2014 Heart of Dallas Bowl (December)
{{Use mdy dates|date=August 2023}}
{{Infobox NCAA football yearly game
| game_name = Heart of Dallas Bowl
| subheader = 5th Heart of Dallas Bowl
| title_sponsor = Zaxby's
| image =
| caption =
| date_game_played = December 26
| year_game_played = 2014
| football_season = 2014
| stadium = Cotton Bowl
| city = Fair Park
Dallas, Texas
| visitor_school = University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
| visitor_name_short = Illinois
| visitor_nickname = Fighting Illini
| visitor_record = 6–6
| visitor_conference = Big Ten
| visitor_rank_AP =
| visitor_rank_coaches =
| visitor_rank_BCS =
| visitor_coach = Tim Beckman
| visitor_1q = 3
| visitor_2q = 6
| visitor_3q = 6
| visitor_4q = 3
| visitor_ot =
| visitor_2ot =
| home_school = Louisiana Tech University
| home_name_short = Louisiana Tech
| home_nickname = Bulldogs
| home_record = 8–5
| home_conference = C-USA
| home_rank_AP =
| home_rank_coaches =
| home_rank_BCS =
| home_coach = Skip Holtz
| home_1q = 14
| home_2q = 7
| home_3q = 0
| home_4q = 14
| home_ot =
| home_2ot =
| odds = Louisiana Tech by 7[http://www.vegasinsider.com/college-football/teams/team-page.cfm/team/louisiana-tech Odds]
| MVP = Houston Bates (LB, Louisiana Tech){{cite web |url=http://www.thenewsstar.com/story/sports/college/louisiana-tech/2014/12/26/techs-bates-wins-mvp-former-team/20927877/ |title=Tech's Bates wins MVP against former team |last1=Isabella |first1=Sean |date=December 26, 2014 |website=thenewsstar.com |access-date=December 27, 2014}}
| anthem =
| referee = Land Clark (Pac-12)
| halftime =
| payout =
| us_network = ESPN & RedVoice LLC
| us_announcers = Mike Corey, Charles Arbuckle, & Kayce Smith (ESPN)
Brian Estridge, John Denton, Rob Best, and Landry Burdine (RedVoice LLC)
| ratings =
| different_previous = Jan 2014
}}
The 2014 Heart of Dallas Bowl was an American college football bowl game played on December 26, 2014 at the Cotton Bowl at Fair Park in Dallas, Texas. The fifth edition of the Heart of Dallas Bowl featured the Illinois Fighting Illini against the Louisiana Tech Bulldogs.Ryan, Shannon (December 7, 2014). [http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/college/chi-illinois-football-secures-bowl-game-20141207-story.html "Illinois Will Face Louisiana Tech in Heart of Dallas Bowl"], Chicago Tribune. Retrieved December 16, 2014. The game was played at 1:00 p.m. CST and aired on ESPN. It was one of the 2014–15 bowl games that concluded the 2014 FBS football season. The game is sponsored by the Zaxby's chicken restaurant franchise and is officially known as the Zaxby's Heart of Dallas Bowl.
Louisiana Tech beat Illinois by a score of 35–18.Ryan, Shannon (December 26, 2014). [http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/college/ct-illinois-football-spt-1227-20141226-story.html "Illinois Fumbles Away Huge Opportunity in Bowl Loss to Louisiana Tech"], Chicago Tribune. Retrieved December 27, 2014.
This was the second overall meeting between these two teams, with the Bulldogs winning the first matchup in 2012.
Illinois
{{See also|Illinois Fighting Illini football|2014 Illinois Fighting Illini football team}}
Illinois came as a team on a series of streaks throughout the season. On the season the Illini had averaged 26.6 points per game but gave up an average of 34 points per game. Illinois can easily be summarized as a Jekyll and Hyde team. During their 6 wins the Illini scored an average of 33.8 points per game, but in their 6 losses they've gave up an average of 41.67 points per game. This was the Illini's first bowl game since 2011.
Louisiana Tech
{{See also|Louisiana Tech Bulldogs football|2014 Louisiana Tech Bulldogs football team}}
Louisiana Tech entered the bowl game as the C-USA West Division champs. The Bulldogs won six of their last eight games giving up an average of 20.5 points per game during that stretch. 3 of the Bulldogs five losses come to Top 25 teams.
Game summary
With the win, the Bulldogs won their first bowl game since 2008.
=Scoring summary=
{{AmFootballScoreSummaryStart|VisitorName=ILL|HomeName=La. Tech|state=}}
{{AmFootballScoreSummaryEntry
| Quarter=1
| Time=7:29
| Team=La. Tech
| DrivePlays=6
| DriveLength=63
| DriveTime=1:26
| Type=RushTD
| Runner=Jarred Craft
| yards=16
| kickresult=good
| Kicker=Jonathan Barnes
| Visitor=0
| Home=7
}}
{{AmFootballScoreSummaryEntry
| Quarter=1
| Time=3:46
| Team=ILL
| DrivePlays=8
| DriveLength=65
| DriveTime=3:43
| Type=FG
| yards=27
| Kicker=Taylor Zalewski
| Visitor=3
| Home=7
}}
{{AmFootballScoreSummaryEntry
| Quarter=1
| Time=3:28
| Team=La. Tech
| DrivePlays=1
| DriveLength=80
| DriveTime=0:18
| Type=RecTD
| Receiver=Kenneth Dixon
| QB=Cody Sokol
| yards=80
| kickresult=good
| Kicker=Jonathan Barnes
| Visitor=3
| Home=14
}}
{{AmFootballScoreSummaryEntry
| Quarter=2
| Time=11:15
| Team=ILL
| DrivePlays=5
| DriveLength=65
| DriveTime=1:30
| Type=RecTD
| Receiver=Jon Davis
| QB=Reilly O'Toole
| yards=25
| kickresult=failed
| Kicker=Taylor Zalewski
| Visitor=9
| Home=14
}}
{{AmFootballScoreSummaryEntry
| Quarter=2
| Time=7:20
| Team=La. Tech
| DrivePlays=–
| DriveLength=–
| DriveTime=–
| Type=IntTD
| Def=Xavier Woods
| yards=69
| kickresult=good
| Kicker=Jonathan Barnes
| Visitor=9
| Home=21
}}
{{AmFootballScoreSummaryEntry
| Quarter=3
| Time=6:04
| Team=ILL
| DrivePlays=9
| DriveLength=72
| DriveTime=4:17
| Type=RushTD
| Runner=Donovonn Young
| yards=3
| 2pt type=pass
| 2pt result=incomplete
| Visitor=15
| Home=21
}}
{{AmFootballScoreSummaryEntry
| Quarter=4
| Time=14:01
| Team=ILL
| DrivePlays=10
| DriveLength=49
| DriveTime=3:59
| Type=FG
| yards=43
| Kicker=David Reisner
| Visitor=18
| Home=21
}}
{{AmFootballScoreSummaryEntry
| Quarter=4
| Time=6:15
| Team=La. Tech
| DrivePlays=5
| DriveLength=74
| DriveTime=2:20
| Type=RushTD
| Runner=Kenneth Dixon
| yards=1
| kickresult=good
| Kicker=Jonathan Barnes
| Visitor=18
| Home=28
}}
{{AmFootballScoreSummaryEntry
| Quarter=4
| Time=3:43
| Team=La. Tech
| DrivePlays=6
| DriveLength=49
| DriveTime=1:36
| Type=RushTD
| Runner=Blake Martin
| yards=28
| kickresult=good
| Kicker=Jonathan Barnes
| Visitor=18
| Home=35
}}
{{AmFootballScoreSummaryEnd|Visitor=18|Home=35}}
=Statistics=
{{Linescore Amfootball|
|Road={{nowrap|Fighting Illini}}
|R1=3|R2=6|R3=6|R4=3
|Home=Bulldogs
|H1=14|H2=7|H3=0|H4=14}}
| class="wikitable"
! Statistics !! style="{{NCAA color cell|Illinois Fighting Illini}}"|ILL !! style="{{NCAA color cell|Louisiana Tech Bulldogs}}"|La. Tech | ||
| First downs | 26 | 16 |
| Plays–yards | 80–451 | 59–361 |
| Rushes–yards | 33–122 | 31–114 |
| Passing yards | 329 | 247 |
| Passing: Comp–Att–Int | 28–47–1 | 14–28–0 |
| Time of possession | 35:00 | 25:00 |
| class="wikitable"
! Team !! Category !! Player !! Statistics | |||
| rowspan=3 style="{{NCAA color cell|Illinois Fighting Illini}}; text-align:center"| ILL | Passing | Reilly O'Toole | 24/39, 295 yds, 1 TD, 1 INT |
| Rushing | Josh Ferguson | 7 car, 50 yds | |
| Receiving | Malik Turner | 6 rec, 84 yds | |
| rowspan=3 style="{{NCAA color cell|Louisiana Tech Bulldogs}}; text-align:center"| La. Tech | Passing | Cody Sokol | 14/28, 247 yds, 1 TD |
| Rushing | Kenneth Dixon | 13 car, 63 yds, 1 TD | |
| Receiving | Carlos Henderson | 4 rec, 93 yds |
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
- [https://www.espn.com/college-football/game/_/gameId/400610222 Game summary] at ESPN
{{2014 bowl game navbox}}
{{First Responder Bowl navbox}}
{{Illinois Fighting Illini bowl game navbox}}
{{Louisiana Tech Bulldogs bowl game navbox}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:2014 Heart of Dallas Bowl (12)}}
Category:Illinois Fighting Illini football bowl games
Category:Louisiana Tech Bulldogs football bowl games
Heart of Dallas Bowl (December)