2015 New Orleans Bowl, Arkansas State vs. Louisiana Tech: Date, time, location and more

Before the Mercedes-Benz Superdome plays host to the Sugar Bowl, the R+L Carriers New Orleans Bowl is set for its 15th edition of the Sun Belt Conference against the Mountain West Conference. Or at least, it was until Conference USA’s Louisiana Tech stepped in as an at-large instead of a Mountain West representative.

In the previous four New Orleans Bowl games, the Louisiana-Lafayette Ragin’ Cajuns made it to the game and earned a victory each time. Not since Troy defeated Ohio nearly five years ago has the New Orleans Bowl not featured ULL.

Here is everything you need to know to get ready for this year’s New Orleans Bowl:

Date and time: Saturday, Dec. 19, 9 p.m. ET

TV channel: ESPN

Location: New Orleans, La.

Stadium: Mercedes-Benz Superdome, 73,208

Last year’s score: Louisiana-Lafayette 16, Nevada 3

Last year’s attendance: 34,014

Last year’s TV rating: 1.6

Last year’s payout for each school: $500,000

Team with the most all-time appearances: Louisiana-Lafayette, Southern Miss and North Texas, 4

Team with the most all-time wins: Louisiana-Lafayette, 4

After a 1-3 start, no one has been able to stop Sun Belt champions Arkansas State. The Red Wolves ripped through conference play with an undefeated record and an average 18.7 point margin of victory to emerge as one of the hottest teams in the country.

They owe much of that success to a three-headed running back platoon that has combined for 24 touchdowns in 11 games this season. Arkansas State’s high powered running attack has made the Red Wolves a top 15 FBS offense. The Red Wolves have three compact and speedy athletes who can shake tackles in the backfield and make overzealous defenders pay with big runs. Michael Gordon is the leader of that crew after rushing for 1,100 yards in 2014, but don’t sleep on Johnston White. The sophomore ranks second in the Sun Belt with 13 rushing touchdowns this season.

State’s defense may turn out to be its undoing in the postseason. The team’s rocky start was highlighted by defensive failures. USC scored 55 points in a season-opening win. Toledo put up 37 points in a rout. Even Missouri, a team that failed to score double-digit points in half its games this fall, was able to score 27 against the Red Wolves. Arkansas State will have to hope that its recent run was a matter of improvement rather than the consequence of a front-loaded schedule to earn a bowl win on Dec. 19.

Last bowl game: 2014 GoDaddy Bowl (63-44 loss to Toledo)

All-time bowl record: 2-3

Head coach’s bowl record: Blake Anderson is 0-1 in college bowl games

With at least eight wins in four of their last five seasons, Louisiana Tech is quietly becoming a force to be reckoned with in Conference USA. Graduate transfer quarterback Jeff Driskel has sparked a Bulldog offense that rates out as a top 30 unit in scoring offense (21st), passing yards (16th) and total yardage (27th).

Driskel passed for more yards in 2015 than he had in his four years with the Florida Gators combined, slinging the ball for 3,575 yards and exceeding the 300-yard mark in seven different games this fall. His 24-to-8 touchdown-to-interception ratio was a huge improvement over last year’s 9-to-10 mark, although those picks came against a much higher level of competition than he faced this season in Ruston. The Bulldogs faced only one team -- Mississippi State -- that was ranked at any point this season.

If opponents can shut down Driskel, they’ll still have to worry about one of the NCAA’s most prolific scoring machines in the backfield. Running back Kenneth Dixon has 17 touchdowns this season, but that’s still shaping up to be the third-worst total in his career. With 70 career touchdowns, he’s a proven scorer who can get to the end zone from anywhere on the field. Literally. He’s got a 99-yard touchdown run to prove it.

Last bowl game: 2014 Heart of Dallas Bowl (35-18 win over Illinois)

All-time bowl record: 3-3-1

Head coach’s bowl record: Skip Holtz is 3-3 as a head coach in bowl games. That includes a 1-0 record at Louisiana Tech.