SB Nation - Austin Zouzalik

Double-T Nation Daily Diatribe :: 11.30.09

Seth C — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 12:14:16 -0000

More photos » by Jerry Larson - AP

20 days ago: Texas Tech's Taylor Potts (15) hugs teammate Baron Batch after Tech defeated Baylor 20-13 in an NCAA college football game, Saturday, Nov. 28, 2009, in Arlington, Texas. (AP Photo/Waco Tribune Herald, Jerry Larson)

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Big Thanks, Part I: First and foremost, I need to give a huge shout-out to DTN reader RAIDERDOC, who just offered to send me tickets to Saturday's game, sent them by overnight mail so that I could have them in plenty of time for Saturday's game. A huge tip of the hat to RAIDERDOC it was and is much appreciated.

Big Thanks, Part II: Last, but not least, you'll note that I didn't get to the Post Game Thoughts as originally thought. I decided to spend the entire Sunday with the wife and not work on DTN, but rather help her out with Christmas decorations. I figured that since Texas Tech didn't have any sort of game this week, I didn't necessarily have to spend time writing previews, putting together tables, etc. I've ignored her for most Saturdays and Sundays for the better part of the year and she willingly gives me a kitchen-pass when it comes to DTN most, if not all of the time. I'll be working on Post Game Thoughts tonight and probably post sometime tomorrow.

Potts is the Worst Evah: I get that QB Taylor Potts didn't have a great game on Saturday night, even the most staunch Potts supporter could agree that he wasn't great. It was an awful first half, reminiscent of performances like this, this or this (damn straight I'm cherry-picking). But in the second half, after being down 10-3, Potts was pretty good. I'll have more on this tomorrow, but Potts finished the 2nd half going 17 for 24 for 145 yards and 2 touchdowns. I got up yesterday morning, read all of the comments about how Potts didn't hit any receiver in stride the entire game, thought that I had seen a different game, perhaps under the influence, watched the game again and thought that this was a crazy notion. Did he miss receivers? Sure, find a quarterback that doesn't. Did he throw behind some receivers? Sure, find a quarterback that doesn't.

Not only that, I think credit needs to be given to Potts for continuing to believe in the running game, as he (or someone) called 12 rushing plays in the 2nd half good for 55 yards, that's 4.58 yards per attempt. It would have been real easy to simply pass every play considering how the team was down, but I thought the mix of running plays was a big part of the 2nd half success.

I get the feeling that this is probably a losing battle with most of you guys, in that my efforts to give Potts just a bit of a break will always fail. Potts isn't perfect, I think we can all agree on that, and he had a bad first half, but he's not the worst quarterback in the history of Texas Tech. In Graham Harrell's first year quarterbacking this team, Harrell led this team to 8 wins with losses to TCU, Missouri, Colorado, Texas and Oklahoma. Harrell finished the year with 38 touchdowns and 11 interceptions, while Potts sits at 20 touchdowns and 11 interceptions. No one will ever win an argument that Potts is the best quarterback, but I just have a hard time agreeing with some of the sentiments that every pass was an abomination.

One other thought that's creeped in my mind, and I don't like talking about injuries, but QB Steven Sheffield is listed at 190 pounds, but would be willing to be that he may not weigh a pound over 180. The fact that Sheffield is a skinny guy who may not be able to take the pounding that a Big 12 season has to offer is a very real possibility next year.

Not only that, the picture above is visual proof that Potts teammates absolutely hate him.

At the end of the day, I think we all want the same thing, which is for the best quarterback to play, but some of the Potts-critiques seem harsh or perhaps I'm too soft, not mean enough, need to have a take and rip a player for not being better than he actually is or crap on a player despite getting a win.

Baylor's Best: LAJ's Don Williams writes that the Baylor Bears brought their best on Saturday. Head captain Mike Leach seems proud of the effort:

"Baylor was more ready to play than we were,’’ Tech coach Mike Leach said, "and Baylor came in and gave us their best shot. It’s the best game I’ve seen them play all year and we (won), and for that, I’m very proud of our guys. Sometimes, you’ve just got to find a way.’’

Sharpe's Record: LAJ's Don Williams with a small notebook, but does have the note that the quarterback hurry that resulted in the Baylor QB throwing the ball away was officially changed to a sack, giving DE Brandon Sharpe 15.0 for the year. Leach had this to say about Sharpe:

"The last three-quarters of the season, he got on a tear,’’ Tech coach Mike Leach said. "Just think if the first four games were like that.’’ Leach said some credit should go to defensive end Daniel Howard, who has been credited with eight sacks this season.

"I think what makes it really difficult (for blockers) and really makes (Sharpe’s) job easier is the fact there’s a lot of heat on that other side with Daniel Howard,’’ Leach said. "We had a situation like that a few years back when we had Aaron Hunt and Adell Duckett on either side. It’s a lot different than just having one.’’

. . . Williams also mentions how IR Austin Zouzalik has slowly but surely replaced fellow IR Detron Lewis . . .

Texas Tech vs. Baylor Leftovers: DT's Alex Ybarra writes that the Red Raiders survived the Baylor scare, with the defense coming up big against the Bears, and fellow-writer Adam Coleman focuses on freshman RB Eric Stephens goat-to-hero game . . . WacoTrib's John Werner writes that moving the game to Cowboys Stadium was the right move . . .

Double-T Nation Daily Diatribe :: 11.25.09

Seth C — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 12:03:49 -0000

More photos » by Sue Ogrocki - AP

27 days ago: Texas Tech defensive back Jamar Wall, right, reaches in to intercept a pass intended for Oklahoma tight end Trent Ratterree, left, in the fourth quarter of an NCAA college football game in Lubbock, Texas, Saturday, Nov. 21, 2009. (AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki)

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Friday Night Isolation: LAJ's Don Williams writes about the routine that the football program goes through each Friday night, which is going to the team hotel. DC Ruffin McNeill likes to isolate the team:

"I think you have to isolate the main core of the team,’’ said McNeill, the Texas Tech defensive coordinator. "They have got to be on the same page and have the same amount of football focus time as a group — as well as the coaches. It keeps us on the same page for a 48-hour period.’’

It was also fairly interesting to see Captain Mike Leach's comments regarding the proposed California legislation to outlaw (I like the word "outlaw") this practice:

"They act like it’s an unreasonable extravagance,’’ Leach said. "What about the burden on student-athletes having to go out there and perform in front of tens of thousands, furthermore, on national TV and not be able to put their best foot forward because they can’t get a good night’s sleep? It’s crazy. It’s crazy to the point I would like to meet the individuals in the Pac-10 that were foolish enough to propose it.’’

Influencing Academics: DT's Jon Vanderlaan writes about how Leach has positively affected the academics since he's been the head coach:

"I’ve got more degrees than I use. Than I know what to do with, really. And at one time more than I could afford," he said. "There’s no question you should have high academics. And there should be no excuse for not graduating people."

Despite the occasional temptation to be territorial between academics and athletics, Leach said, he supports the academic departments because it is another part of the university that enhances the quality of life for the students.

"I think attention to the university in general is very positive," he said. "For example, if someone looks to Tech for engineering or something like that and gets excited for our football team, that helps me. Just like if someone gets excited for the football team and looks at our math department, that helps our math department."

I love that this program graduates players and holds players accountable for their grades. Very proud of that.

Football Notebook: LAJ's Don Williams' notebook has the note that RG Brandon Carter will play in the East-West Shrine Game, which is scheduled for January 23, 2010 in Florida . . . a number of players were honored by being named to the academic All-Big 12 team:

First-team honorees were those with a grade-point average of 3.2 or higher. From Tech, those were linebacker Bront Bird (business major), cornerback Taylor Charbonnet (general business), safety Cody Davis (business), defensive tackle David Neill (human development and family studies), guard Mickey Okafor (pre-dental), tackle Chris Olson (general business), quarterback Taylor Potts (pre-physical therapy), flanker Alex Torres (general business) and inside receiver Austin Zouzalik (general business).

Second-team honorees were those with a GPA between 3.0 and 3.19. From Tech, those were kicker-punter Donnie Carona (general business) and defensive end Brandon Sharpe (human development and family studies).

. . . DC Ruffin McNeill talks about DB Trent Nickerson and LB Chris Wallace each getting a play during Saturday's game against Oklahoma because of their commitment to the team:

"Senior, great leader,’’ McNeill said Tuesday. "Great enthusiast on the sideline. He’s a guy who knew his role on the football team, accepted his role and took it to another level. He always has great support for whoever’s playing on offense, defense or special teams. He’s been a scout-team guy for us and gave us great looks.’’

Baylor Bear and Big 12 Links: Waco Tribune's John Werner writes that the Bears are bowing out earlier than expected, but in grand style at Jerry's World . . . the SAEN looks at the 8 teams that have a shot at playing the Alamo Bowl . . .

First Non-Conference Win on the Road Since 2006: That's all you really need to know. The game looked well in hand for a good part of the first half and second half, but the SFA Lumberjacks came storming back in the second half. This is the sort of game that we would have talked about had Texas Tech lost the game, even if it was close, but with a 1 point win, I don't know that we'll be talking about this game in a month. If this game were a loss, it would be discussed until the end of the season. As far as game-play is concerned, G David Tairu didn't have a huge game, but he did his the 3-pointer that put the game away. There was a point late in the game where Tairu chastised SF Mike Singletary for taking an ill-advised shot late in the game, when Tairu was incredibly open. It's interesting to see that dynamic with Tairu being one of the new guys but feeling comfortable correcting his teammates. Tairu is probably the most fundamentally sound player I've seen for Texas Tech, on both sides of the ball. I'd be completely fine if the offense ran through Tairu as I think he has the makeup to be that sort of player.

The thing that bothers me the most is that I'm not sure that this team has a guy that knows how or wants to set up his teammates. Right now there's a lot of one-on-one and not much offensive flow. I'm struggling as to why this team, which has a core players who have been around for 3 years, can't figure out how to get guys involved. Offensively, this team is frustrating so long as there isn't one guy willing to take the team on their back.

Defensively, there were frustrating points for sure. Singletary and Roberson still have their defensive lapses and I think there was 4 points that Singletary gave up because he simply lost his man under the basket . . . twice. I thought that for the most part, Tairu, PF Darko Cohadarevic, SF D`Walyn Roberts and SF Brad Reese all looked good defensively.

Darko's Big Night: LAJ's Courtney Linehan focuses on Cohadarevic leading this team with 18 points and 3 boards. Here's head coach Pat Knight on his depth and the play of Darko:

"Lew and Corbin, they gave us some good minutes, then Darko got his stuff together on the bench, came back in and played well," Knight said. "I think that’s the best thing, if your kid’s struggling, the bench is almost like brain surgery."

And Darko knows that he must rebound better:

"I should go for boards more," he said. "This should not happen again."

Linehan has a notebook with this quote from PK:

"It’s huge. They say you can’t take anybody lightly on the road, even after you built a big lead you think it’s over, but they’re able to hang on like that," he said. "We got down early, came back, got the lead, got a big lead, let them back in. It will help us prepare for the Big 12."

. . . PF Corbin Ray returned after suffering a concussion in a pre-season scrimmage . . . Darko takes some of the blame on himself for trying to post-up too much rather than screen for teammates:

"After I hit the 17-foot jumper, I thought for a second, they’re not guarding me. Then after I got the post move under them they fouled me and I realized they cannot guard me low because I’m technically sound. I realized I’ve got to post up. Later on I got lost a little bit, I posted up too much, and the coaches wanted me to down screen away, down screen, flare screen to get other guys open, but I got caught up in posting up too much. I can take the blame for them catching up our 15-point lead because of that."

Double-T Nation Daily Diatribe :: 11.17.09

Seth C — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 11:53:39 -0000

Sticking With Potts: LAJ's Don Williams writes (also found here with DT's Alex Ybarra) that Captain Mike Leach admitted yesterday that he should have stuck with Potts on Saturday, which seems to me to be a clear indication that Leach will be going with Potts for the rest of the year, barring some unforeseen event. Here's Leach:

"I probably should have kept (Taylor) Potts in the whole game,’’ Leach said during his weekly Monday news conference. "I should have played him the whole game.’’

Asked if that thought was based on what he saw from Potts or what he didn’t see from Steven Sheffield, Leach said, "I base it more just on the shuffling around. I don’t need to mess with a bunch of shuffling around.’’

And Leach has quarterback regret:

"Well, the last time was when I felt like I messed with Chris Todd a little too much with regard to Graham Harrell that first year (Harrell started),’’ Leach said. "I should have just kept Graham in. There were several series I played with Chris Todd. Not to take anything away from Chris Todd, and part of it is you want to give a guy perspective. But part of it is there’s a disruption to it, too. I got a little fancy with that, I thought. That’d probably be the last time.’’

I find this fascinating that Leach has this sort of regret (and regret is probably not the right word, but just go with me) regarding his quarterback play. I think Leach knows quarterbacks and he probably thought that he may have gotten a bit fancy on Saturday.

OU Tail Whipping: FWST's Dwain Price and DT's Alex Ybarra write that the Texas Tech players have not forgotten last year's loss to Oklahoma and this quote from RT Marlon Winn made me laugh out loud this morning:

"The thing I remember the most about that game is when the Kriss Kross song 'Jump’ came on, there were 80-year old women getting out of their wheel chairs and jumping up and down," offensive tackle Marlon Winn said. "The whole stadium was jumping up and down, and it was just demoralizing and it was one of the most humbling situations you can ever be in.

And Leach says that the team needs to put that loss behind them:

"They need to not worry about it," he said. "They need to forget it. All that counts is the next game. Nothing from that game impacts this game. There’s not one play that we made or they made that affects this game. Any reflection on that is a complete waste of time."

FWST's Dwain Price also logs a couple of blog posts, the first from LB Bront Bird, who says that Texas Tech has a lot of respect for OU:

In the ultimate respect paid to OU, Bird said: "One thing I know about Oklahoma is that _ we always say this as a joke _ whenever they step out on the field and they are coming out of their tunnel, that is what some of the best athletes in the whole country look like and it’s true. It doesn’t matter if it is their second string, third string, whatever.

"Those guys get amazing recruits and whoever it is going to be that lines up is going to be good. And you can never underestimate a team like that, when you have that kind of recruiting and that kind of coaching and that kind of school history.''

. . . and the second blog post with a little more detail about how Leach wants the players to forget about 2008 and the seniors don't need to get all emotional:

"We're looking forward to them as well as coming in and playing another game,'' Leach said. "We missed too many opportunities this last game.

"We're preparing to do the best we can and see where it takes us. Right now we are a team that is explosive, but we're not real consistent.''

Snip

"It's kind of a milestone that it's their last home game,'' Leach said of the seniors. "We have two more games after that (if they are bowl eligible) and we don't need a bunch of bologna.''

Football Notebook: LAJ's Don Williams football notebook suggests that there's a reason why Harrison Jeffers has not been utilized recently:

"Some of that’s kind of up to Harrison," Leach said. "When Harrison plays hard, he has a tendency to get into the lineup. When Harrison jogs around, he tends to not be in the lineup. So we’ll see how that goes."

. . . Leach would like for his receivers to play better this week:

"We had a bunch of receivers just eat, ride and warm up this last week," Leach said, "and they need to take it upon themselves to improve. This business that I’m going to pretend it’s otherwise, that’s just not the case. So I’ll address that with them – and have, and will do it repeatedly."

. . . and your captains for the week are IR Austin Zouzalik, RB Baron Batch, RT Marlon Winn, DE Daniel Howard and LB Bront Bird (congrats to all 5 players). . .

Oklahoma Sooner and Big 12 Links: NewsOK's Jake Trotter with an OU football notebook and a bit about the new uniforms that OU will wear on Saturday (I do not understand why OU didn't save these for a home game) . . . LAJ's Adam Zuvanich has lots of Big 12 notes (this is actually an enjoyable read for me personally and I do not know why it's relegated to his blog rather than the actual paper) . . . TR's dedfischer with an OSU post-morten . . .

Tairu Named Big 12 Rookie of the Week: Congrats to G David Tairu, who just wrapped up being named the MVP of the Duel in the Desert on Sunday, to being named the Big 12 Rookie of the Week:

Tairu was named the MVP of the Duel in the Desert Tournament as the Red Raiders started the season with a 3-0 record. The junior guard led the team in scoring in two of three contests, averaging 14.0 points for the weekend. He started all three games, connecting on 14-of-27 (.519) shots from the field. He was also 5-of-9 (.556) from the floor and 9-of-11 (.818) from the charity stripe, while adding three assists and three steals. Tairu’s accolade marks just the sixth time in Big 12 history a Tech player has won rookie honors.

Neglected video after the jump, both football and basketball.

Neglected Video: KAMC and Fox34 with G David Tairu winning MVP of the Duel in the Desert . . . Fox34 on who will play quarterback against OU (there's no answer, it's what you would call a tease) . . . NewsChannel 11 with some clips from Leach's press conference from yesterday:

Post Game Thoughts :: Oklahoma St. Cowboys Edition

Seth C — Sun, 15 Nov 2009 18:00:39 -0000

by Brody Schmidt - AP

about 1 month ago: Texas Tech's Detron Lewis (17), fends off Oklahoma State's Andre Sexton (20), and Markelle Martin (10), during the second half of an NCAA college football game in Stillwater, Okla. Saturday, Nov. 14, 2009. Oklahoma State defeated Texas Tech 24-17. Lewis had 6 receptions for 75 yards in the 24-17 loss to Oklahoma State. (AP Photo/Brody Schmidt)

View full size photo »

SBN Box Score :: Post Game Quotes

The Result :: Not Good Enough: That may be the meme for the entire season, "just not good enough." Every loss is frustrating, but as I watched the game last night I couldn't help but think that the defense played good enough, the offense was slow, but played good enough, etc. There are always plenty of plays during a game to point to that evidence the loss, but I thought the difference in the game was the pick-6 that Sheffield throws that puts Oklahoma St. up by 2 touchdowns. If that doesn't happen, then I'm not sure we're talking about a loss this morning, although it was certainly the motivation that Leach needed to sit Sheffield down for the remainder of the game. That's not to say that I put the loss on Sheffield's shoulders. If the receivers catch a few more passes, I also think the result is a bit different. I will say that the resiliancy of this team is remarkable and my season long meme may not be palatable to most, but my summer-meme will be that this team will be hell on wheels in 2010.

And I don't know if it's just me, and I hate to lose, but the fact that the team gave good effort for the entire game gives me solace. It doesn't make it right, but at the very least, it gives makes me sleep better at night.

The Storylines ::

Sheffield Is Not the Best Ever and Potts Is Not the Worst Ever: I think we've all heard the phrase that the truth is somewhere in the middle between 2 opposing viewpoints and I think this applies to the quarterback situation. I think Tech92 mentioned this earlier in the week (giving credit, but not linking) that Leach is just as confused about the quarterback situation as the fanbase is. Sheffield's 2nd interception for the night, the pick-6, had nothing to do with his ankle and everything to do with making the assumption that this pass that's been there all game was going to get jumped and returned for a touchdown. I'm not pinning the loss on Sheffield and Potts had plenty of moments where he didn't appear to make all of the right decisions, but I think the key here is that both quarterbacks have their pros and cons and as great as Sheffield looked previously, he's not perfect. And to add to that, he's obviously not the same with the ankle injury. I think it's also unfair to Potts not to mention that his spark in the 2nd half, the same type of spark that Sheffield gets credit for, was the reason why Texas Tech as able to come back into the game so quickly. That arm that we've all heard about was on display during that second to last drive. All-in-all, each have their issues and as Captain Mike Leach said after the game, it's more about consistency:

On Taylor Potts and the Texas Tech offense:
"I thought he was OK, but it just wasn’t real dynamic and we turned the ball over and were close to others. Hit a few of our opponents with a couple too many footballs, so I figured we’d put Sheffield in and see how that went and he kind of sparked things. That basically went pretty well other than a turnover when we put them on the two or something. They’re both inconsistent and at some point we’ve got to just be consistent; and be consistent at other positions. We dropped too many balls. We missed some holes at running back. Up front I thought we had great protection at times and then there’d be key times when we weren’t so great."

Sheffield's ankle isn't right, Potts had to come back too quick from a concussion and QB Seth Doege's future looks bright, but just isn't ready this year. What I can say definatively is that there will be an epic quarterback battle in 2010.

Bane of My Existance -- The Running Quarterback: Perhaps "bane of my existance" is a bit harsh, but this is the defensive conundrum that Ruffin McNeill faces is tricky. With the running quarterback, or perhaps the quarterback that can run if necessary, there's not point in putting a defensive lineman as a spy because the QB can out run the lineman. I would also say that right now, I feel the same way about the linebackers at Texas Tech, sans Marlon Williams. He seems like he could keep pace, but even then I'm not completely sold that he could keep pace with a QB. If McNeill brings a safety up then the team runs the risk of giving up a big play over the top, although I'd truly have to wonder if Robinson could hit a receiver in stride more than twice in a game. If McNeill puts 8 players up front, then Gundy goes 4 wide, a linebacker is forced to cover a slot receiver, and we've all seen what that entails. McNeill has always played it safe in the secondary and much of the success that the secondary has had this year and the previous years can be attributed to that philosophy. Bringing up a safety leaves the defense vulnerable, but at the very least it hopefully stops the QB from running. I think the eventual answer is that with the increased speed of the linebackers this option for an offense becomes less and less likely. If McNeill's recruiting trends are any indication, then speed at the linebacker position is a high priority. Right now, it's a question of having the right personnel and that may take at least 1 more season for McNeill to get the guys where he wants them.

Tired Defense: Can I just be the first one to say that I really don't think the defense was really tired. I think this was more of a situation of Oklahoma St. doing what they do really well, which is eat up the clock and run the ball. I really didn't think the defense looked overly taxed the 2nd half, but I did think that the quarterback draw play plagued the Red Raiders, which wasn't a function of a tired defense, but rather not having the personnel. There's a lot of depth on this defense. The announcers (particularly the play-by-play guy) really played up the tired excuse, which I found to be convenient and lazy assumptions. And if the defense is tired, wouldn't the offense be conversely tired too? Perhaps I'm just being a bit sore about the entire thing, but the offense is out there working and I'm waiting for an announcer to be a bit bold and talk about how tired the offense is after going on an 8 minute drive.

Someone Really Asked This Question: I'm not real sure how to respond to this, but it appears that some reporter actually asked Leach if Zac Robinson, who was pretty good running the ball, but was 9-21 for 90 yards and a touchdown if Leach thought Robinson was the best quarterback he's seen.

On if Robinson is the best quarterback he’s seen:
"I think he’s a good one. I wouldn’t go that far, I think he’s a good one. We’ve seen some pretty good ones. The fella from Houston; Texas and so it goes. I’ve liked him from early on. I liked him just back when they had that little deal when they were splitting time between the two of them. I thought he was pretty good then."

Rebuilding: Am I a bad fan if I've resigned myself to think that the 2010 version of Texas Tech is going to be much better than the 2009 version? Of course, I'd love to see this team finish with 2 wins to finish out the year and I think that playing well is a spring-board to the next season, but I think this team next year will be much more prepared to battle for a Big 12 Championship. Other than the defensive end position, almost every position returns a starter or player with significant playing time. The rough spots that this team has encountered and battled back from, which include early suspensions, numerous injuries to key positions, quarterbacck uncertainty, etc. But this team is pretty damned close I think to something really special next year. I'm going to enjoy what's going on now, but I think this year, as tough as it's been will serve the team well next year.

The Offensive MVP :: WR Detron Lewis: He showed how special he can be and physically he's a dominant player, or perhaps has the ability to be a dominant player. I'd love to see Lewis get the ball 3 or 4 more times during a game in open space.

The Defensive MVP :: CB Jamar Wall: For the hit alone, he gave the offense at the very least an opportunity to score in the last 2 minutes. Wall sacrificed his body on that hit on Zac Robinson for the team. I'm going to remember that play for a long time. Wall did give up a touchdown, but I think he was sure that the help would be there in plenty of time, which it was, but Franklin Mitchem just didn't make the play.

The Special Teams MVP :: PR Austin Zouzalik: We finally saw a little bit of breakout from Zouzalik, and although Zouzalik has been solid most of the year, he's been quiet. Not to mention, Matthew Williams going 1-2 and Ryan Erxleben having to punt 4 times, for a 43 yard average, although good, didn't necessarily inspire me.

Crunching the Numbers :: Oklahoma St. Cowboys Edition

Seth C — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 18:00:36 -0000

Texas Tech Red Raiders
(6-3, 3-2)

vs.

Oklahoma St. Cowboys
(7-2, 4-1)

Game Information:
Date: November 14, 2009 :: Time: 7:00 p.m. CST :: Weather: Stillwater, OK
TV: ABC :: Radio: Affiliates :: Game Cast: Fox Sports

I'm going to be pressed for time this week. I was able to have a preview of the numbers between the two teams and rather than give my 5 thoughts, I'd love to hear any thoughts that you may have about these two teams based on the statistics. You can find additional statistics on both teams here: Texas Tech and Oklahoma St.

CATEGORY	STATISTIC (NCAA RANK, CONF. RANK)	WINNER
TTU Pass Offense vs. OSU Pass Defense	400.44 (2, 1) 237.33 (87, 10)
TTU Rush Offense vs. OSU Rush Defense	73.56 (116, 12) 94.00 (9, 3)
OSU Pass Offense vs. TTU Pass Defense	212.11 (71, 9) 232.78 (77, 6)
OSU Rush Offense vs. TTU Rush Defense	196.00 (20, 1) 122.78 (44, 8)
TTU Scoring Offense vs. OSU Scoring Defense	40.22 (4, 2) 21.00 (33, 4)
OSU Scoring Offense vs. TTU Scoring Defense	34.11 (17, 4) 23.44 (55, 7)

Team Leaders


STATISTIC	TEXAS TECH	OKLAHOMA ST.
Passing	Taylor Potts :: 195-290 : 2,221 : 15 : 9	Zac Robinson :: 149-228 : 1,832 : 14 : 7
Rushing	Baron Batch :: 93 : 531 : 10	Keith Toston :: 155 : 882 : 9
Receiving	Detron Lewis :: 46 : 625 : 5	Hubert Anyiam :: 35 : 416 : 2
Punt Returns	Austin Zouzalik :: 16 : 161 : 0	Perrish Cox :: 9 : 75 : 0
Kickoff Returns	Eric Stephens :: 21 : 543 : 0	Perrish Cox :: 20 : 474 : 0
Tackles	Brian Duncan :: 62	Donald Booker :: 63
Sacks	Brandon Sharpe :: 10.5 : 63	Donald Booker :: 4.0 : 27
Tackles for Loss	Brandon Sharpe :: 11.5 : 65	Lucien Antoine :: 6.0 : 17
Interceptions	Will Ford :: 1 : 0 : 0 D.J. Johnson :: 1 : 7 : 0 Franklin Mitchem :: 1 : 7 : 0 Marlon Williams :: 1 : 0 : 0 LaRon Moore :: 1 : 3 : 0	Patrick Lavine :: 4 : 4 : 0

Taking a Breath :: Looking Ahead to the Texas Tech Offense of 2010

Seth C — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 15:00:30 -0000

More photos » by David J. Phillip - AP

2 months ago: Texas Tech running back Harrison Jeffers (10) leaps over Houston linebacker C.J. Cavness (40) as he rushes for a first down during the second quarter of an NCAA college football game Saturday, Sept. 26, 2009 in Houston. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)

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THE OFFENSE

With the football bye week, DTN is taking this opportunity to look at Texas Tech's offense and defense in 2010. Up today is a look at the 2-deep, the talented players who are on the roster, but have not contributed much this year, the 2010 offensive recruiting class and a look back at the past 5 years recruits and the washout rate of players who were recruited by Texas Tech.

Who Returns (2010 Projected 2-Deep)

POSITION	PLAYER	STATS	YEAR
LT	Terry McDaniel	6-7/335	SO
	Chris Olson	6-5/296	SR
LG	Lonnie Edwards	6-5/290	JR
	Chris Olson	6-5/296	SR
C	Justin Keown	6-4/302	JR
	-------
RG	Mickey Okafor	6-7/319	JR
	Deveric Gallington	6-4/350	JR
RT	LaAdrian Waddle	6-6/350	SO
	Joe King	6-6/319	SO
QB	Steven Sheffield	6-4/190	SR
	Taylor Potts	6-4/218	SR
RB	Baron Batch	5-11/205	SR
	Harrison Jeffers	5-9/204	SO
HR	Tramain Swindall	6-3/180	JR
	Adam James	6-3/216	JR
YR	Detron Lewis	6-0/205	SR
	Austin Zouzalik	6-1/181	SO
XR	Lyle Leong	6-1/165	SR
	Eric Ward	5-11/202	FR
ZR	Alexander Torres	6-2/196	SO
	Jacoby Franks	6-1/185	JR

So there's definitely some advantages to having so many injuries in a season. Right now, there's not any one position where there is not a returning starter on offense. Think about that for a minute. Almost the entire 2-deep has at least 1 start. If there was ever a reason to look forward to 2010 it's the offense. Right now, the offensive roster appears to be a well-rounded group, probably because of necessity. This doesn't take into account the various redshirts from the 2009 recruiting class that could step up and help and the other players that have experience, but just don't fit on the 2-deep.

Lots more after the jump.

Don't Sleep On:

OL: Kyle Clark (6-5/277; RS FR); Blake Emert (6-5/287; JR); and Joel Gray (6-6/306; RS FR)
WR: E.J. Celestie (5-11/174; RS FR); Aaron Fisher (6-3/182; RS FR); Derrick Mays (6-0/166; RS FR) and Cornelius Douglas (5-9/193; SO)
RB: Eric Stephens (5-8/182; SO) and Aaron Crawford (5-11/204; JR)
QB: Seth Doege (6-2/205; SO) (6-4/218; SR) and Jacob Karam (6-1/205; RS FR)

Irregardless of whether or not you like Potts or not as a player, you could probably argue that Leach might put Doege ahead of Potts on the 2-deep next year, but based on last week's results, that may not be the case. Still, Leach is still undecided on some level and there's competition, which is good. There's really not any one position that's going to be lacking over the next few years, especially if some of the younger players develop as we expect. And I'd also add that although Scotty Young (detailed below) appears to be just a tremendous football player, I'd just like to remind everyone that Karam is traveling with the team every week. That says something about his personality and what the coaches think of him. Don't anoint Young too quickly. It's easy to get wrapped up in the new guy, but sometimes it's the least likely guy that can lead your football team and Karam had an impressive pedigree -- 3,291 yards / 38 TD's / 10 INT's (thinking of some guy named Sheffield). Let's also not forget that Ward was a 4-star receiver last year, came to Texas Tech early and I'm hoping that he can make a significant impact sooner rather than later.

Recruiting, The 2010 Class

POSITION	PLAYER	STATS	RR	STARS
QB	Scotty Young	6-3/185	5.8	4
RB	Delans Griffin	5-10/181	5.8	4
RB	Aaron Spikes	5-10/185	5.6	3
WR	Kadron Boone	6-1/190	5.8	4
WR	Shawn Corker	6-1/183	5.7	3
OL	Beau Carpenter	6-7/269	5.6	3
OL	Eric Lawson	6-6/320	5.5	3
OL	James Polk	6-7/290	5.6	3
OL	Denton Simek	6-6/260	5.6	3
OL	Javius Townsend	6-4/297	5.6	3
AVERAGE			5.66	3.33

I think it's safe to say that offensively, the class is probably finished. Leach is recruiting at every position and just about every one of these recruits are high quality players and this year, there are no 2-star players on either side of the ball, which is an upgrade in talent. If I had to guess which players receive early playing time, you should probably consider Boone and maybe Corker. Both are supremely talented I also wouldn't be surprised if Griffin gets a look as well. I'd also imagine that considering the depth on the offensive line, all of these guys should redshirt.

Recruit Trends

YEAR	AVG. RR	AVG. STARS	WASHOUT RATE
2010	5.66	3.33	-
2009	5.51	3.10	1/10 = 10.00%
2008	5.58	3.00	0/7 = 0.00%
2007	5.49	2.80	6/15 = 40.00%
2006	5.47	2.79	8/14 = 57.14%

Disclaimer: I'm using the Rivals recruiting rankings and each player is assigned an RR number and a star.

I probably need some explaining as the wash-out rate, which is the rate of players that either played just 1 season for Texas Tech or never really made it on campus. The reason to even judge some of these players is that the rankings can look great, but if the players do not contribute or make it on campus, then you haven't done much. I think it's also important to add that the washout rate is something that's going to happen to any college football team and the trend that you would prefer to see is the rate to be lower than it was in 2006, but I think the key is that in 2006 and in previous years, the staff had two options: take safe, but less talented athletes or take more risky, but more talented players. I think that's the reason for the high washout rate in 2006 and in 2007, however, as the team improves, I think a staff is able to recruit a higher caliber player, both personally and on the field.

Matchups :: Nebraska Cornhuskers Edition

Seth C — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 17:00:55 -0000

Texas Tech Red Raiders (4-2, 1-1)

vs.

Nebraska Cornhuskers (4-1, 1-0)

Game Information:
October 17, 2009 :: 2:30 p.m. CST :: Weather: Lincoln, NE
TV: FSN :: Radio: Affiliates :: Game Cast: Fox Sports

The figures next to the team name are, in order: yards per game / national rank / conference rank.

Texas Tech Passing Offense vs. Nebraska Passing Defense

Texas Tech (443.50 / 2 / 1): QB Steven Sheffield has been electric in two games for Texas Tech, albeit he's done it against two teams that aren't top 25 teams, like Nebraska. In 1.5 games for the Red Raiders, Sheffield is 53-70 for 780 yards, 11 touchdowns and 2 interceptions. Not to be too critical, but Sheffield's interception on Saturday night seemed like a play where Sheffield had determined where he was going to go as the play was snapped. That cannot happen against Nebraska. Tramain Swindall has become this team's playmaker amongst the receivers, averaging 92.8 yards a game and 19.33 yards per catch. The rest of the group is rounding out their roles. I think I mentioned last week that Texas Tech would need at least 1 receiver to step up their game, and right now, Swindall is in a zone. The bigger the threat that Swindall is, the easier it becomes for Detron Lewis, Alexander Torres and Lyle Leong. And this doesn't even take into account Jacoby Franks big night (3 receptions, 99 yards and 1 touchdown) against KSU. Quite simply, there's a lot of receiving threats out there and Sheffield is finding them. There's no doubt that the offensive line has looked better in the last two games, in part because Sheffield's mobility has allowed him additional time, but this unit still leads the conference in sacks allowed at 13 and must play like a cohesive unit. Perhaps the matchup of the night will be RG Brandon Carter and the below-mentioned Suh.

Nebraska (162.60 / 14 / 1): The Cornhusker pass defends begins and ends with DT Ndamukong Suh, who may be the best player in college football right now, and has an unbelievable stat line: 32 tackles (leads team), 5.5 TFL (leads team), 3 sacks (leads team), 7 passes broken up (leads team) and an interception. Suh is an absolute dominate interior defender and to think that Texas Tech's offensive line is going to control Suh to an extent would be wishful thinking. The pass defense is 14th in the nation and have played prolific passing teams such as . . . Missouri, in a rain-storm. In other words, much like Kansas St. last week, the Cornhuskers haven't really played a team that's truly proficient passing the ball other than the Tigers. And to give Nebraska credit, they held Blaine Gabbert to 17-43 for 134 yards and 2 interceptions. I think you'll see a lineup of Prince Amukamara and Alfonzo Dennard at cornerback and Matt O'Hanlon and Larry Asante at safety. Keep in mind that Nebraska has a distinct advantage that other Texas Tech opponents haven't had, which is a dominant player up front. Nebraska has broken up 25 passes during the year and had 17 quarterback hurries. That's 42 pass plays that have been affected by the secondary or the defensive line.

Verdict: This is the strength of the Texas Tech offense and the offense is clicking.

Texas Tech Rushing Offense vs. Nebraska Rushing Defense

Texas Tech (78.00 / 114 / 12): Baby steps. The Red Raiders went from the worst rushing offense in the NCAA to the 114th worst rushing offense, all in one week. But there's progress there to those of us who watch closely. I mentioned after the game on Sunday that the running backs rushed for 182 yards on 21 carries. That's an 8.67 yard per carry average and for a team that's absolutely struggled to garner any sort of run game, the fact that this team has pulled itself up a bit, especially after having such a tough time establishing anything resembling a running game is encouraging. The truth be told though is that the Red Raiders hae steadily improved the rushing game after a somewhat slow start (73 and 60 yards in their first 2 games). It's still tough to be sure what offensive line coach Matt Moore will do, although you would expect that unless something drastic happened, he would settle on the offensive line that would be the most successful against Nebraska, which was to start Lonnie Edwards at LG rather than Chris Olson, who Moore may be figuring will need to give multiple positions a break against the Cornhuskers. The more I think about this idea, the more I like it.

Nebraska (110.80 / 33 / 5): Nebraska is sitting 5th in the conference, although Nebraska has been a team that you could run on (i.e. there's yards to be gained), but the difference is that they are yielding few points on the ground and allowing less than 5 yards a rush. In addition to all-world Suh, the defensive line is rounded out by Barry Turner and Pierre Allen at defensive end and Jared Crick joins Suh up front. I'm not sure how much the linebackers will play on Saturday and would guess that Pelini will adjust with an additional defensive back, which should, in theory, open things up for the Texas Tech running game. When Nebraska is in their base package, I think you'll see Phillip Dillard, Will Compton and Sean Fisher. This is a stout run defense, and last year, I think you might see a defense more focused on the run as Texas Tech and Baron Batch ran for 137 yards on 23 carries and 3 touchdowns.

Verdict: Nebraska, hands down.

Nebraska Passing Offense vs. Texas Tech Passing Defense

Nebraska (236.60 / 44 / 7): I'll be the first to admit that I'm pleasantly surprised by Zac Lee's passing efficiency thus far this year. Lee's been very effective and probably most important to a Pelini offense, he doesn't turn the ball over, with only 3 interceptions this year to 10 touchdowns. Lee's not prolific as his biggest game this year was 340 yards against Arkansas St. A very balanced group of receivers lead the way for Nebraska, including receivers Paul Niles, Curenski Gilleylen, and Chris Brooks. TE Mike McNeill is a receiving threat as he's caught a pass every game thus far this year, but the truth is that the 3 receivers mentioned above are the main threats for Nebraska. Nebraska is 10th in the country in sacks allowed, giving up only 4 all year. Other than RT Marcel Jones, the Nebraska offensive line is a veteran group, including LT Mike Smith, LG Keith Williams, C Jacob Hickman and RG Ricky Henry. We're looking a the short passing game, keeping the Texas Tech offense off of the field and that can be so painful to watch.

Texas Tech (242.50 / 92 / 11): Texas Tech has really struggled here, and this may be an indication that Texas Tech played some proficient passing teams early in Texas and Houston (although the killer game was 316 to New Mexico). Still, this unit has been a little up and down, giving up yards, but not necessarily points. Despite the yardage given up, Texas Tech leads the conference in passes defended, including 33 passes broken up and 4 interceptions. Perhaps part of the reason is that the secondary hasn't been healthy in weeks, as SS Franklin Mitchem was out early in the season, FS Cody Davis was out last week, and LaRon Moore missed almost the entire game last week. This has forced two freshmen, S Will Ford and CB D.J. Johnson to step up their game. Also sitting a-top the conference is Texas Tech (along with Oklahoma) with 18 sacks for the year. Same as the secondary, much of this has been done with players that no on else in the conference would recognize. I've said it before, but it bears repeating, this group isn't as physically gifted as others, but they will out-work out and it seems that this unit gets more sacks late in the game. It's constant pressure.

Verdict: Statistically, I feel like I have to give this to Nebraska.

Nebraska Rushing Offense vs. Texas Tech Rushing Defense

Nebraska (168.00 / 43 / 8): When I first started to look at the numbers, I was surprised that Nebraska was only 8th in the conference in rushing. I was expecting a bit more. RB Roy Helu, Jr. is 13th in the nation in rushing, and was a bit under the weather against Missouri last week. Helu had a monster game against Virginia Tech (169 yards on 28 carries) and that's the sort of thing that bothers me about what Nebraska is capable of on any given night. There's not much behind Helu as true freshman, and DFW guy, Rex Burkhead is seeing the most significant carries behind Helu. Right now, Burkhead is a change of pace sort of back, getting 5 or 6 carries a game, although he's fairly effective.

Texas Tech (107.17 / 28 / 4): I'm shocked by those numbers and I'll keep repeating this and hope that it becomes true, but one of the hallmarks of a team that does well is a good to great rush defense. Much like most other things this early in the season, you can partially blame opponents, but thus far, the Red Raiders have only allowed a little over 100 yards a game. The DT's Colby Whitlock and Richard Jones have quietly been very solid and give plenty of credit to a linebacking corp of Brian Duncan, Bront Bird and Marlon Williams that seem to be getting better game by game. You would think that Duncan and Bird would be tailor made for Nebraska and it will be interesting to see if Whitlock, Jones and Victor Hunter, to an extent, will be able to allow the linebackers to scrape and make plays.

Verdict: Seems strange, but the stats play the winner out here.

Texas Tech Special Teams vs. Nebraska Special Teams

Texas Tech: Freshman P Ryan Erxleben has been a breath of fresh air, handling 14 punts on the year, but being able to pin a few inside the opponents 20 yard line is a nice weapon have, especially in a game that could come down to field position. You'd like to see more consistency from K Donnie Carona kicking off, but he's still 6th in the conference and Matthew Williams hasn't had to kick a lot of field goals, but he has been solid in PAT's (34/35) ending the horror that was 2008. Texas Tech hasn't been spectacular returning punts and tried WR Austin Zouzalik for a number of games, but switched to CB Jamar Wall last week. Wall might be a bit more daring, but Zouzalik is solid. The Red Raiders are 2nd in the conference in kickoff returns, led by true freshman RB Eric Stephens.

Nebraska: P Alex Henry is 6th in the conference in punting. Much like Texas Tech, there's nothing really spectacular there. PK Alex Henery is clutch, making 8 of 9 field goals this year and making all of his PAT's. WR Niles Paul is returning punts, and again, like Texas Tech, aren't lighting the world on fire and as far as kickoff returns, Niles is again, mediocre (59th in the county and 9th in the conference).

Verdict: These teams are about as even as you could be for the most part, with slight advantages in one category over another. PUSH

Crunching the Numbers :: Kansas St. Wildcats Edition

Seth C — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 17:00:26 -0000

Kansas St. Wildcats
(3-2, 1-0)

vs.

Texas Tech Red Raiders
(3-2, 0-1)

Game Information:
October 10, 2009 :: 6:00 p.m. CST :: Weather: Lubbock, TX
TV: FSN :: Radio: Affiliates :: Game Cast: Fox Sports

CATEGORY	STATISTIC (NCAA RANK, CONF. RANK)	WINNER
TTU Pass Offense vs. KSU Pass Defense	421.40 (2, 1) 152.60 (7, 1)
TTU Rush Offense vs. KSU Rush Defense	56.60 (120, 12) 114.60 (38, 5)
KSU Pass Offense vs. TTU Pass Defense	184.00 (90, 11) 257.40 (99, 12)
KSU Rush Offense vs. TTU Rush Defense	188.00 (36, 7) 105.40 (28, 4)
TTU Scoring Offense vs. KSU Scoring Defense	38.60 (11, 5) 17.40 (29, 6)
KSU Scoring Offense vs. TTU Scoring Defense	23.60 (87, 12) 22.80 (51, 10)

Team Leaders


STATISTIC	TEXAS TECH	KANSAS ST.
Passing	Taylor Potts :: 159-235 : 1,817 : 13 : 6	Carson Coffman :: 55-95 : 684 : 2 : 4
Rushing	Baron Batch :: 44 : 226 : 4	Daniel Thomas :: 116 : 529 : 4
Receiving	Tramain Swindall :: 19 : 367 : 4	Brandon Banks :: 23 : 289 : 1
Punt Returns	Austin Zouzalik :: 10 : 91 : 0	Tysyn Hartman :: 8 : 105 : 0
Kickoff Returns	Eric Stephens :: 14 : 349 : 0	Brandon Banks :: 13 : 461 : 2
Tackles	Brian Duncan :: 40	Tysyn Hartman :: 26
Sacks	Daniel Howard :: 5.0 : 31	Courtney Herdon :: 1.5 : 15
Tackles for Loss	Bront Bird :: 5.0 : 21	Jeffrey Fitzgerald :: 3.5 : 13
Interceptions	Will Ford D.J. Johnson Marlon Williams LaRon Moore :: 1 : 10 : 0	Tysyn Hartman :: 3 : 0 : 0

Five Initial Thoughts

One :: Change at Quarterbacks: Both Potts and Coffman's statistics are listed, but on Saturday you'll probably see Steven Sheffield due to Potts concussion and last week against Iowa St., Bill Snyder decided it was time to plug in heralded JUCO QB, Grant Gregory. You can expect a fairly mobile quarterback in Gregory as he's already rushed for 121 yards in fairly limited time.

Two :: Solid, Not Spectacular: Kansas St. has done a good job of being solid, but not spectacular thus far this season. Of their season statistics, there's nothing too out of the ordinary that I won't point out below, but generally speaking the Wildcats are proficient on offense and defense for the most part. Consistency isn't a bad thing.

Three :: Not Much Pressure: Last week, we noted that New Mexico was a team that was quite good this season at getting to the quarterback, but Kansas St. is 107th in the nation in sacks and 112th in tackles for loss. Having not watched a minute of Wildcat football, I'd guess that Snyder is making sure that they stop the run at all costs and let peripheral statistics like sacks work themselves out later.

Four :: Banks is a Game-Breaker: Brandon Banks, all by his lonesome, is whipping opponents in kickoff returns, averaging 35.46 yards per return and two touchdowns, both against Tennessee Tech. Aside from being a legitimate receiving threat, he's also a threat to score in special teams.

Five :: Rushing Away: With the addition of Gregory at quarterback, you're looking at an offensive unit that is more focused on the ground game than the passing game. It's not that Gregory can't pass, but last week against Iowa St., Kansas St. rushed 42 times and only passed the ball 23 times. With a Texas Tech offense that had trouble stopping a horrible rushing team in New Mexico, you might say I'm a little concerned.

Keys to the Game, Revisited - UH Edition

NM99 — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 01:41:00 -0000

More photos » by Eric Gay - AP

Still feeling the hangover

Browse more photos »

The crowd was raucous from the beginning, and without a cell phone, I would have never found the tailgate party I was looking for - it was that crowded around the stadium. A great game atmosphere. I spent 8 years in Houston before moving to DFW. A coworker in my company's Houston office was able to purchase extra tickets as part of his season package to University of Houston games, which he offered to me before the season.

In talking with U of H fans before, during, and after the game, many thought they were over matched on Saturday. And with the exception of the guy who spilled his beer down my wife's back and one slightly obnoxious drunk guy in the row behind us, they were a hospitable crowd. Tip 'o the hat to the U of H fans for being gracious hosts, and kudos to their team for never giving up despite trailing most of the game. This is the reason why we watch college football.

I will never understand why cougars only have 3 fingers.

After losing for the second week in a row, my newest black Texas Tech T-shirt is officially retired from game day wear. Perhaps for this and myriad other reasons, this was a game about missed opportunity. As I sat in the stands Saturday, sweating (literally) out the last few minutes of the game, I couldn't help but think that, should Houston score, we didn't have the play makers for a last second comeback. But this game did not come down to one play or one series. Though we were up at the half, the signs of the bad loss (this one definitely qualifies) littered Tech's play throughout the game. Here are my thoughts on the game as seen from the stands and a look at the Keys to the Game from last week.

I don't know how it was on TV, but watching the game in person was agonizingly frustrating. I had great seats for viewing the game (50 yard line, about a third of the way up). Which is good because in the rush to get down to Houston last week, I forgot to set my DVR. This may be a blessing in disguise, as I'm not sure I could stomach watching that game again.

On offense we did not capitalize on opportunities provided by key stops by the defense, missed field goals and penalties against U of H that kept us alive and in striking distance. For the second game in a row, Edward Britton made his presence known through a personal foul after the play. It occurred on the far side of the field from me, so I couldn't see what happened, but anything that happens after the play is absolutely, 100% uncalled for. I think this is why Britton became the decoy for the rest of the night and never saw Taylor Potts look his direction. Some additional disciplinary action is in order, IMO.

On defense, we seemed out of sorts. The Cougars game play was to run a hurry-up offense. At one point it seemed they were getting plays off every 15-20 seconds. Our defense was caught several times not lined up and out of position, or still trying to make substitutions. I asked Ruff to prove me wrong this week, but I came away disappointed in our scheme and play calling. Continually trying to substitute against the hurry-up offense was unnecessary. The epic TV timeouts and moving of the chains allowed a substitution relatively frequently. I do not understand trying to substitute on 2nd and 3rd down when we are not changing the scheme (e.g. changing from 4-3 to nickle) when in 1 or 2 plays they would either be moving the chains or punting. Were it not for some phenomenal efforts by guys like Colby Whitlock (I swear he single-handedly stopped a play in which NO ONE else was lined up when Houston snapped the ball), Tech would have been in a huge hole.

Offensive Keys

Key #1 - Hold on to the ball. -1 turnover margin. Again. And yet again, this is good for a seven point swing. 2 fumbles lost - one on the first series of the game, and had it not been for a hands to the face penalty (that I missed), there would have been an INT as well. Not to mention at least one other dropped interception and a fumble that we recovered ourselves. We definitely missed on this one again. Eric Stephens fumble was the result of the risk you take in continuing to go hard after the first hit. Sometimes, you break free or pick up a few extra yards. Sometimes you get stripped of the ball as multiple defenders start trying to bring you down. I'll take the effort. As he gains experience at this level, he'll learn to protect the ball more when he is in trouble. The first fumble was a group effort - poor protection by the line, who seemed to still be asleep, and Taylor Potts's statuesque form in the pocket. I am glad he is showing patience and trust in his o-line, but it is OK to step up in the pocket and scramble to buy time on occasion. The offensive line continues to struggle against pressure on the edge.

Key #2 - Run. The. Ball. Our running game seemed to find it's legs in this game. With the exception of the goal line stand in the 4th, U of H had nothing to contain Baron Batch, Eric Stephens and Harrison Jeffers, who had 28 combined touches and averaged 6.8 yds/carry. How could is 6.8 yds/carry? Consider that the passing game only netted 7.1 yds/attempt. I like that the staff is getting Jeffers involved. We need to get our best athletes on the field and making plays in any way we can. I understand not lining him up in the backfield alot when we need pass protection, but the reverse option with Jeffers in motion set up least 3 different plays (hand off to Jeffers, Hand off to Batch/Stephens, play action pass) that keeps the defense frozen and could open up some big play opportunities. i was very pleased with our running effort and don't fault Leach for going for the TD. The U of H defensive front was whipped by that point. A TD would have sealed the game and stolen all momentum. Give credit where it's due - U of H made a gutsy stop on defense. I also expect that we witnessed the death of the jumbo set for this season. It has not been effective for us.

Key #3 - No time off. After the first series, the line seemed to wake up and we had some decent run blocking, though as we know U of H is not the strongest team against the run. The success of the second series seemed to lull the offense back to sleep, as we allowed a sack/intentional grounding in the third series. We had a number of dropped passes (starting in the 4th series), and a couple of plays where Potts threw the ball away and for the first time I saw him visabley frustrated. It seemed as if the receivers just didn't want to make the play or were thinking about the run instead of catching the ball first. I actually commented at one point that they were playing as if the ball was wet. The offense still lacks cohesion. I hope that the events of this week and what should be an easy home game will help things to gel, but I am skeptical.

Defense

Key #1 - Limit YAC. Houston had 4 receivers who averaged over 10 yards a catch and each of them caught at least 8 passes. Tyrone Carrier was continually open over the middle and had lots of running room. We continued to play very soft at corner most of the game. Cody Davis had what would have been a great break-up, but a penalty against U of H made it moot. Unfortunately, that was the only one of note, but it is good to see the athleticism in the secondary start to come through. The only reason Keenum managed to complete only 65% was a number of drops and some overthrown balls to wide open receivers. We continued to play soft coverage, even when we desparately needed a stop at the ed of the game, and U of H took advantage.

Key #2 - Force Case Keenum to hold the ball more than 3 seconds. When this happened, Houston floundered. It was not until late in the game that Keenum was able to do any damage with his feet. In generaly, though, Keenum had no trouble finding the open man. Again, very disappointing. See soft coverage above.

Key #3 - Avoid the let down. From the player's perspective, i think Tech did a good job of this until U of H's last drive. Will Ford had a nice pick in which he ripped the ball from the receiver on the ensuing drive after Tech failed to convert the 4th and 1 into a TD, with Houston marching down the field. 4 plays later, in which we failed to run the ball despite our success earlier in the game, the defense was back out on the field and Houston methodically moved the ball 95 yards down the field, with the help of 2 3rd down conversions and a 4th down conversion. Throughout the game, I thought we were ~~hamstrung a bit~~ trying to give the game to them by poor substitution and vanilla defense. For the most part, the players showed a will to win and played hard. I really like this group. McNeill needs to show some trust and unleash them to make plays.

Special Teams

Make them drive the field. This one was 50/50. Our punt coverage was great. Our kick-off coverage stinks worse than the Lubbock stock yards on a hot summer day. Seriously. I also want to give some props to Austin Zouzalik for dropping the hammer in blocking for Stephens on kick returns. Stephens gets the glory, but Zouzalik deserves a ton of credit for allowing him to get past the first man repeatedly.

Overall, the running game was the bright spot and gives me hope going forward. It seems that this is still a team trying to find itself and establish roles. Over the next couple of weeks, I expect that the playmakers will start to emerge and things will start to fall into place. I am not ready to start talking about "next year" yet.

Crunching the Numbers :: New Mexico Lobos Edition

Seth C — Mon, 28 Sep 2009 17:00:30 -0000

New Mexico Lobos (0-4, 0-1)

vs.

Texas Tech Red Raiders (2-2, 0-1)

Game Information:
October 3, 2009 :: 2:30 p.m. CST :: Weather: Lubbock, TX
TV: FSN :: Radio: Texas Tech Affiliates :: Game Cast: Fox Sports

CATEGORY	STATISTIC (NCAA RANK, CONF. RANK)	WINNER
TTU Pass Offense vs. NM Pass Defense	413.50 (3, 1) 216.00 (66, 6)
TTU Rush Offense vs. NM Rush Defense	62.25 (120, 12) 204.00 (111, 9)
NM Pass Offense vs. TTU Pass Defense	158.50 (108, 8) 242.75 (89, 11)
NM Rush Offense vs. TTU Rush Defense	103.50 (100, 8) 103.00 (29, 5)
TTU Scoring Offense vs. NM Scoring Defense	36.25 (21, 9) 35.50 (111, 9)
NM Scoring Offense vs. TTU Scoring Defense	11.50 (119, 9) 21.50 (46, 11)

Team Leaders


STATISTIC	TEXAS TECH	NEW MEXICO
Passing	Taylor Potts :: 146-212 : 1,602 : 13 : 4	Donovan Porterie :: 61-98 : 530 : 1 : 3
Rushing	Baron Batch :: 37 : 179 : 3	Demond Dennis :: 42 : 200 : 1
Receiving	Lyle Leong :: 21 : 263 : 5	Ty Kirk :: 13 : 152 : 0
Punt Returns	Austin Zouzalik :: 5 : 39 : 0	Ian Clark :: 3 : 18 : 0
Kickoff Returns	Eric Stephens :: 13 : 329 : 0	Roland Bruno :: 8 : 108 : 0
Tackles	Marlon Williams :: 35	Carmen Messina :: 57
Sacks	Daniel Howard :: 3.0 : 23	Johnathan Rainey :: 5.5 : 59
Tackles for Loss	Marlon Williams :: 5.0 : 14	Johnathan Rainey :: 8.5 : 71
Interceptions	LaRon Moore D.J. Johnson Will Ford Marlon Williams :: 1 : 10 : 0	Carmen Messina :: 1 : 0 : 0

Five Initial Thoughts

One :: 6, 10, 13, 17: That's the point totals for the Lobos for their 4 games this season. New Mexico is one of the worst teams in the nation in scoring offense, 119th in the nation. This is a bad offensive team right now and it will be interesting to see how this Texas Tech defense reacts after last week's loss to Houston.

Two :: One Strength: This is really scary, but if you check out the NCAA official page on the Lobos (which is what I use to put together these numbers) they are 100th or worse in just about every category other than Pass Defense, Sacks and Tackles for Loss. The Lobos are actually very good in those respects and I have to wonder if this should be a cause for concern for a passing team.

Three :: Getting Closer: The first 4 games of the Lobos young season have been tough, with a bad loss to TAMU to start the season, but New Mexico played a very close game with their in-state rivals, the New Mexico St. Aggies. The Lobos played a good game, but it appeared that their defense was probably incredibly worn out after the game, being on the field for 37 minutes.

Four :: Not Sure What the Lobos Are: With these numbers, it's tough to tell exactly what the Lobos really are. I'm sure that this is a bad team, and not to pile-on here, with the numbers that I'm looking at, there's not even very much to get excited about, either offensively or defensively and conversely, it makes this weekly article really hard to write.

Five :: Road Games: The TAMU game was the only road game of the year for New Mexico, which they lost 6-41, and even playing at home has been difficult. I would expect a similar result on Saturday and if it's not painfully obvious, and as referenced above, statistically, New Mexico is an awful team and this article is difficult to write.