Three things we learned in Charlotte’s loss to Louisiana Tech

The Charlotte 49ers fell on the road against Louisiana Tech on Saturday, allowing 504 yards and 42 points to a team that was on a five-game losing streak.

Charlotte head coach Will Healy was aggressive with fourth-down attempts in the red zone and onside kick attempts in the loss — including a failed fourth-down conversion that sealed the game late. Louisiana Tech (3-7) won 42-32.

“We didn’t have everybody on the same page and we missed it,” Healy said about the late fourth-down miss. “Obviously, that comes back to me and coaching. I felt good about converting there. I really did.”

That’s Healy, though. He trusts quarterback Chris Reynolds — especially following last week’s successful comeback from down 10 with six minutes to play against Rice. On Saturday, Charlotte trailed by 10 with five minutes to play. It just didn’t work out this time.

Relying on your senior QB to lead you back every week is unrealistic. If Charlotte (5-5) is to make a bowl game, the defense must put together a full 60 minutes for the first time this season.

Charlotte has beaten one FBS team by more than one touchdown this season — a 45-33 win over Florida International on Oct. 8. Playing in and winning close games looks to be this team’s best chance at victory.

Healy touched on the team’s identity through 10 games.

“We play extremely hard, but we haven’t executed extremely well,” he said. “I think that’s probably what you see on film. We have chances to win each week. We’re not going to go out and just out-talent everybody. We need to play well and play together. We haven’t done that at times and that’s why you see a .500 record — we’re not consistent enough.”

Here are three things we learned in Charlotte loss at Louisiana Tech:

NO MARGIN FOR ERROR

A red-zone turnover and a turnover on downs inside the opponent’s 5-yard line on the 49ers’ first two possessions were the difference in Saturday’s game.

But Charlotte scored 32 points and saw Reynolds’ career-best 448 passing yards and three scores wasted in the loss. The 49ers started the season scoring touchdowns on the opening drive in five of their first six games. The fast starts have faded, and Healy’s group has played from behind almost wire-to-wire in their last four games.

In the past four contests alone, Charlotte has scored just 13 combined points in the first quarter. That isn’t cutting it, as the defense hasn’t held up for four quarters since the win over Gardner-Webb in Week 2.

The defense, led by co-coordinators Marcus West and Brandon Cooper, has allowed over 400 yards to every FBS opponent in 12 straight games, dating back to the win over Texas El-Paso on Oct. 24, 2020.

There have been glimpses of a solid defense, but nothing consistent.

“When we had opportunities to make plays, we didn’t do it,” Healy said. “We haven’t been able to (turn the corner). We haven’t been able to do it consistently enough. We’ve got the talent to do it, but I don’t think the consistency is there.”

Following the loss against Florida Atlantic in October, Healy said there would be no responsibility changes among staff or personnel changes on the field, and that he wanted his team to do what they do better.

The defense is surrendering 36.8 points and 484 yards per game in Conference USA play. There are two more chances to become bowl-eligible.

HOME-SICK

The home crowd at Richardson Stadium has been electric this season. The students and fans have continued to show up, averaging 13,308 fans per contest.

But the 49ers aren’t the same team outside of the Queen City. They’ve posted just one win in five road games this season, and four of 12 since Healy took charge in 2019.

Charlotte is also scoring 30 points at home, compared with 22 per game on the road. Healy’s group is struggling to bring their own juice away from home and it’s showing up in the box score. The 49ers’ lone win on the road this season came against Florida International — a one-win football team that has lost nine straight since winning its season opener over an FCS school.

The 49ers sit at 5-5 overall (3-3 in C-USA) facing the final two games of the 2021 regular season. They’ve got Marshall at home next Saturday, and one final road game against Old Dominion.

Charlotte had the same record and the same final two opponents in 2019 and was able to beat both to post a 7-5 record and achieve bowl eligibility for the first time. The difference this year? The 2019 team ended the season on a five-game win streak. Charlotte in 2021 has lost three of its last four, squandering a 4-2 start.

The 49ers will likely be underdogs in both games.

HEALTH FIRST

Charlotte wide receiver Victor Tucker took a hit to the head from Tech defensive back Khalil Ladler in the second half of Saturday’s game. Ladler was penalized for targeting and ejected for the hit, but Tucker was motionless on the field following the collision.

Tucker suffered a concussion against Rice on his second snap of the contest last week. He fought to get back on the field in his game, but the training staff eventually took his helmet and Tucker was sidelined for the final three quarters.

Tucker, speaking at C-USA’s media day, said this would be his last year. That still stands, but 2021 has been a battle for the Miami native.

“My mindset has been trying to enjoy every day,” Tucker said. “With the ups and downs, like me having a concussion last week, it was kind of hard for me to not be down on myself. But just understanding that this is my last year and I don’t want to go down with my head down. I’ve just been trying to stay positive through it all and continue working towards the next step in my life.”

Following the game, Healy gave an update on Tucker.

“We’ll have to see how the week goes,” he said. “He’s in concussion protocol and we’ll see how he progresses.”

With concussions in consecutive weeks, Charlotte may need to shut Tucker down. He’s going to do everything possible to get on the field against Marshall for senior day, the team that his game-sealing touchdown beat in 2019 to achieve bowl eligibility for the first time in school history.

Tucker has been one of the best receivers in Charlotte’s history and has a shot to make an NFL roster. Healy stated that his work ethic has set an extremely high standard for the team, which is part of the reason he was elected as a captain.

But if there are lingering effects, health needs to come first.

This story was originally published November 14, 2021 at 11:41 AM.