Louisiana Tech (9-3) won't play in a bowl game

"We had played there in 2008, and the sponsor is a graduate of Louisiana Tech, so I thought they would wait for us," Van De Velde said. "We all agreed we wanted to wait, so we said to them, 'We don't want to turn it down, but we need time to see how this plays out.' "

Waiting cost Louisiana Tech its spot. "They chose to go in another direction," Van De Velde said, rather than wait to see if the Bulldogs chose to play its bowl game in Shreveport.

"We never declined" the bid, Van De Velde said. "We just asked for more time. They felt like they had to move, and I understand. But we felt like we needed time to see how this played out."

usatoday.com