Illinois vs. Louisiana Tech: Score and Twitter Reaction for 2014 Heart of Dallas

One of the ugliest and most thrilling bowl games took place at the Cotton Bowl on Friday between Illinois and Louisiana Tech in the Heart of Dallas Bowl. Both teams made their share of mistakes, but the Bulldogs made more big plays and were able to get two key scores late in the fourth quarter for a 35-18 win. 

Illinois head coach Tim Beckman will be kicking himself all offseason because his team gave this game away on multiple occasions. There isn't one area you can pinpoint as the problem, as the offense, defense and special teams were a mess. 

Louisiana Tech didn't play a crisp game either, but it was able to overcome its mistakes to secure the school's first bowl win since 2008. 

The most surprising part of Louisiana Tech's win was that star running back Kenneth Dixon was held in check on the ground. He did have a touchdown run in the fourth quarter, but was limited to 63 rushing yards on 13 carries.

The star junior did have an impact in the passing game with an 80-yard touchdown catch on a busted coverage in the first quarter to give Louisiana Tech a 14-3 lead, via Dr. Saturday of Yahoo Sports: 

In addition to securing the Bulldogs' victory, Dixon's late one-yard touchdown run was historic, as it gave him at least one in every game this season, via Conference USA Football on Twitter:

On that touchdown drive, Bulldogs wide receiver Carlos Henderson had the big play. He got behind the Illinois defense for a 70-yard gain that really helped quarterback Cody Sokol's stat line, via Sean Isabella of The News Star:

Sokol didn't have the best statistical day, but he was involved in the key play of the game. After he was sacked and fumbled, Illinois' Jihad Ward recovered the ball and would have had it deep in Louisiana Tech territory. However, Ward was caught from behind and fumbled, leading to Sokol recovering the ball. 

If that play description made your head spin, that's basically the kind of game the Heart of Dallas Bowl turned out to be. Paul Myerberg of USA Today also noted how appropriate the sequence was given Illinois' years of frustration:

For more evidence of how baffling this game was, Matt Loveless of WAND-TV in Illinois offers a stat line on Sokol to put it all in perspective:

Despite his struggles, Sokol said leading up to this game that it was going to be an emotional time for the Bulldogs as presently constructed, via Isabella, writing for The Shreveport Times:

"

It’s really cool to see how things come full circle. I’m excited for those Texas boys on this team to be able to play at home. We’ve come a long way as a football team and this is our last time together. We’re going to enjoy it. …

…If you go out there and don’t put together a win, it kind of just all fades away. You kinda remember the season as something that wasn’t accomplished. But that’s what we’re planning on doing is winning.

"

For Illinois, quarterback Reilly O'Toole put together a solid stat line with 295 yards, one touchdown and one interception despite getting knocked around like a pinball. He basically became best friends with Louisiana Tech's Houston Bates, who had 5.5 sacks and earned a new nickname from Steve Greenberg of The Chicago Sun-Times:

Rubbing salt in the wound for Illinois, Bates transferred from Illinois to Louisiana Tech after the 2013-14 season.

Illinois' problems on Friday were vast. The Fighting Illini missed an extra point, a two-point conversion and two field goals. They also had two turnovers, including the wacky fumble play when Louisiana Tech was clinging to a 21-18 lead. 

Taking a glass half-full look at the loss for Illinois, this was the first bowl appearance in the Beckman era and the program has increased its win total in three years under the coach. The Illini still have a long way to go before becoming relevant in the Big Ten, but at least there appears to be some progress. 

As for Louisiana Tech, Skip Holtz has done a terrific job in two years as head coach. The Bulldogs won just four games last season, but went 9-5 following Friday's win and 7-1 in Conference USA. They may not become a national power like other small schools have recently, though they are moving in the right direction.