Louisiana Tech Earns Record-Tying Fourth Independence Bowl Victory over Coastal Carolina, 23-14

Photo: BiggZigg Photography

SHREVEPORT, La. (Dec. 30, 2025) – There was something special about Louisiana Tech’s record-setting seventh visit to the Radiance Technologies Independence Bowl.

A blocked field goal by Kenyatta McNeese shifted the momentum to the Bulldogs’ sideline in the middle of the third quarter, and Louisiana Tech built on it, upending Coastal Carolina, 23-14, after scoring the final 20 points of the game in front of a crowd of 30,298 on Tuesday afternoon at Independence Stadium.

“What an effort in the second half,” said Bulldog head coach Sonny Cumbie, whose program moved into a tie with Ole Miss for the most Independence Bowl victories with four. “The guys didn’t flinch. The first half was about as bad a football as we’ve played in a long while, and these guys made plays. Defensively, it was three-and-out. Then we made plays on special teams and on offense. We wanted to be the last team off the field tonight, and we were able to accomplish that. It was very fitting that Mr. All-American (safety Jakari Foster) finished the game with his eighth interception of the season.” 

The Bulldogs (8-5) shook off a sluggish first three quarters offensively to capture their second Independence Bowl victory since 2019. After being held to 150 yards total offense and two field goals through three quarters, Louisiana Tech piled up 147 yards and its only two touchdowns of the game in the final stanza.

In a game that featured 25 combined penalties and 17 combined punts – both the second-highest two-team totals in the bowl’s history – the Bulldogs’ defense also came up with a momentum-turning moment that its offense capitalized on immediately.

One play after Jordan McRae made a sliding interception of a tipped ball, Louisiana Tech quarterback Trey Kukuk connected with Marlion Jackson on a 52-yard catch-and-run score to slice the Chanticleer lead to 14-12 following an unsuccessful 2-point conversion.

The Bulldogs’ fourth-quarter surge made them the first team to win an Independence Bowl after trailing by at least a touchdown entering the final quarter since 2005 when Missouri erased a 28-21 deficit to defeat South Carolina.

Kukuk set up the go-ahead score following a 26-yard Dedrick Latulas punt return and an unnecessary roughness penalty on the Chanticleers gave Louisiana Tech possession at the Coastal 34-yard line.

Andrew Burnette followed Kukuk’s 29-yard keeper with a pair of runs that covered the final 5 yards and put the Bulldogs ahead to stay.

“Coach said it well – we just couldn’t find a rhythm in the first half,” said Kukuk, who earned Offensive Player of the Game honors after rushing for 121 yards and throwing for 114 and a touchdown. “I wasn’t playing my best football, and the defense was able to keep us in the game. In the second half, we never really wavered. That’s the character of this team that’s continued to show down the stretch of the season. First, against Liberty, coming back in the second half. Now, we never gave up.

“We couldn’t find it in the first half. We weren’t playing our best football, and our defense kept us in the game. Then we started playing complementary football in the second half.” 

While McNeese’s block set the Bulldogs’ comeback in motion, Louisiana Tech found itself fortunate to be down 11 points at halftime. 

With less than two minutes to play in the first half, Coastal Carolina punt returner Bryson Gates’ 64-yard punt return touchdown was nullified by one of the 10 first-half penalties on the Chanticleers (6-7). 

Coastal could not capitalize after the penalty and settled for the 14-3 halftime lead it built on the strength of two touchdown passes from Tad Hudson, who finished 25-for-49 for 311 yards with a pair of interceptions, including one to Foster on the final play of the game. 

“I think if we would have not had a penalty on the one that was returned for a touchdown, we would have won the football game,” Chanticleers interim head coach Jeremiah Johnson said. “That changed a lot of momentum. If we would have gone into halftime up 21-3, who knows? All of those plays, it’s never just one play. Momentum in this sport, especially with 22- and 18-year-old young men, is a big deal. In the second half, we never really could get momentum, and they got momentum. Once that snowball gets rolling, especially in the fourth quarter, we had a hard time getting a stop.”

The Chanticleers also faced much longer fields in the second half as Louisiana Tech punter John Hoyet Chance, a Shreveport native and Defensive Player of the Game, placed four of his eight punts inside the 20-yard line. Of those four, two came in the second half when the Bulldogs began to clamp down defensively.

After traveling 72 yards ahead of McNeese’s blocked field goal, the Chanticleers’ final eight drives netted 41 yards on 29 plays and featured three three-and-outs, two turnovers and a four-and-out. 

“We had a great mentality,” said Woods, who played his 58th career game in a Bulldog uniform. “I never doubted our defense going into the second half. We’ve been in this situation before. Coach said it pregame, we’ve been in every type of game this season. We started getting turnovers, and I think that was the difference in the game. We had turnovers on offense as well, but our defense got those turnovers and those three-and-outs, and I feel like that was the difference in the second half.”

That coupled with a resurgent Louisiana Tech running game down the stretch – the Bulldogs ran for 78 of their 181 yards in the final quarter – allowed the Bulldogs to improve to 4-2-1 all-time in the closest bowl game to their Ruston campus. 

“I think about, these guys on the stage, and four years of a lot of hard work to get to this point,” said Cumbie, whose team won a bowl game for the first time since the 2019 Independence Bowl. “We wanted to get here a lot faster than we did, but there are a lot of people who put time, energy and effort into winning football games, and it’s really, really hard to do that. You care about people, you care about the place you’re at and you work really hard. That tends to make you, unless you don’t have a soul, very emotional and really passionate about these guys.

“Coaching is teaching, and you want to do it to win, absolutely, but you also like to do it to see people have success, to see others have success. That’s what’s fun. That’s joy.” 

ABOUT THE RADIANCE TECHNOLOGIES INDEPENDENCE BOWL™

Established in 1976, the Radiance Technologies Independence Bowl™ is college football’s 11th most historic bowl game.Louisiana Tech defeated Coastal Carolina, 23-14, in the 2025 Radiance Technologies Independence Bowl. Radiance Technologies is the bowl’s title sponsor through at least the 2027 Bowl Season. The bowl’s conference and television agreements also run through the 2025 bowl game. 

The Independence Bowl Foundation is prevalent in the Shreveport-Bossier City area throughout the year, hosting events to help enhance the economic impact and growth of our community. The Mission of the Independence Bowl is to attract and provide quality, nationally recognized football competition oriented to the Ark-La-Tex region. For more information, visit RadianceTechnologiesIndependenceBowl.com or follow the bowl on Facebook, X and Instagram at @IndyBowl.