Rapid Reaction: What we learned from the Louisiana Tech game

A lot was on the line Halloween afternoon as the Jags faced the West leading Louisiana Tech Bulldogs, but as the sun set on the day and, perhaps, on South Alabama's title hopes, the home team was on the wrong side of a 35-20 final.

Not a fun game to look back on, but still a few things that we learned.

In big games, mistakes are everything

A missed extra point, drive-extending penalties, turnovers — they all add up to a recipe for failure and that was true again on Saturday. The Jaguars were going paw-to-paw with the Bulldogs until the visitors managed to separate themselves thanks to a series of USA miscues. If South Alabama doesn't rough their punter, commit an unnecessary pass interference on a third and long and/or commit a turnover in the shadow of their own goalposts, then this could very well have turned out to be the season-defining win the Jags were looking for.

Defenses have adjusted to Hollins, time for the counter-move

Jared Hollins and his big arm changed the offense into a truly fearsome unit when he became the starter after an injury to Bishop Davenport. Then came the trip to Marshall where he was made to look mortal in a game that only saw USA score 13 points. Marshall was able to limit the running game (at times) and keep pressure on Hollins, who had a poor day throwing the ball. After halftime, Tech decided to start bringing the blitz on what seemed like every play and it effectively neutered the offense. Hollins ran the ball more against the Bulldogs and that was a solid counter-move at times, but Hollins and or the coaching staff are going to have to be ready to change plays at the line of scrimmage when they see the opposing defenses about to bring the heat. There is little doubt that every opponent for the rest of the year will be using the blitz-heavy blueprint, so this needs to be figured out quickly.

The defense is giving more reasons to believe

Todd Orlando's crew had their best outing of the season against Marshall, and they followed that up with a very strong second half against the Bulldogs. Outside of a third-quarter touchdown following a turnover on the USA 10-yard line, the defense pitched a shutout in the final two quarters. For the game they gave up only 315 yards to an offense that usually gets right at 400 per outing. Younger players are getting bigger roles and everyone appears to be figuring out what Orlando needs from them. If this trajectory continues, South Alabama's much-maligned stop troops may be pulling their weight and then some by the end of the year.

Goals still remain

A second conference loss makes winning the division very unlikely, but that doesn't mean there are some important benchmarks still within the grasp of the 2026 Jaguars. Getting two more wins from games against ULL, Troy, USM and Appalachian State and attaining bowl eligibility is still a worthy goal and sign of progress after 2025's disappointment. If one of those wins, or even if there is only one more win remaining, no season is a failure if it includes a W over the Trojans.