The LSU Tigers face the Texas Tech Red Raiders in the Texas Bowl tonight. The Tigers ended their three-game losing streak with a win over Texas A&M in the regular season finale, and head coach Les Miles will look for his team to end the season with a strong performance over the Red Raiders. Texas Tech won its last two games of the regular season, including a win over rival Texas, and head coach Kliff Kingsbury will look to keep the momentum rolling.
The Red Raiders threw the ball more than any other team in the Big 12 conference this year, and quarterback Patrick Mahomes will try to move the ball against LSU's tough defense. The sophomore quarterback threw for 4,283 yards this season with 32 touchdowns to 14 interceptions. Mahomes has thrown more than 300 yards nine times this season, and the Tigers secondary faces arguably one of the toughest offenses it has seen this season.
Senior wide receiver Jakeem Grant is a huge playmaker for Texas Tech's offense, and leads the team with 1,143 receiving yards on the year. Grant is coming off a strong performance over the Texas Longhorns where he had 105 receiving yards and a touchdown. Grant and senior running back DeAndre Washington are the big playmakers for the Red Raiders offense, and Kingsbury will need his offense to get off to a hot start against an SEC defense.
Texas Tech's defense has clearly struggled this season and finished ranked 118th in the FBS in total defense. The Red Raiders face arguably their toughest challenge in stopping LSU running back Leonard Fournette, as he is averaging 158.27 rushing yards per game.
The Tigers sophomore running back was leading the Heisman race early until his poor performance against Alabama in Tuscaloosa, but bounced back to finish the season with two rushing performances over 100 yards. The 6-foot-1, 230-pound Fournette is a challenge to bring down, and the Red Raiders will need to gang tackle if they want to slow down one of college football's most dynamic playmakers.
Tigers sophomore Brandon Harris has struggled at times this season, and Miles has likely spoken to his young quarterback about the importance of ball security prior to tonight's game, as he won't want to give Texas Tech's offense any second chances. Harris has thrown more than 1,904 yards on the season, but has only managed 12 touchdown passes to five interceptions. While Harris has struggled in his passing game, he still keeps defenses on their heels as he has rushed for 185 yards and three touchdowns on the season.
Both offenses can score points quickly, and a key matchup to watch in the Texas Bowl will be the Red Raiders defense against LSU's dynamic running back. The game starts at 9 p.m. Eastern time, and you can watch the live broadcast here. To listen to the Tigers' radio broadcast, click here, and for the Red Raiders' radio broadcast, go here.
