BOWL BOUND – Troy Runs Winning Streak to Five, Downing Louisiana at The Vet

Saturday, October 25

Troy, Ala.

6 p.m.

Troy University

6-2 , 4-0

Louisiana

2-6 , 1-3

1st

2nd

3rd

4th

Louisiana

Troy

BOWL BOUND – Troy Runs Winning Streak to Five, Downing Louisiana at The Vet

10/25/2025 10:38:00 PM | Football

Box Score Box Score (PDF)Game Notes (PDF)Troy Quotes Gerad Parker Press Conference Players Press Conference Highlights

By: Troy Athletics Communications

TROY, Ala. – The formula that has carried Troy back into Sun Belt contention was on full display again Saturday night. The Trojans ran the ball with power, took the ball away on defense and controlled the key moments to beat Louisiana, 35–23, at The Vet.

The win was the fifth straight for Troy (6-2, 4-0 SBC), which became bowl eligible for the third time in four seasons. It also extended the Trojans' "revenge tour," a five-game stretch against teams that beat them a year ago. Through four of those matchups, Troy has answered everyone with a win.

Saturday's victory carried significance beyond the scoreboard. It marked the Trojans' longest win streak since the 2023 championship season, their first 4-0 conference start since 2018 and another step in the resurgence under head coach Gerad Parker, who reached .500 in his Troy career at 10-10.

Troy opened fast and never trailed after halftime. Quarterback Tucker Kilcrease ran for a pair of first half touchdowns, and running back Jordan Lovett delivered the best game of his young career with 113 rushing yards and two touchdowns. The Trojans finished with 165 rushing yards and four scores, their second-highest rushing output of the season and most rushing touchdowns.

Kilcrease's 8-yard keeper capped an 11-play, 67-yard opening drive, and after Louisiana tied the game, Troy's defense seized control. Jaquez White intercepted a Walker Howard pass and returned it 30 yards for a touchdown, part of a second quarter that flipped momentum permanently toward the home sideline. Two plays later, Kaleno Levine picked off a Lunch Winfield pass to set up Kilcrease's second touchdown run and a 21-14 lead.

Lovett powered in from a yard out to start the second half, and with the Cajuns closing to within 28-23 late in the fourth quarter, he burst through the line for a 19-yard touchdown that put the game away.

Louisiana (2-6, 1-3) stayed within reach behind quarterback Lunch Winfield, who rushed for 139 yards and threw for 187 more, but Troy's defense stiffened repeatedly in the red zone. The Cajuns, the preseason favorite to win the SBC West Division, were forced to settle for three field goals after halftime and failed to find the end zone on their final six possessions.

Troy's defense, among the most productive in the nation over the last decade, continued to thrive on disruption. The Trojans recorded three interceptions, four sacks and seven tackles for loss. White's pick-six was Troy's fourth defensive touchdown of the year – tied for second-most nationally – and the team's 18th since 2020.

Even while being outrushed for a fourth straight game (184-165), Troy continued to win behind complementary football. The Trojans had lost nine consecutive games when being outrushed before the current streak.

Up Next
Troy wraps up its mini two-game homestand with a visit from Arkansas State, the final team on the Trojans' schedule that defeated Troy in 2024. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m., and the game will be televised on ESPNU.

Quotable – Troy Head Coach Gerad Parker
"I'm a little bit speechless, which is a bit out of the norm, because I'm all over the place emotionally. I feel like this is the first game where I lost a little bit of my composure in the first half, with some rage towards us not being at our best. Some things I feel like we got fixed at halftime and certainly came out and played better. A huge congrats to our fan base and thanks to them for showing out in waves.

"Huge congrats to our players and staff for getting us bowl eligible. I just told them the best part about bowl eligibility is getting us more time together, and that's the most precious thing on this planet is time. This group of seniors and this football team deserve more time together, and I couldn't be more proud that we get a chance to spend some time together close to the holidays and play another game together that our seniors certainly deserve.

"We're very aware that making a bowl isn't the only standard here at Troy. This place has been built on a tradition of winning championships, doing things the blue-collar way, and playing a style of football that people in this town and area will be proud of. I think this football team is doing that. I'm very proud of the brand of football we play – we play a blend of football between all three phases and play team football. I'm proud of our guys for that and our staff."

Notable
• Troy won for the third time in the last four games against Louisiana after the Cajuns had won six of the previous eight games.

• Troy is bowl eligible for the third time in the last four years and for the 13th time in the program's 25-year FBS history; it's the sixth time over the 10 seasons that Troy has become bowl eligible (2016, 17, 18, 22, 23, 25).

• Troy has won five straight games, the Trojans' longest winning streak since winning 10 straight games in 2023.

• The Trojans have won four straight games against teams that beat them last year -- South Alabama, Texas State, ULM and Louisiana. Troy's game next week against Arkansas State completes the five-game run of teams that beat the Trojans last year.

• Troy has won seven of its last eight Sun Belt Conference games dating back to last season.

• Troy has won nine of their last 12 games dating back to last season.

• Troy is 4-0 in Sun Belt play for the first time since the 2018 season, the Trojans opened that season 7-0 before losing at App State in the season finale.

• Troy improved to 22-0 since 2022 when leading after three quarters.

• Troy has now been outrushed in four straight games, winning all four games. The Trojans had lost the previous nine games when being outrushed. Troy is now 42-107 since 2001, when being outrushed.

• Tucker Kilcrease's 8-yard touchdown run on the Trojans' opening drive of the game was his third rushing touchdown of the season and his career. He added a second rushing touchdown in the second quarter for his first career multi-rushing touchdown game.

• Troy has scored a touchdown on its opening possession in three of the last four games and four total games this season.

• Jordan Lovett rushed for a career-high 113 yards and two touchdowns on 21 carries; his previous high was 50 yards against Memphis earlier this year and 10 carries against Nicholls in the 2025 opener.

• Troy scored on the opening possession of the second half for just the third time this season ... the Trojans scored on the opening possession of the first half and second half for the first time this season.

• Troy has won seven of its last eight games when rushing for at least 100 yards, the Trojans rushed for 165 yards on 39 carries.

• Troy improved to 61-16 since 2015 when rushing for 150-plus yards.

• Troy improved to 5-0 this year when reaching 20 first downs (Troy finished with 21 on the night), and the Trojans have won eight of their last nine games when hitting the 20 first down mark.

• Jaquez White intercepted Walker Howard's first pass attempt and returned it 30 yards for a touchdown in the second quarter; it was White's second career interception at the FBS level (Nicholls).

• Troy has four defensive touchdowns this season, tied for the second most in the country and 18 defensive touchdowns since 2020, also second most in the country.

• Troy's four defensive touchdowns are tied for the most since 2020, when the Trojans also had four defensive scores.

• Kaleno Levine intercepted Lunch Winfield on the following possession for his first career interception at either the FBS or FCS level.

• Following Levine's interception, Troy had forced an interception on 6-of-11 possessions dating back to the ULM game.

• Justin Powe sealed the deal for the Trojans with an interception on Louisiana's final play of the game; his third career interception and first of the season.

• Troy's three interceptions are the most since they picked off Southern Miss three times on Oct. 8, 2022.

• Troy entered the week ranked sixth nationally with 208 turnovers forced since 2016; the Trojans were third in the country with 34 games with three or more turnovers forced entering the weekend.

• Troy has scored 55 points off its opponents' 11 turnovers this season; the Trojans have turned nine of the 11 turnovers into points.

• Troy recorded four sacks in the game, marking the fifth time in eight games this season the Trojans recorded three or more sacks in a game.

• Troy recorded seven tackles for loss in the game; the Trojans have recorded six or more tackles for loss in 7-of-8 games.

• Donnie Smith recorded 1.5 sacks for a second consecutive game and now has a team-best six on the season.

• Evan Crenshaw booted his 16th 50-yard punt of the season with a 55-yard punt, just one of two attempts he had in the game.