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As we celebrate the first 50 years of Joe Aillet Stadium, it must be noted that there have been many terrific Bulldog football teams, individual players and special games that all Tech fans cherish.

But no matter how each of us – those who worked or played at Tech and those loyal fans who repeatedly showed up to cheer for the Bulldogs – remember special Saturdays spent at Aillet Stadium, we can all collectively agree that no time frame exceeded the Golden Era of 1971 through 1974 for Louisiana Tech football.

And why wouldn't we cherish these years? Think about the collection of all-stars that played for the Bulldogs back then:

Quarterbacks Ken Lantrip and Denny Duron, running backs Charles (Quick Six) McDaniel, Roland Harper, Glen (Boom Boom) Berteau and John Henry White, wide receivers Eric Johnson, Roger Carr and Pat Tilley, tight end Mike Barber, offensive linemen such as Roy Waters, Randy Crouch, Gerald Eddings, Russell Bates and Pat Greer, defensive linemen Fred Dean, Chris Richardson and Rod Bagley, linebackers Joe McNeely and Ricky Shirley, defensive backs Wenford Wilborn, John Causey, Larry Anderson and Larry Griffin and kickers Mike Swinney and Jerry Pope.

Wow! What an amazing group of football players. Virtually all of them are among the Joe Aillet Stadium Top 50 group that is being honored this season.
 And, you know what?  They were even more devastating to face on the hallowed grounds of the Bulldogs' home field.

"We called it The Pit," said All-America DB Larry Anderson, who became the nation's premier kick return specialist during his tenure at Tech.

"A lot of nights it was hot down on that field, but it didn't bother us. In fact, we felt it gave us a real advantage over any team coming in there," he added.

Anderson, who came to Tech out of Monroe-Neville as a walk-on and departed as an NFL draft pick of the Pittsburgh Steelers where he went on to set a Super Bowl kick return record, best described the amazing aura of Aillet Stadium.

"Walking down that ramp and onto our own field was special every time, every game. We all felt a responsibility to play our very best and to represent Louisiana Tech and our fans as champions," he said.

Frankly, nobody really knew what to expect of Tech football when 1971 rolled around because the exciting Terry Bradshaw era was in the rearview mirror and the Bulldogs were now coming off a discouraging 1970 campaign that produced just two victories and eight defeats. Perhaps even more disturbing, in 1970 Tech went only 1-4 at sparkling new Aillet Stadium, which had been christened just three years earlier.

But, truthfully,  coach Maxie Lambright and his brilliant staff likely realized rather quickly in 1971 that the worm was about to turn, that Tech was heading in the right direction as it departed the Gulf States Conference and moved into the Southland Conference.

Even before the first game of 1971 something happened that paved the way for what followed over the next four seasons at Tech and in Joe Aillet Stadium.

That "something" was the recruitment of a 1971 freshman class that included such athletes as NFL Hall of Famer Fred Dean, running backs Charles (Quick Six) McDaniel and Roland Harper, offensive linemen Roy Waters and Randy Crouch, and defensive backs Wenford Wilborn and Larry Griffin.

All of these rookies went on to become four-year starters and form the very backbone of this Golden Era that resulted in 44 victories against just four losses from 1971 through 1974, including 19 wins and just one loss at home (24-20 to Southern Mississippi on Nov. 13, 1971) .

Of course, there were plenty of other heroes for Tech during this era. In fact, nose guard Craig Springmeyer, kicker Danny Norris and linebacker Ricky Shirley also earned four letters during the 71-74 era.

Many games were significant at Aillet Stadium from 1971 through 1974 but none more so that on Oct. 16, 1971, when conference kingpin Arkansas State came calling. ASU had gone 11-0 the previous year, had won a pair of college division national titles and was clearly King of the Southland Conference.

The two teams waged a tremendous war that night and Tech led 28-27 when ASU drove inside the Bulldogs' five yardline with less than three minutes to play, ready to score and maintain a death grip on the SLC.

All-Star safety John Causey, a member of the Top 50 class being honored this fall, was on the field for the Bulldogs and remembers that time. "At that crucial moment, Chris Richardson (senior all-American nose guard) made what I still believe is the most important play that occurred during this Golden Era -- to save this win for us.

"At a time out, Chris told the coaches he had a hunch what Arkansas State was going to run and the coaches told him to go with it. He was absolutely right, he tackled ASU's star running back (Calvin Harrell) behind the line and caused a fumble at the two-yard-line that I was lucky enough to recover," recalled Causey.

"We won that game and we went on to take over as the dominant team in the Southland for the rest of the 1970s.  And I believe that win set the stage for our NCAA national championship in 1973."

Tech captured four straight SLC titles (1971, 1972, 1973, 1974)  during that amazing string – and also won national championships in 1972 (National Football Foundation), 1973 (NCAA) and 1974 (UPI).

The great Fred Dean sums it up well. "We loved playing in Aillet Stadium. It was our home and we wanted to always protect it. But, really, we just all loved each other and wanted to win for each other.

"Every day it was fun to be together. You know, (quarterback) Denny Duron and (linebacker) Joe McNeely were such great leaders and we had so many outstanding players that we always believed we would win every game," he said.

Dean added, "I will always cherish my days at Tech. I met so many people that impacted my life along the way. And, yes, Joe Aillet Stadium was a very big part of what I remember about Tech football."