SB Nation - Jacoby Franks

Double-T Nation Daily Diatribe :: 11.18.09

Seth C — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 12:07:16 -0000

Clogged Pipes: Remember when I said that I was busier than normal this week? I am, and now I've got a clogged kitchen sink. The night before last, I spent a couple hours after work trying to unclog the damned thing and then I called a plumber, who then spent a couple of hours trying to unclog the thing. No dice. Our only options are for the plumber to crawl under the house and cut some pipe to find the clog or use some sort of fancy machine that produces 3,000 p.s.i. of water that will blast any clog a few miles away. Pray for me.

Leach to ________: I refuse to post to any link regarding any coaching vaccancy and Captain Mike Leach. I would love it if Leach just made a statement regarding the fact that he has no interest in __________ University. I understand that all of the "sources close to the program" is mainly B.S. What this really means is that high profile booster at _________ University got drunk, started talking about who he would like and thought that Leach would like it too. There's nothing concrete nor is there any actual quote from said source. Besides this entire situation gave me tremendous tired-head last year and I'm not going to feed the rumors unless there's actually something to report.

Sooners Want Win in Lubbock: LAJ's Don Williams writes that the Sooners would love to get a win in Lubbock. Here's CB Dominique Franks on wanting to play well:

"We haven’t played too well in the past in Lubbock,’’ Franks said. "We know this year also, we haven’t played too good on the road. We want to make sure we go out there and give them our best shot on Saturday.’’

Not the Same Sooners: DT's Adam Coleman writes that this year's version of the Sooners are not the Sooners of previous year, but head coach Mike Leach knows that the Sooners still have talent at every position:

"The biggest thing is they don’t have any serious holes," Tech coach Mike Leach said. "They are a team that would like to have some games back, but they don’t have any serious holes. They have good talent and good coaches. They played together really well last year."

And RT Marlon Winn talks about DT Gerald McCoy:

"Very athletic, very strong, fast around the edges. He can work inside as well, good with his hands and he is always focused," Winn said. "I think he is an awesome athlete really."

Texas Tech Notebook: LAJ's Don Williams writes that WR Jacoby Franks has been demoted to the scout team this week and Williams has this from WR coach Dennis Simmons and where players played in practice yesterday:

Simmons said Lyle Leong divided his time between split end and flanker in Tuesday’s workout, so it was starter Alex Torres and Leong at flanker, and Edward Britton, Leong and Brik Brinker at split end.

Snip

"I fault myself, because they’re a direct reflection of me,’’ Simmons said. "If they’re not playing well, then obviously I’m not doing something right. I need to fix me in order to make sure that they’re fixed. That’s what we’re doing. We’re fixing each other right now.’’

. . . LB Marlon Williams and CB Jamar Wall did not practice yesterday, which means there is a good chance that they will not play on Saturday. If Wall doesn't play, then CB Brent Nickerson will get the start and in place for Williams, you could see LB Brian Duncan move over to the weakside and LB Sam Fehoko to middle linebacker or move S/LB Julius Howard to Williams spot . . . the Baylor vs. Texas Tech game is almost completely sold out . . . DE Brandon Sharpe has been added to the Hendricks Watch List, a post-season award that goes to the nation's top defensive end (huge congrats to Brandon!)

Oklahoma Sooner and Big 12 Links: TulsaWorld's Dave Sittler writes that the Sooners need to be ready for strange happenings in Lubbock . . . NewsOK's Jake Trotter with an extensive OU notebook, including WR Brandon Caleb and OG Brian Simmons should be back for this weekend's game . . . TulsaWorld's Guerin Emig also has a notebook . . .

Its Official on 3 Signings: The official site finally announced that all of the paperwork has been returned on the 3 players who have signed with Pat Knight's Red Raiders.

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)

Browse more photos »

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.

Five Reasons Texas Tech Will Win :: Nebraska Cornhuskers Edition

Seth C — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 17:00:27 -0000

This weekly feature considers five reasons why Texas Tech will win and five reasons Texas Tech will lose to each opponent. Related: Five Reasons Texas Tech Will Lose :: Nebraska Cornhuskers Edition.

Reason #1 :: Force Turnovers: This will be a difficult task for Texas Tech as Nebraska has only turned the ball over 5 times the entire season. Winning on the road is invariably easier when you can force a turnover and create a drive where Nebraska cannot eat up the clock and also create a potential score. QB Zac Lee has been incredibly careful with the ball thus far and he's a big part of the reason why Nebraska is winning games. The defense should be at full-strength on Saturday and I think the fact that so many players had to play while other players were recovering from injuries should help out as there's the expectation that the Nebraska offense will look to dominate the 4th quarter. I have no doubt that this defense is capable, especially when you have senior leaders like CB Jamar Wall, and DE Daniel Howard leading the way. I also wouldn't be at all surprised by an appearance by the relatively quiet DT Colby Whitlock, who seems to show up for big games.

Reason #2 :: Prepare for Suh: The play where Texas DE Sergio Kindle flat-out beat RT Marlon Winn to level QB Taylor Potts is still burned in my brain, and I hope like hell it's burned in Winn's brain as well. Winn took that play off, and to give credit to Kindle, Winn just couldn't keep pace with him on that play either. Earlier this week, OL coach Moore stated that RG Brandon Carter will see 95% of Ndamukong Suh and I too think that because the wide-splits, it's tougher to double-team an interior defender rather than an outside rusher. No matter who has who, all I really want out of this offensive line is for players to not take one play off the entire game. I'm not sure they can afford to do so, but to the running backs who chip to the linemen themselves, I think this is going to have to be a complete game for this unit and I think they're more than capable.

Reason #3 :: Take What's There, Unless You Feel Like You Need to Take a Chance: This is really up to QB Steven Sheffield and Mike Leach. As I watched last week's game with my brother-in-law, we both thought that there were a couple of pass plays that had the defensive backs played better angles or been better athletes, that Sheffield could have been in danger of throwing a few extra picks. Conversely, this might be a credit to Sheffield, who had a bead on the defenders and knew exactly what he was doing. There's a fine balance between a quarterback that takes unnecessary chances and a quarterback that takes what the defense gives him. Finding that balance can be tough, and Leach and his Red Raiders have typically prided themselves on being able to take chances and live with the consequences, but I'd like for Leach and Sheffield to keep it simple. Check down to the run, even if it doesn't net 8 yards a carry. If Nebraska is playing a cover-2 then get underneath and get the receivers to block the hell out of the defensive backs.

Reason #4 :: Play-Makers Make Plays: Last year I found myself in a bit of a rut as I wrote this series, mainly because I could have said each week, "Because Texas Tech Has Mr. Crabtree." There were plenty of questions as to whether or not Texas Tech would be able to duplicate last year's results and I'd say that with the 2nd ranked offense in the country, the Red Raiders seem fine. We've talked about this for a few weeks now, but the list of potential play-makers continues to grow each week. Early in the season, some were convinced that Eric Stephens would supplant Harrison Jeffers. Now those roles are reversed. Some thought that Detron Lewis would be the Crabtree-Replacement, but it's been Tramain Swindall, Lyle Leong, Jacoby Franks, Alexander Torres, etc. There's quite a few targets out there and I'm extremely interested to see if and who Nebraska decides to double-team. If that happens, there's going to be a man advantage and as stated above, I think Texas Tech might have the best blocking receivers in football.

Reason #5 :: Coaching to Win: I've wondered this since the Houston game, where Leach was faced with the proposition of taking the points or going for the gusto. Initially, Leach said that he should have gone for the points, but in retrospect, he later said that he would go for the gusto, but call a different play. I'm perfectly comfortable living with a guy like Leach playing unconventionally. After I've thought about it, it's almost like going for a 2-point conversion for a win at the end of the game. Sometimes you just have to put yourselves out there and that one play can be a tremendous measuring stick of where your team sits. Despite the gusto, I hope that Leach has learned somewhat of a lesson in that sometimes, it's okay to take the points. I don't want Leach to out-smart himself here, but sometimes taking the points isn't such a bad thing and I want to think that Leach is okay with taking the points in certain situations.

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

Kayakyakr's Week 3 Report Card

kayakyakr — Sun, 20 Sep 2009 20:42:53 -0000

Texas Tech v. Texas

As I mentioned when I got home last night, I am happy with the moral victory after that game. As a quick rundown, we hung with the #2 team in the nation for 4 quarters, held their offense to its lowest home output of 340 yards since 2007 against KSU (also 340 yards), and I really saw something out of this team that I hoped for but wasn’t sure of. I really don’t want to sound like I’m just trying to spin sunshine, but I honestly have to believe that this TTU team is better than a lot of people picked them to be.

Read on after the break for my positional breakdown

Position	Grade
QB	A
RB	F
WR	A-
OL	D
DL	A
LB	A-
DB	B
ST	F

Offense

QB

Taylor Potts had a great day, considering. I think that a lot of the grades that I’m giving are based on expectations vs performance and Pott’s grade is. Next year, if he has a 3 td, 1 int day against UT, I’d probably grade that a C, but this year, I’m ecstatic with that state line. That was one of my biggest question marks going into this game, "How will Taylor Potts handle his first road start in a hostile environment?" He handled it great, especially since he was being hit pretty much every play and was bouncing right back up. I think I’ve officially joined the Taylor Potts fan club.

If I have any complaint about the QB last night, it’s that he displayed a bit of a lack of situational awareness. I’m mainly talking about that set of series to start the 4th quarter where nothing really happened. I felt that Taylor failed to recognize that UT was bringing all-out pressure at that point and that before then, we had been tearing holes in the UT defense with the dink and dunk offense. It seemed like Potts was looking to go deep, 15+ yards down the field on his pick, fumble, and over half of the other plays in that series. Take what the defense gives you and we take advantage of the stop and punt or McCoy’s pick.

All that said, I still give Taylor an A for his performance on the night. Well deserved.

RB

All I can really say about the RB’s is that they were pretty much completely ineffective on the night. There was 1 18 yard run by Baron and a 12 yard run by Stephens, and outside of that, they never got going. It may have been the oline’s fault, but they’re also getting a poor score on the evening. Even in the passing game, the backs did nothing. And Batch, on the two catches where he looked like he had some room or at least a one-man-to-beat situation, he fumbled, losing one. I’m most disappointed that we didn’t see any of Harrison Jeffers. I’m not sure if he was held out for effort/disciplinary reasons or just because Stephens and Batch are much better in pass protection than him, but I was not happy to see him on the sideline.

I think we had the most room for running from the 2 back set. I really like the concept of handing off to one back while the other one leads. We ran from that set twice that I can remember, each going for short yardage, but I thought I saw the potential for bigger gains from there. I don’t like the 2 TE set anymore because, in order to run from that set, we have to also have a threat to throw. We just don’t have the personnel for that to be an effective formation and we won’t until we get a TE that can block and catch.

I think this is going to be the #1 thing for our coaches to figure out, how do we break open holes in our running game. Yes, it’s called the air raid and we live and die by the pass, but I don’t believe that our offense will play to its best potential until we can consistently gash defenses when they only have 6 men in the box. I give the unit an F and it makes me very sad to do so

WR

We have a very young crew of receivers. I’m pretty sure Lewis was still hampered by his hamstring and he didn’t see many reps, yet I don’t think our receiving corps missed a beat. I loved the constant rotation of receivers and that combined with our no-huddle we ran all night, caused headaches for UT all night long. I think Eddy B had a great makeup game for his drops and had the block of the night on a Zouzalik out route. Leong just knows how to score TD’s and Torres had his high in receptions for the year. I also don’t see what the vitriol for Jacoby Franks is. He had a drop (one of only 2-3 I can remember) early and he had the PI call late (that I think was just as phantom as Crabtree’s PI last year), but aside from that, he turned in his career performance in catches and yards.

I must reiterate that we have an incredibly young group of receivers. I’m giving them a score of A- on the night. The minus is because they did allow themselves to be bumped off of their routes, held up, or gave up on their routes once they felt they had been interfered with.

OL

I think we saw 3 different types of offensive lines last night. The first, was the line that was being blown up and unable to create holes in the defense against a 4 man front. This was also the line that was unable to get out and deliver blocks in front of the backs on screens. We only saw them about 12 plays, but they didn’t do much for us.

The second OL we saw was the OL that was able to withstand 5, 6, and even 7 man rushes to give Taylor just enough time to get the ball into the hands of his receivers 5-15 yards down the field. I like this line.

The third line that we saw was the line that committed false starts and missed blocking assignments and got blown by on speed rushes. This line only reared its ugly head when we were backed up deep near the north endzone or when we were approaching that same endzone going the other direction. While the first offensive line certainly contributes, this is the line that earned a D for their performance.

I’m still impressed with the youth and depth of our line. Oakafor and Edwards are both sophomores and are both solid, despite their false start mistakes. I think Olson’s future is at center (an odd change from LT to center), so the questions next year will be at LT and RT and I’m confident we’ll have that figured out.

Defense

DL

We started this season with 4 DE’s. We took 1 of those to Austin with us. Your 4 DE’s for last night’s game (as determined by the DE warmup group): Daniel Howard – DE – 6’3" 240#; Jonathan Brydon – LB – 6’3" 220#; David Neill – DT – 6’5" 280#; Britton Barbee – DT – 6’2" 296#. Now, in the game, I think we saw the most of Bront Bird playing 3-technique or stand-up end, and Richard Jones, a DT, also lining up at end. I must say that this line unit did an exceptional job considering. Early in the game we stopped up their running game very well and got fair pressure on the QB once we started running stunts and twists in the line. Only one sack but 8 tackles for loss including 3 by Bront Bird.

I have to hand it to the coaching staff. They did the best with what they had and it worked until the 2nd half when UT finally figured out that we were backing our ends to make up for our lack of depth there and leaving the middle of the field without a 2nd level of defender. For what we had and what we were missing, this unit is deserving of that A grade.

LB

The linebackers did a solid job all night. I can only recall them getting outright beat 2-3 times, once on the long Chiles run and twice by Buckner, the Longhorns pseudo-TE. Good game by the backers and very little that I can say about their performance

For a solid night, they get an A but they get a minus tacked on for the missed plays and lack of stops in the 3rd and 4th quarters and a plus for Bront Bird’s ability to play end respectably. So again, A.

DB

On the one hand, our DBs didn’t get beat deep all night. On the other hand, we gave up a lot of underneath catches and 3rd down conversions because of how soft we were playing. I know that was a coaching decision, but I think that it was the wrong one. Our defensive line wasn’t going to be able to come up with the big play and so I don’t see why we shouldn’t try to put our backs in positions to force pass breakups and ints of their own. We pulled down 2 picks off of tipped balls, but because of the yards given up underneath, the unit earns a B.

Special Teams

I’m going to break this up by play type. Kick returns get an A, and I think this is the aspect of the game that Stephens made his greatest impact (not to downplay his in-pocket blocking). They kicked to Stephens every time and every time he took the ball up to the 35-40 except one. Unfortunately, half of those were called back on holding, but we’re close, and Stephens was close to breaking a few of those.

Kickoffs get a C for the night. We gave up about 30 yards per return which is not great, but acceptable. We also had that onside kick attempt that was in and out of the hands of, I think, Ed Britton. If it had worked, that would have evened the difference in the game, so I don’t mind the gamble in the least. I think the biggest keys for our kickoff team will be for Carona to continue to kick the ball deep in the endzone like we know he can (he had one touchback, one kick about 5 yards deep, and the rest of his kicks came down inside the 5), and for the coverage team to continue to get down the field even if Carona is booming kicks out of the endzone.

Punting gets an F for the night. This was the difference in the night, with Carona laying down a poor kick in the middle of the field that was returned for the only TD of the first half. The rest of the night, Erxleben punted for us, kicking a long of 46 but only an average of 38. On the other hand, he also kicked away from Shipley who only got 1 more return for -2 yards.

Punt returns get an incomplete for the night seeing as we never touched one of his punts. It seems like Eric Russell has just as much trouble figuring out that rugby punt as Clay McGuire did. UT has one hell of a punter, though.

Overall, this unit was the difference in the night. UT had that punt return for a touchdown and that was basically the difference in the game. On the plus side, Matt Williams kicked his career long of 41 yards. Way to go Matt. F for the rest of them, though.

Refs

I’m only going to say one thing about the refs:

Drive Chart :: North Dakota 13, Texas Tech 38

Seth C — Sun, 06 Sep 2009 13:08:19 -0000

Participation

Offense

Starters: LT Chris Olson, LG Brandon Carter, C Shawn Byrnes, RG Mickey Okafor, RT Marlon Winn, QB Taylor Potts, RB Baron Batch, IR Adam James, IR Detron Lewis, WR Edward Britton, WR Alexander Torres. Reserves: IR Cornelius Douglas, IR Austin Zouzalik, WR Jacoby Franks, RB Harrison Jeffers, WR Lyle Leong, RB Eric Stephens, RB Aaron Crawford, RT Joe King, RG Devric Gallington, LT Terry McDaniel, LG Lonnie Edwards.

Defense

Starters: DE Rajon Henley, DT Richard Jones, NT Colby Whitlock, DE Brandon Sharpe, SLB Bront Bird, MLB Brian Duncan, WLB Marlon Williams, CB Jamar Wall, FS Cody Davis, SS Franklin Mitchem, CB LaRon Moore. Reserves: S Will Ford, S Julius Howard, S Jared Flannel, CB Taylor Charbonnet, S Brett Dewhurst, WLB Blake Collier, CB Nathan Stone, MLB Sam Fehoko, S Daniel Cobb, SLB Tyrone Sonier, DE Sandy Riley, DE Ryan Haliburton, NT Victor Hunter, DE Daniel Howard, DT David Neil, DT Chris Perry.

Drive Chart Texas Tech Offense

Texas Tech Drive 1

What Went Right: 10 of Texas Tech's 40 rushing yards came from this drive, while Taylor Potts completed passes to Detron Lewis, Lyel leong, Austin Zouzalik and Adam James. Batch finished up the drive with a 3 yard touchdown

What Went Wrong: Not much. Only one incomplete pass to Britton

Texas Tech Drive 2

What Went Right: This drive was about to fall flat but was kept alive with a UND facemask. Potts then had a 14 yard completion to Alexander Torres and Potts rushed 1 yard for the touchdown.

What Went Wrong: Looks like some end-arounds and fancy running plays rather than straight ahead rushing. Potts also missed on 3 pass attempts.

Texas Tech Drive 3

What Went Right: Started nicely with a 15 yard completion to Harrison Jeffers and another pass completion to Lewis for 21 yards.

What Went Wrong: Potts first interception of the day while inside the UND 20 yard line. That's either 6 or 3 points that get taken off the board because of Potts mistake.

Texas Tech Drive 4

What Went Right: Potts gets back on track with a nice 6 play 74 yard drive. Completes passes to Torres, Britton, Cornelius Douglas, and Lewis gets the touchdown.

What Went Wrong: Nothing, other than an incomplete pass to Jacoby Franks.

Texas Tech Drive 5

What Went Right: Started great with completions to Torres for 9 and Lewis for 14 yards. Then things fall apart

What Went Wrong: After those 2 completions Potts gets sacked, fumbles the ball and Marlon Winn recovers. Perhaps Potts is a little gun-shy or is wanting to do too much. Remember that Texas Tech is again on the UND 26, within field goal distance, and Potts throws his 2nd INT of the day on 3rd down and 15. It's the end of the half, but there's 3 or 6 more points not on the board although Texas Tech was primed to score.

Texas Tech Drive 6

What Went Right: Nothing.

What Went Wrong: A Matt Goetz false start and this is a whopping 3 play drive for 1 yard. Carona punts and Nathan Stone recovers a fumble giving Texas Tech the ball back.

Texas Tech Drive 7

What Went Right: Potts completes passes to Britton (15), Leong (11) and Britton (6) again.

What Went Wrong: Terry McDaniel holds on first down and this is the last you see of McDaniel for the game. Potts pulls Texas Tech out of the whole and gets Texas Tech to the North Dakota 3 yard line on 4th down, but a jump-ball pass to Detron Lewis falls flat. Again, this is the 3rd drive for Texas Tech inside the UND 20 yard line and no points are on the board.

Texas Tech Drive 8

What Went Right: This is the infamous 4 down on the North Dakota 1 yard line with Potts scoring on the 4th down play. In between then, Potts completes passes to Franks (4), two to Jeffers (24 and 5) and Lyle Leong (8).

What Went Wrong: It takes Texas Tech 4 times to score from UND's 1 yard line.

Texas Tech Drive 9

What Went Right: A nice 19 yard completion to Detron Lewis.

What Went Wrong: Potts' 3rd and final interception of the day.

Texas Tech Drive 10

What Went Right: The return of RB Baron Batch. Batch touches the ball 4 times in this 10 play drive that ended in a Matthew Williams field goal. Also included was a pass to Leong for 28 yards and a 13 yard run from Batch.

What Went Wrong: Texas Tech was driving down the field nicely, but a false start penalty stalled the drive and this is the 4th drive of the day that ended in the UND 20 yard line, although Mike Leach did finally go for the field goal.

Texas Tech Drive 11

What Went Right: Potts completions to Torres for 12 yards and an 18 yard touchdown pass to Adam James.

What Went Wrong: Nothing.

Drive Chart Texas Tech Defense

North Dakota Drive 1

What Went Right: A three and out is always a good outcome. Tackles by Brian Duncan, Jamar Wall and Rajon Henley with blocked punt by Edward Britton.

What Went Wrong: Nothing.

North Dakota Drive 2

What Went Right: Not much, other than the defense finally holding from their own 22 yard line and allowing a 39 yard field goal. Lots of little gains for UND including a big 13 yard 3rd down completion from Jake Landry.

What Went Wrong: How about two personal foul penalties, the 1st one on Marlon Williams and the 2nd one to some unknown player. That's 30 gifted yards to UND

North Dakota Drive 3

What Went Right: 3 plays and 4 yards, thanks to a UND illegal formation penalty.

What Went Wrong: Nothing.

North Dakota Drive 4

What Went Right: Too much yardage given up here including 1 pass for 18 yards and 2 for 10 yards. UND's kicker made a 52 yard field goal, so this wasn't a situation where the defense just gave up a ton of yards. Only 45 to be exact.

What Went Wrong: A 9 yard pass interference penalty by Julius Howard kept the drive alive.

North Dakota Drive 5

What Went Right: End of half.

What Went Wrong: End of half.

North Dakota Drive 6

What Went Right: Another 3 and out, 3 plays 8 yards.

What Went Wrong: Nothing.

North Dakota Drive 7

What Went Right: And another 3 and out, 3 plays 9 yards.

What Went Wrong: Nothing.

North Dakota Drive 8

What Went Right: Not much.

What Went Wrong: 13 plays and 80 yards, with a 9 yard rushing touchdown from UND and a roughing the passer penaltty that gave the ball to UND on the Texas Tech 9 yard line. Too many small completions in the soft underbellly of the Texas Tech defense.

North Dakota Drive 9

What Went Right: Not quite a 3 and out, but a 5 play, 13 yard drive led to another UND punt.

What Went Wrong: Not much, other than a 13 yard pass given up by Cody Davis.

North Dakota Drive 10

What Went Right: A 3 and out, but a Daniel Howard sack led to a 3 play, -7 yard drive.

What Went Wrong: Nothing.

North Dakota Drive 11

What Went Right: This was the end of the game and Sam Fehoko made two tackles. The clock ended this drive.

What Went Wrong: Nothing really and it was nice to see Fehoko make two stops for little yardage.

Double-T Nation Daily Diatribe :: 09.02.09

Seth C — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 11:25:42 -0000

Odds and Ends

No Time for Odds and Ends! There's always time for one, if you're into Twitter, go follow the Fake Mike Leach and don't forget that you can also follow Double-T Nation on Twitter.

Texas Tech Football

A Bevy of LAJ Preview Articles: You have your work cut out for you this morning as the LAJ staff has been busy. I want to start off with the article by Adam Zuvanich on remodeling of the roster, which is where I think quite a few Texas Tech fans think about the state of the program. There have been years where the M.O. was rebuild and not reload and Zuvanich takes a look at all of the question mark positions in great detail, including the receiver position, post-Crabtree. IR Detron Lewis on the expectations of this group:

"We’re going to have a better receiving corps than we did last year," said the 6-0, 205-pound junior, Tech’s leading returning receiver in both catches and yards. "If we all get on the same page, we’re going to have the best receiving corps to ever come through here."

Don Williams writes about building a program at Texas Tech, and like most successful things in life, winning breeds more winning and DT Colby Whitlock likes the type of players at Texas Tech:

"Our defense is really starting to pick up," junior nose tackle Colby Whitlock said, "and a lot of the new recruits coming in are great athletes and great kids. Just the quality of recruit coming in right now is getting a lot better with our success."

And LB Marlon Williams can see a change as well:

"We’re getting better recruits and better playmakers on defense," Williams said. "I think when you put the improvement of our defense with the play of our offense — and the fact we’re getting guys who want to win, guys who are real passionate about football — they’re seeing our program rise to be up there with teams that have good legacies."

Zuvanich also writes about Texas Tech trying to keep pace with other universities with much larger athletic budgets and athletic director Gerald Myers gives honest answers about being in the red in the hopes of being able to compete on level (and sometimes at a greater level) with teams with much bigger budgets like Texas, Oklahoma, Nebraska and Texas A&M. And speaking of keeping pace, one of the ways to increase revenue is to increase the seats and Williams has an update on the stadium expansion.

Williams also goes position-by-position about where Texas Tech currently stands and where the future lies.

Finally, Williams gives us an opinion piece, and I'm not one to usually complain, but I think Williams does a terrific job on these types of articles and I just wish he'd do more of them. In any event, the article focuses on how it's imperative that the Red Raiders cannot let an 11 win season simply pass them by, and that this 2009 incarnation must capitalize on that 2008 season.

Moore Smarter at Cornerback: LAJ's Don Williams features CB LaRon Moore who will be starting alongside fellow CB, Jamar Wall, who believes that Moore has become smarter at cornerback:

"He’s become smarter on the field,’’ Wall said. "He recognizes routes better. Something we both needed to do was get in the film room more. We’ve both been doing that a lot together, so us being smarter together on the field, watching film, knowing what’s going to happen, it gives you more confidence.’’

And cornerbacks coach Brian Mitchell believes that Moore made the move during Midnight Maneuvers:

Mitchell said he began to turn a corner shortly thereafter in the team’s early offseason program known as "Midnight Maneuvers.’’

"He just decided, ‘Hey, it’s my turn,’ ’’ Mitchell said. "He decided to commit himself day in and day out and within the drills. I’m very pleased with his progress.’’

Texas Tech Football Notebook: LAJ's Don Williams writes that CB Brent Nickerson will be the #3 cornerback, although Ruffin McNeill has already stated that S Will Ford and S Julius Howard will be a part of the nickel and dime packages . . . also of note, freshman CB D.J. Johnson will eventually work into the rotation . . . CB Jamar Wall talks about returning punts with former Red Raider, Danny Amendola:

Wall picked up some tips from Amendola when he was back in Lubbock before training camp.

"I caught some punts with him," Wall said. "He was telling me different things that he focuses on when he’s catching. His main (advice) was just get square. Standing there, you basically want to feel like the ball is going to drop and hit you in the face. It’s staying square, being able to catch it under control and make a play with it."

Torres' Second Chance: DT's Alex Ybarra talks with WR Alexander Torres and his second chance at Texas Tech after being injured at the Air Force Academy. Receivers coach Dennis Simmons talks about Torres:

"He’s kind of a throwback football player in my opinion, or as most people like to use the terminology now, a cold-weather receiver," Simmons said. "He’s gonna get open, may not always look pretty. I think he’s gonna surprise people with his speed a little bit."

And fellow flanker Jacoby Franks also talks about Torres:

"Toro is a big physical dude, catches everything and runs sharp routes," Franks said. "I learn a lot of things from Toro, honestly. I think we’re a real good one-two punch."

Fighting Sioux: DTN user and North Dakota fan, nodakroxfan, pointed us to SiouxSports.com for bloggy and message board material. The official site has some news and notes (pdf) up from yesterday as well as a video interview with the Fighting Sioux head coach Chris Mussman.

Fox34 and Double-T 104.3 Preview: I won't link to each segment, but for you out of towners (like myself) there's some video of a recent preview show hosted by Chris Level and Robert Giovannetti that aired in Lubbock. Scroll down for each segment.

Sportacular Interview with Leach: NewsChannel 11's Pete Christy talks with the Captain, Mike Leach.

Official Big 12 Preview: That's what you call a fancy subject line, as the official Big 12 site has officially previewed Texas Tech,

Big 12 Links: Bad news for the Oklahoma St. Cowboys as starting tight end Jamal Mosley has left the program and starting linebacker Orie Lemon suffered a season ending knee injury . . . speaking of OSU, Barking Carnival has their State of the Union . . . Rock M Nation has part two of the Beyond the Box Score national preview . . . ESPN's Tim Griffin ranks the Big 12 offenses and Texas Tech checks in at #5 . . .

Texas Tech Basketball

Basketball? Well, yeah. The Ft. Walton Sun's Randy Dickson talks with incoming guard/forward Brad Reese who sounds like he's excited about the season:

"This summer was basically learning about my teammates and what they like and what I like. It was about coming together as a family so when the season starts we will be on the same page and everything. So it was a good experience for me. "

Reese expects to play shooting guard or small forward and is excited about playing on the perimeter.

"I love it because that’s my natural (area)," he said. "I played down low (at center) in high school because we were (Class) 1A. And in JUCO I played the three (small forward).

"I can play (power forward) sometimes, but at the next level I have to play outside because (the inside players) are 6-foot-8, 6-foot-10. I’m long and athletic and I can use my athletic ability against smaller twos and threes. Hopefully that will help me out for my future plans and stuff."

Depth Charting // The Receivers

Seth C — Tue, 25 Aug 2009 16:00:14 -0000

Receivers

X-Split End	H-Inside Receiver	Y-Inside Receiver	Z-Flanker
Edward Britton (27) SR; 6-0/167	Tramain Swindall (11) RS SO; 6-3/180	Detron Lewis (17) JR; 6-0/205	Alexander Torres (86) RS FR; 6-2/196
Eric Ward (18) FR; 5-11/202	Cornelius Douglas (2) RS FR; 5-9/193	Austin Zouzalik (6) RS FR; 6-1/181	Jacoby Franks (8) RS SO; (6-1/185)
Rashad Hawk (23) RS SO; 6-4/186	Adam James (82) RS SO; 6-3/216		Lyle Leong (19) JR; 6-1/165

X-Split End: The incumbent, Edward Britton, seems to have this spot locked up, as well he should. Britton is the speed threat on the outside that this offense needs, perhaps now more than ever with a quarterback who can just chunk the ball. I believe that Eric Ward was at another receiver spot, but has moved to this the X position, and I think it suits him well. As much as we're all falling over ourselves with the commitments of Kadron Boone and Shawn Corker (and we should, these are talented players), Eric Ward was the 2009 version of these guys. It's easy to forget about guys like Ward, but Ward has the skill set to be a tremendous playmaker. I'm not real sure about the third spot here and I'm guessing that it's Rashad Hawk, although I could be wrong. I had really high hopes for Hawk coming out of high school, but he's had a problem putting on weight and getting into the rotation. I'm not sure that the X position is what suits his skill set, although the thought of a big tall receiver that has speed to burn is certainly intriguing, but the problem is that he hasn't forced himself on the field yet.

H-Inside Receiver: Recent reports may mean that this position is subject to change and the coaching staff is not a staff that will stick a player with a position and refuse to make a change. Tramain Swindall was one of the players that I thought would have a break-out 2009, but if he's not impressing thus far, then I think the staff will have no problem making a change. Swindall has a ton of talent, but you've got to perform. Cornelius Douglas is the definition of inside receiver. He's shifty, incredibly quick, and from what I can tell, he's going to fit the mold of previous Texas Tech inside receivers. Adam James is the wildcard in that he was in Leach's doghouse during the spring, but has played well thus far. As I mentioned with the backfield, I'm not sure if James is going to be utilized as the second tight end that much this year, but if Leach does go in that direction then James will get plenty of time.

Y-Inside Receiver: This is the position that appears to have an abundance of talent. Deton Lewis is going to make lots of plays this year, I don't think that's much of a question. The real question is if Austin Zouzalik is having such a great training camp, and from all accounts he is, then he may be the guy that replaces Swindall if his play thus far warrants a promotion. If Zouzalik gets the time, then he's going to play well. After that, I'm really not sure. It could really be anyone at this point and it gets really messy if Zouzalik takes Swindall's spot at the other inside receiver position.

Z-Flanker: The battle for Crabtree's old position seems to be something fierce. We've heard that Alexander Torres is the guy who is catching everything thrown his way. He was very solid in the spring game and it wouldn't at all surprise me to see Torres start week 1. The conundrum of Jacoby Franks and Lyle Leong will work itself out as these things tend to do. I'm not sure if either one of these players will switch positions, but Leong is too talented not to be on the field and Franks has too much potential. If there's a logjam here, then I could see Franks getting moved somewhere else in order to get him some playing time.

SB Nation 2009 Big 12 Preview // Double-T Nation's Preview of the Texas Tech Red Raiders

Seth C — Thu, 20 Aug 2009 21:15:10 -0000

View full size photo »

SB Nation 2009 Big 12 Preview: In partnership with CBS Sports, the SB Nation Big 12 blogs are previewing each of their respective teams in the Big 12. This is Double-T Nation's entry and for all of those who are getting this way through the Texas Tech page on CBS Sports, we welcome you and hope you enjoy the content. Thanks to the Ralphie Report for compiling all of the previews and make sure and visit the Ralphie Report for a more extensive Big 12 conference breakdown.

TOP PLAYERS

Offense:
QB Taylor Potts
RB Baron Batch
OL Brandon Carter
OL Marlon Winn
WR Detron Lewis
WR Edward Britton
WR Tramain Swindall
Defense:
NT Colby Whitlock
DE Rajon Henley
LB Brian Duncan
LB Marlon Williams
CB Jamar Wall
S Cody Davis

OFFENSE: As is the case with each Texas Tech team, there is no question that the offense is led by its quarterback, and after three years of Graham Harrell, the Red Raiders usher in a new signal caller in junior Taylor Potts. It's easy of course to think that Potts will have a difficult time replacing Harrell's production, but Texas Tech has finished with the top passing offense in the Big 12 from 2008 through 2004. Something tells me that head coach Mike Leach understands a thing or two about running an offense. At receiver, the Red Raiders will lean heavily on inside receiver Detron Lewis to lead the way and although there are usually at least four receivers who receive a significant amount of passes, right now this may be a receiver by committee situation. Of course, the big question is who will replace Michael Crabtree at the flanker position and currently it's a three man race, with redshirt freshman Alexander Torres leading the group, followed closely by Lyle Leong and Jacoby Franks. Split end Edward Britton is the lone senior of the receiver corp and it would not surprise those who follow the program closely that inside receiver Tramain Swindall will contribute significantly in 2009. Most think that the offensive line lost three starters, but the truth of the matter is that center Shawn Byrnes started in 2007, lost his job to last year's starter, Stephen Hamby, but is expected to start in 2009. At left tackle, the starting job is between redshirt freshman Terry McDaniel, who showed that he is more than capable of protecting that left side, and all-purpose lineman, Chris Olson. At left guard the Red Raiders return an All-American candidate Brandon Carter and is moving from playing right guard last year. Sophomore Mickey Okafor will take over for Carter at right guard and incumbent Marlon Winn will get the nod at right tackle.

TOP GAMES

1. @ Texas Longhorns :: 09.19.09
2. Oklahoma Sooners :: 11.21.09
3. @ Nebraska Cornhuskers :: 10.17.2009
4. @ Oklahoma St. Cowboys :: 11.14.09
5. Kansas Jayhawks :: 10.31.09

DEFENSE: Texas Tech lost quite a bit of production defensively and previous years, there would have been quite a bit of worrying about replacing both defensive ends and both safeties, but with the increase in talent at Texas Tech, the less of a worry it is replacing quality players. Both defensive ends have moved onward, Brandon Williams has moved to the NFL, and McKinner Dixon declared for the NFL supplemental draft this summer, but went undrafted. Replacing Williams and Dixon will be no small task, but former defensive tackle Rajon Henley has lost weight during the off season and will solidify one end position, while the other end position will be left to Daniel Howard, a JUCO transfer, who was close on a number of sacks last year, has a motor that just doesn't quit. Look for fellow seniors Brandon Sharpe and Sandy Riley to see plenty of time alongside Howard and Henley. Inside, nose tackle Colby Whitlock returns for his junior year and senior Richard Jones will start at defensive tackle. The second and third team could consist of some of the newcomers listed below, but should certainly include in the rotation Victor Hunter, Chris Perry, Britton Barbee and David Neill. All three linebackers return from 2008, including the highly underrated junior middle linebacker Brian Duncan, who could be an all-conference performer, this year. Backing up Duncan is Sam Fehoko, who many think will be could be an impact player right now. At the weakside linebacker spot is senior Marlon Williams, although look for Blake Collier to edge his way into the lineup as he has superior speed which is obviously useful in the wide-open Big 12. At the strongside linebacker spot is junior Bront Bird, who will be fighting off Tyrone Sonier. Left cornerback Jamar Wall returns for his senior season and opposite Wall there is a three man race with LaRon Moore, Brent Nickerson and Taylor Charbonnet all hoping to nab that right starting cornerback position. The Red Raiders lose both safeties from 2008, but redshirt freshman Cody Davis should surprise many in 2009 at free safety and Franklin Mitchem looks to be the starter at strong safety. Brett Dewhurst, Julius Howard and Jared Flannel round out the veterans amongst this safety group.

STRENGTHS & WEAKNESSES

Strengths: Quarterback position
typically performs at a high level,
quality receiver depth despite loss
of Crabtree, all starting linebackers
return and depth at defensive tackle.
Weaknesses: Lack of defensive end
depth as three ends graduated or
left the program, must replace or
improve right cornerback and
no experience at safety.

SPECIAL TEAMS: For the first time in the Mike Leach era, he's hired a full-time special teams coach, Eric Russell, and the talk during the spring and fall practices is that there's a noticeable difference in the attitude of special teams this year. Quite possibly the feel-good story of 2008 returns in plackicker Matt Williams, who was plucked from the stands to kick a field goal to win free rent, will return as the guy to kick short-yardage field goals and extra points. Donnie Carona returns to take care of the long field goals and should see competition from Brad Hicks. Punter Jonathan LaCour is suspended for the first six games and freshman Brian Exlerben and Carona will compete for the punter position. Returning punts, there are at least five or six option, but leading the charge is cornerback Jamar Wall, receiver Detron Lewis, running back Eric Stephens, while Stephens, receiver Jacoby Franks, receiver Edward Britton and Wall could each return kickoffs.

KEY LOSSES: LG Louis Vaszuez, LT Rylan Reed, C Stephen Hamby, IR Eric Morris, FL Michael Crabtree, RB Shannon Woods, QB Graham Harrell, DE McKinner Dixon, DE Brandon Williams, S Daniel Charbonnet and S Darcel McBath.

NEWCOMERS: The defensive side of the ball presents the most opportunity for newcomers to make a difference for this team as I think it takes at least a year to acclimate to the Texas Tech offense. With that being said, sophomore defensive tackle Myles Wade has the physical gifts to make an impact immediately, as does fellow defensive tackle Pearlie Graves. The Red Raiders signed six defensive backs in 2008 and although they are all talented defensive backs Will Ford, Daniel Cobb and Terrance Bullitt could all see time at safety in 2009. Receiver Eric Ward, a freshman who landed in Lubbock in the spring semester and has a leg up on the competition, has the talent to break into the receiver rotation quickly. Although technically not newcomers in the truest sense of the word, the aforementioned left tackle Terry McDaniel has the potential to start and running back Harrison Jeffers will surprise many opponents in 2009 as he should be the combination running back with Baron Batch. Also watch out for former quarterbacks turned receivers in Austin Zouzalik and Cornelius Douglas. Both are explosive athletes, Zouzalik may be one of the fastest players on the team, and Douglas is could be utilized in a Wildcat-type of formation.

Double-T Nation Daily Diatribe // 08.19.09

Seth C — Wed, 19 Aug 2009 11:15:23 -0000

Odds and Ends

Possible Auburn Financial Crisis: Pretty interesting read from Chris Brown at Smart Football (did you know that Smart Football has a whole new look and is no longer at blogspot?) about a possible financial crisis for Auburn due to a booster and a member of the board of trustees being in some financial hot water. It's a good read and certainly interesting to consider the possible ramifications of something like this happening at any school.

Texas Tech Football

Stephens Impressing: LAJ's Don Williams features freshman RB Eric Stephens and Captain Mike Leach likes what he has in Stephens:

"Real good," Leach said of Stephens’ camp so far. "Smart guy. Able to put things together quickly. Just real levelheaded for a freshman. He’s been able to step in and not take that whole lack of confidence (approach). He goes out there, does what he can do, and then just learns more each day. I think he’s played impressive."

And fellow freshmen S Will Ford and S Daniel Cobb have some good things to say about Stephens:

"He’s a real shifty running back, has really good speed and he’s really strong," said safety Will Ford, another freshman. "So he’s a power back and a speed back."

Cobb, the freshman safety who dealt Stephens the first blow, had summed up his skill set this way a few days before: "He’s elusive. He’s quick. If you don’t break down (to tackle) on him, he’ll get you."

Personally, I'd love to see Stephens redshirt this year, otherwise you've got both Harrison Jeffers and Stephens on the same graduation path. I know, you always play your best players, but I can't help but think that with Batch, who's injury doesn't appear to be as serious, Aaron Crawford and Jeffers all at the helm, Stephens might not see that much time. Additionally, we constantly hear about how difficult it can be to learn the pass-blocking scheme for a running back and that this can take some time. If Crawford and Jeffers are more proficient in that area, then for myself, Stephens plays unless there is some catastrophic event. By the way, there's also a mention in the article about an Auburn assistant coach trying to come in and sign Stephens away from Texas Tech. It happened with Emory Blake and could have potentially happened with Stephens. Interesting.

Torres Backstory: We've all been somewhat wondering about WR Alexander Torres backstory and the El Paso Times Bill Knight writes a feature on Torres who is battling fellow WR Jacoby Franks for Michael Crabtree's old spot:

"Everything is going good ... going really good," Torres said after arecent Red Raider afternoon session. "Jacoby Franks (a sophomore out of West Orange-Stark) and I are battling for a job, but it's a friendly competition. We talk about the mistakes we are making, point out where the hole was. We're getting equal reps and we give each other a breather. That's the beauty of having the depth we have at wide receiver at Texas Tech."

The feature also discusses Torres walking-on at Texas Tech, his time at the Air Force Academy prep school as well as his time as a quarterback in El Paso (I had forgotten this):

"Coach (Tony) Grijalva (then the Franklin head coach) and all the coaches at Franklin helped me so much," Torres said. "They ran this wide open offense. And it helped me to play quarterback, to see where the holes are, to gain a different perspective, to see coverage differently. I think it has definitely helped me as a receiver."

Go read the whole thing.

Tech Notes: LAJ's Don Williams begins his notes article with the transfer of WR Adrian Reese to Northwestern State and best friend DT Rajon Henley says that Reese made the best decision for himself:

"It’s crazy how things happen — one day be here, and one day be gone,’’ Henley said. "It doesn’t really bother me. I think (Reese) made the best decision for himself, and I support him in anything. I still talk to him.’’

. . . the defense is trying to practice forcing fumbles . . . S Will Ford is working with the first team nickel defense as is CB Taylor Charbonnet . . . DT's David Neill, Pearlie Graves and Myles Wade have all been working with the third team unit . . . converted DT Victor Hunter is causing disruptions along the defensive line . . .

Scouting Practice: RaiderAde's ayleein has a detailed practice report from Monday night's scrimmage and DMN's Chuck Carlton checked in on practice.

Scouting the Enemy: Bring On The Cats previews the Kansas St. Wildcats running backs . . . Corn Nation expresses concern about the Nebraska Cornhuskers offensive line . . . Rock M Nation's Beyond the Box Score previews on the Kansas Jayhawks offense . . . Oread Boom Kings runs through the items that concern him about the Kansas Jayhawks . . . The Tulsa World looks at the Oklahoma St. Cowboys practice . . .

Big 12 Conference: SI.com predicts the Big 12 conference . . . ESPN's Tim Griffin predicts some things for the Big 12 . . .

Texas Tech Baseball

Top Recruits Remain: LAJ's George Watson details that all four players drafted in the MLB draft did not sign with their respective teams and will play for the Red Raiders:

The Red Raiders had four incoming recruits taken in the draft – pitchers Jay Johnson and Brandon Petite out of Canada and Robert Doran from Seward County (Kan.) College and slugger Stephen Hagan from Eastern Oklahoma Junior College.

And Spencer likes his incoming pitchers:

Spencer expects Johnson and Doran to improve their draft standing after just one year at Tech, and with Chad Bettis back in the fold as a junior and expected to be a high draft pick in 2010, Spencer feels that will elevate the program in terms of future recruiting.

As well as Hagan, who could be a huge bat in the lineup:

Spencer said he expects all incoming recruits to make an impact in 2010, especially on the mound. Hagan could be the next top power hitter in the Big 12 Conference after leading the junior college ranks in home runs last season.