 5-7 straight up, 8-4 against the spread, and 5-7 over/under the total.

Louisiana Tech ranks 106th for total offense, 66th for passing, 113th for rushing and 113th for scoring. Defensively they rank 10th overall, 22nd against the pass, 29th against the rush, and 25th for points allowed. Also, Louisiana Tech ranks 103rd for fewest turnovers lost and 123rd for takeaways.

Last game, the Army Black Knights lost 31-13 against the Navy Midshipmen as 6-point favorites. The game went over the total of 39. Army has a record of 11-2 straight up, 7-5 against the spread, and 7-5 over/under the total. Army ranks 74th for total offense, 134th for passing, 1st for rushing and 43rd for scoring. Defensively they rank 12th overall, 27th against the pass, 25th against the rush, and 7th for points allowed. Also, Army ranks 5th for fewest turnovers lost and 6th for takeaways.

Independence Bowl Prediction

In this situation, Army comes from a better league and was the dominant champion of the American Athletic Conference.

Independence Bowl Format

The Independence Bowl is played at Independence Stadium in Shreveport, Louisiana, home to the Louisiana Tech Bulldogs. The current conference tie-ins are rotational: the Big 12 and Pac-12 this year, Army and the Pac-12 for 2024, and the Big 12 and CUSA for 2025. The payout for the Independence Bowl remains $2.2 million.

The Independence Bowl has had numerous sponsors. Of course, the most famous of the sponsors was Poulan, which held the title of what was known as the “Poulan Weedeater Independence Bowl” from 1990-97. To this day, many people think of this game as the Weedeater Bowl. The term is also used derisively for teams that make minor bowl games. Radiance Technologies has been the sponsor since 2020.

Independence Bowl Game Results (2000)

Duke routed Temple in 2018 in a 56-27 blowout as 3.5-point dogs, followed by Louisiana Tech blanking Miami (FL) 14-0 in 2019 as a near touchdown 'dog. Louisiana Tech recorded the first shutout in Independence Bowl history while snapping a four-game 'over' run in this game.

The 2020 installment was wiped out due to the COVID-19 global pandemic, but the game returned on Dec. 18, 2021, in a battle between independent BYU and Conference USA representative UAB.

In 2022, Houston defeated Louisiana, led by QB Clayton Tune’s 229 passing yards with three TDs. Louisiana committed three turnovers.

In 2023, Cal held an early 14-7 lead, but Texas Tech dominated the rest of the game to post a 34-14 victory over Cal in the Independence Bowl in Shreveport, Louisiana. The Bears were unable to get their running game going, and they finished the season with a 6-7 record.

Cal running back Jaydn Ott, who entered the game averaging 114.5 yards per game, was limited to 42 rushing yards, just two yards more than his season low of 40 yards against Washington. Cal redshirt freshman quarterback Fernando Mendoza threw three second-half interceptions.

Texas Tech quarterback Behren Morton. Morton threw three touchdown passes with one interception. The interception came in the fourth quarter with the Red Raiders safely ahead.

Texas Tech quarterback Behren Morton threw a 14-yard touchdown pass to Luic Fouonji, giving Texas Tech a 21-14 lead with 9:49 remaining in the second quarter. It was Tech’s first lead of the game.

Cal rushed for just 69 yards, even though Texas Tech entered the game ranked 94th of 130 FBS teams in rushing defense. Cal’s strength on offense has been its running game. Cal committed four turnovers and allowed Texas Tech to record 13 tackles for loss.

2024-25 College Football Bowl Games

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