SB Nation - Tramain Swindall

Post Game Thoughts :: Baylor Bears Edition

Seth C — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 12:00:40 -0000

by Jerry Larson - AP

20 days ago: Texas Tech's Lyle Leong scores against Baylor's Joe Pawelek in the second half of an NCAA college football game, Saturday, Nov. 28, 2009, in Arlington, Texas. (AP Photo/ Waco Tribune Herald, Jerry Larson)

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SBN Box Score :: TTU Box Score

The Result :: Just Okay: We've discussed this to a point, but it wasn't the best possible win. Perhaps this is something that should be expected coming off a game like the Oklahoma game, but it was just okay. I was happy as hell to get out of the Cowboys Stadium with a win and I hated that I was nervous about it for such a long period of time.

I was thinking of saving this thought for off-season thoughts, but I'll throw this out there now. Perhaps the thing that interests me the most about this team is the fact that we as a community have become that much more critical, and I mean that in the best possible way. I've always thought that Texas Tech has this stigma that Red Raider fans are apathetic in the sense that we're happy with occasional wins against various opponents, but the expectations of excellence were never really there. The days of going into a game with no expectation of a win and being completely disinterested with a loss are behind Red Raider fans. That's a good thing. I/we/DTN is now firmly behind expectations of excellence and I'm happy about that. That's not to say that the most difficult mornings for me personally are the mornings where I have to think of something worth-while to write after a loss and I think that's an indication that DTN and this program has arrived to an extent. That makes me happy (not the losses).

Storylines and MVP's after the jump.

The Storylines ::

About that Defense: At first blush, I thought the defense had a less than stellar game. For the game, the defense gave up 342 yards, only 176 yards in the 2nd half and of those 176 2nd half yards, 60 came on the last drive. The Bears had 3 plays that accounted for more than 20 yards, the first being the long pass to Gettis for 57 yards. I've only had time to watch the replay once, but on that play, it appeared that CB Jamar Wall was expecting help over the top and I believe that FS Franklin Mitchem just didn't get there. The 2nd big play was to Kendall Wright for 24 yards and I think this was scheme issue as LB Brian Duncan was trying to cover one of the fastest players on Baylor's team. It's hard to fault Duncan on this play as he's just not capable of covering a slot receiver. The 3rd big play was to Terrance Ganway, another situation where LB Marlon Williams was asked to cover him out of the flat and in open space (this is the play I'm not sure about). That first play led to Baylor's only touchdown, the second play was a play that ended in a Baylor field goal and the third play resulted in a punt. The point being here is that although the defense gave up 3 big plays, which accounted for 105 yards were the bulk of the Baylor offense. I've always hated how folks will take certain plays out of context of a game, but I'll do it now because it totally serves my purpose and you've got a defense that gave up 237 yards for the game, good for a 3.33 yards per play average. The big plays hurt the defense, but all 3 of these big plays were, at least in my opinion, were the result of bad match-ups and a bad play by a safety that's had a pretty good season.

Improved Line Play: By my count, this same set of offensive linemen have been together for 4 straight games, starting with the Kansas game. We've all talked about how with a better offensive line, the overall play will get better and other than the Oklahoma St. loss, that's been the case. That's not to say that this group didn't have some kinks to work out, including giving up 5 sacks against Kansas, all at the feet of QB Seth Doege, none with Potts; 1 against Oklahoma St.; 2 against Oklahoma; and 1 against Baylor. For a string of 7 halves, the offensive line only gave up 4 sacks and if there's a reason for the team's better play, that's a good place to start. Another indication that when the team runs the ball, good things happen: 32 carries for 105 yards rushing against KU; 14 carries for 50 against OSU; 35 carries for 161 yards; and 28 carries for 101 yards against Baylor. Run the ball and this team will have success.

Making Plays: I've always sort of thought that the hallmark of a good defense isn't necessarily the yards or the points, but the plays that the individuals make. For the 2nd year in a row, the defense is in the top 4 in the conference in sacks, 34.0 in 2008 and 40.0 in 2009. In 2007, the defense only mustered 26.0 sacks. Same goes for passes defended. Top 4 in the conference in passes defended as 2008 the team had 18 interceptions and 55 passes broken up (5.62 per game), in 2009 it was 8 interceptions and 68 passes broken up (6.33 per game), while in 2007 the defense had 10 interceptions and 55 passes broken up (5.00 per game). It may not seem evident over the course of time, but this defense has become more aggressive, especially in the secondary. The defensive play-makers are trending up, despite losing talent on at defensive end at in the secondary. The same could be said for Saturday's game where the defense broke up 4 passes, including one beautiful interception by Brent Nickerson, forced 3 fumbles and 4 sacks. That's a pretty good day at the office.

The Disappearance and Emergence of Receivers: This is probably going to be an offseason project, but I find it absolutely fascinating how certain roles have been completely reversed in some cases with the offense. In the early part of the year, the team was greatly dependent on guys like Detron Lewis and Tramain Swindall, but recently, it's been the emergence of Alexander Torres and Austin Zoualik with a fairly consistent bit of Lyle Leong mixed in for good measure. I can't give you an explanation, other than defenses may be keying on Lewis and Swindall or the thought that Lewis and Swindall may not be giving maximum effort in practice, but it's interesting. Be patient, I promise an much more comprehensive post after the season (this is absolutely a tease and intended to keep you guys around for a while).

The Guy That Matters Wasn't Happy: I didn't catch this until yesterday, but I noted in Chris Level's Twitter that Leach wasn't happy with the 20 points on Saturday as he ran the team through a padded practice on Sunday. Not only that, Leach pitted the first team against the first team and the work was spirited. I get the feeling that this perception that Leach is fairly easy on the team, but much like this community is changing there's this thought that Leach is changing as well. We all like not being satisfied with just being mediocre and the fact that Leach made the team practice on Sunday is certainly a good thing.

The Offensive Co-MVP's :: WR Lyle Leong and IR Austin Zouzalik: Zouzalik made some really nice grabs (7 for 92 yards), most of them over the middle of the field. Leong gets credit for making some really nice touchdown grabs (6 for 58 yards and 2 TD's).

The Defensive MVP :: DE Brandon Sharpe: It's fitting to think that he couldn't even get on the field last year, but finished the year as Texas Tech's single-season record holder for sacks.

The Special Teams MVP :: KR Eric Stephens: Another season long reward for his work on kickoff returns. You always like to see a player make up for a bad play as Stephens' 64 yard return late in the game was a huge game-changer. The rest of the Big 12 gets 3 more years of this guy.

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.

Five Reasons Texas Tech Will Win :: Kansas Jayhawks Edition

Seth C — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 17:00:44 -0000

More photos » by Mike Fuentes - AP

about 1 month ago: Texas Tech quarterback Seth Doege throws in the fourth quarter of an NCAA college football game against Texas A&M in Lubbock, Texas, Saturday, Oct. 24, 2009. Doege came off the bench to replace the starter Taylor Potts. Texas A&M won 52 - 30. (AP Photo/Mike Fuentes)

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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 :: Kansas Jayhawks Edition.

Reason #1 :: Might Be Motivated: I think Texas Tech fans could collectively hit this reason right out of the park. If this team isn't highly motivated on Saturday afternoon, then I shudder what will happen the rest of the season. I know this is supposed to be 5 reasons why I believe Texas Tech will win, but there better be a whole lot of fire from this club, both offensively and defensively. At this point of the season, it's really not about comments made about players' girlfriends or learning about transitive results in college football, it's about execution on the field. In comparison to last year, this team has really had to pull itself up a number of times, namely because of injuries or a suspension or two, and I'm hoping that this will serve the team well moving forward.

Reason #2 :: Do What You Do Best: I don't know if I need to consider the TAMU game an anomaly or if I need to base my thoughts on the collective whole of the season. For the season, this defense has been pretty good, and prior to last week was 50th in the nation in total defense, but was quickly reletaged to 78th in the nation after last week. Despite only having 1 sack last week, the defense as a unit is still 11th in the nation in total sacks. I know this defensive line can play better and I know that the linebackers can play better. I've seen it with my own two eyes. I can't say that I know any of these players, and this somewhat relates to item 1 above, but I hope like hell that the front 7 took last week's game personally. This is a pride issue with the team. I've seen DT Colby Whitlock dominate a game all by himself. I've seen the defensive end trio of Howard, Henley and Sharpe get in a quarterback's back pocket all day long. All I'm asking is for containment and collapsing the pocket. I've seen it happen many times before, let's see it again.

Reason #3 :: Lean On The Running Playmakers: I would truly appreciate it if someone could just send a memo of this reason to Captain Leach. To wit -- I know that you believe in your quarterbacks and I know that you believe that you can transform just about any human into a NCAA leading passing machine, but I think it might be in your best interest and the best interest of this team if you deferred to certain playmakers on this team who tend rush the football more than pass the football. I'm not at all asking that you abandon what you do best, and we all know that that is, but there's real talent at the running back position. In the second half of the game last week RB Baron Batch had 2 rushing attempts and RB Harrison Jeffers had 1 (please ignore the fact that he fumbled -- a complete fluke). I'm pretty sure that I've mentioned the running game a time or two and even yesterday, well respected DTN reader texastfan made a similar comment about the running game. I think you help out your offensive line and quarterback immensely if you can consistently run the ball.

Reason #4 :: Pressure Receivers: The more I think about it this week, I think I'm starting to understand McNeill's decision to play off of the TAMU receivers last week. McNeill was without his star freshman S Will Ford and reliable S Brett Dewhurst, and it's likely that this pair will also be out this week as well. Despite those two being out, this Texas Tech defense still leads the Big 12 in passes defended. I'm thinking that McNeill knew that he was going to have to play S Julius Howard and CB D.J. Johnson for a good part of Texas Tech's nickel and dime packages and McNeill didn't want to expose the defense to any big plays. I've tended to notice that McNeill is much more conservative at home and without being too critical, I think we can safely say that this failed miserably. This week however, I think McNeill re-thinks his strategy a bit. We know that starting safeties Cody Davis and Franklin Mitchem are completely healthy and we also know that senior CB Brent Nickerson filled in nicely at safety when either Davis or Mitchem were injured. I know that this guy isn't the biggest guy, but he's fast and he's reliable and he's proven himself on special teams, but I'd love for Ruff to give CB Taylor Charbonnet a shot at the other defensive back spot. It's obvious that what happened last week was an abomination, let's think outside the box a bit. I think what you may be dealing with in Nickerson and Charbonnet are two intelligent players that get the system. They may not have the physical ability to play like Johnson, who is physically gifted, but young, and Howard, who has struggled to find a role for much of his career at Texas Tech, but I think they'll play more aggressively and they won't get you beat. That's Ruff's mantra, I'm sure of it and I don't think Charbonnet or Nickerson will let Ruff down.

Reason #5 :: Then Open It Up: I'm not trying to be contradictory, but I have no doubt that once item 3 above is accomplished, it's going to absolutely open up the passing game for QB Seth Doege. Leach mentioned that Doege had good tempo when he came into the game and there's no doubt that the team responded. However, Doege also didn't press, which can be a good thing and a bad thing. Doege's longest pass of the night was 20 yards and his yards per attempt was 5.8 for the game. Granted, his receives didn't help him out a whole bunch, but part of Doege's success will be making plays down the field. There's plenty of guys to choose from: Alexander Torres, Tramain Swindall, Detron Lewis, Lyle Leong, Austin Zouzalike, etc. Once Kansas is backed off by the running game, Doege has to test the secondary and not just defer to either wide receiver and/or running back screens. There may be some mistakes made along the way, but playing it too safe isn't going to win this football game.

Matchups :: Texas A&M Aggies Edition

Seth C — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 17:01:11 -0000

More photos » by Nati Harnik - AP

2 months ago: Texas Tech's Brandon Sharpe (92) swats down a throw by Nebraska quarterback Zac Lee (5), as Nebraska's Ricky Henry (74) and Marcel Jones (78) block Texas Tech's Colby Whitlock (93), in the first half of their NCAA college football game in Lincoln, Neb., Saturday, Oct. 17, 2009.(AP Photo/Nati Harnik)

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Texas A&M Aggies (3-3, 0-2)

vs.

Texas Tech Red Raiders (5-2, 2-1)

Game Information:
Date: October 24, 2009 :: Time: 6:00 p.m. CST :: Weather: Lubbock, TX
TV: None :: 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. Texas A&M Passing Defense

Texas Tech (413.57 / 2 / 1): Not surprisingly, the Texas Tech offense struggled a bit against Nebraska, but a win is a win, especially when it's on the road against a nationally ranked opponent, and you beat that opponent by 21. QB Steven Sheffield was a manager, and since all indications lean towards Taylor Potts or Seth Doege taking the reins on Saturday, then I'm hoping that he takes the same advice that Leach gave Sheffield:

I wanted him to throw the ball and hit some fat guy in the stands. That didn’t consistently happen. We had a conversation on that.

I do think that Potts is a quality quarterback, and if there's one thing that Leach has consistently been able to do since he's been here is to coach up a quarterback or two. I don't think that's going to stop and although Potts wasn't perfect (again, there is no perfect QB other than St. Tebow) he's still pretty damned good. If it's 3rd string Seth Doege, then I'm concerned about his ability to play on such a high level without so much experience, but I trust Leach. I think it's a testament to the receivers on this team, but each week, we're seeing a different receiver step up and make plays. In fact, after a few weeks of Tramain Swindall leading this team in receiving, Detron Lewis is back on top. And to jazz you just a tad bit more, there's less than 120 yards separating the top 4 receivers. In other words, one great game and you could see Alexander Torres, Lyle Leong, Swindall or Lewis lead this team.

Texas A&M (226.67 / 73 / 6): The Aggies really haven't played a true passing team, except for Arkansas, and TAMU promptly gave up 271 yards and 4 touchdowns. We're going to continue to talk about this until there are a few more conference games to compare, but TAMU has faced Oklahoma St. and Kansas St. thus far in conference play. Not exactly passing teams and it's hard to gauge whether or not the pass defense is truly struggling (73rd in the nation) or if it's going to get worse. I did have the opportunity to watch quite a bit of the OSU game and I thought that the Aggies do have athletes in the secondary, but they're young, and that's a bad combination going into the meat of the Big 12 schedule. A big part of the pass defense success is the outstanding play of Von Miller, who already has 10 sacks, which includes 12.5 tackles for a loss. And aside from Miller, no player has more than 2 sacks for the year, perhaps indicative of the bigger problems at TAMU, there's talent at certain positions, but it's not enough to win a bunch of football games.

Verdict: I'm nervous about this pick, especially if Potts cannot play, but I'll still take Texas Tech.

Texas Tech Rushing Offense vs. Texas A&M Rushing Defense

Texas Tech (70.43 / 118 / 12): It would be easy to say that the Red Raiders ignored the rushing game on Saturday, and there were times that I thought that the line did a good job of creating holes, but 14 rushes between RB Baron Batch and Harrison Jeffers just isn't going to be enough. Again, the rating looks much worse than it probably is, due in part because Potts took so many sacks earlier in the year (he's working on that . . . promise). The loss of LT Terry McDaniel could prove to be a huge loss for this team I don't know if OL coach Moore has many more options other than to start Chris Olson at left tackle. The only other player that's received significant time is Mikey Okafor at right guard, who was later benched in favor of moving Brandon Carter back to the right side.

Texas A&M (166.83 / 88 / 11): There's going to be a similar theme that I have with the Aggies in that I do think there's talent there, but it's young talent. The Aggies have played two teams that feature their running game and gave up 169 yards and 3 touchdowns to Oklahoma St. and 232 yards and 6 touchdowns to Kansas St. The defensive line features 2 freshmen or sophmores and the linebacking corps also has a freshman and sophomore. Garrick Williams and Kyle Mangum are the linebackers who make most of the plays. The Aggies are 37th in the nation in tackles for a loss, but as mentioned above, Miller is responsible for 12.5 of thoese tackles, which means that the Aggies have 1 player truly making plays thus far.

Verdict: Despite the Aggies looking as bad recently been.

Texas A&M Passing Offense vs. Texas Tech Passing Defense

Texas A&M (320.50 / 6 / 3): The skill position players for TAMU are actually fairly talented and for this reason alone, you shouldn't overlook the Aggies. Freshman WR Uzoma Nwachukwu has been tremendous thus far this year while WR's Ryan Tannehill and Howard Morrow each have over 20 catches. TE Jamie McCoy is an offensive threat, with 21 catches for 251 yards. QB Jarrod Johnson has been remarkably good, not Heisman worthy, but he's been pretty good with a horrible offensive line. Johnson isn't as accurate as you might want him to be, but he's still completing 57.8% of of his passes and has 16 touchdowns to only 3 interceptions. As mentioned before, the offensive line has allowed 2.67 sacks a game, which is good for 95h in the nation. That's been Johnson's problem all year, the young offensive line,

Texas Tech (238.57 / 89 / 8): The Texas Tech pass defense has been good, not great and this is something that I keep mentioning, and it's something that's going to have to continue this week, is not to ge beat deep. The pass defense isn't great, but the pass efficiency defense (I really don't know what this is) is at 40th in the nation. In any event, the secondary is also healthy, except that S Will Ford may be out, but there's been enough guys who have seen sufficient reps that I'm not too concerned about losing Ford. The Red Raiders are 8th in the nation in sacks, led by their DE's: Brandon Sharpe (8), Daniel Howard (5) and Rajon Henley (3).

Verdict: I like Johnson, Tannehill and Nwachuksu, but it's the pass blocking that's the problem.

Texas A&M Rushing Offense vs. Texas Tech Rushing Defense

Texas A&M (156.83 / 49 / 5): Prior to this game, I wondered how much the Aggies were actually running the ball, expecting a bit more production from RB's Cyrus Gray and Christine Michael. Both are supposedly heralded, especially Michael, who's had 11 to 14 rushing attempts since the first game. This unit isn't bad, in fact the Aggies are 49th in the nation in rushing offense, which is pretty good, but maybe the point I was trying to make at the beginning, is that why not slow the game down just a tad bit more, in the hopes that the Aggies could hang onto the ball, and chew up some of that time of possession.

Texas Tech (101.86 / 24 / 5): The rush defense has been consistently good all year, and I keep mentioning this point, but the key to a good defense is being able to stop the run. The rush defense is only allowing 3.05 yards a game and despite some rough patches against Texas (135) and Houston (144), the Red Raiders only gave up 70 yards to Nebraska that is averaging 151 yards a game and 116 yards to Kansas St. that is averaging 184 yards a game. DT's Colby Whitlock and Richard Jones aren't showing up in the box score, but coupled with the outstanding and oftentimes overlooked play of the linebackers, this unit is slowly but surely becoming adept at stopping the run. I thought DE Rajon Henley's play last week deserved mention, especially against the run. I thought he was outstanding.

Verdict: I'll take the Red Raiders again.

Q&A With Double T Nation - Insight Into The Texas Tech Red Raiders

Jon Johnston — Fri, 16 Oct 2009 16:19:41 -0000

More photos » by Donna McWilliam - AP

Brandon Carter, freak, will be between Ndamukong Suh and Tech quarterbacks. Tattoos and face paint can't help him in that regard, but the battle between the two will be one to watch!

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Tech seems like a hard team to gauge. They've had some internal struggles, two losses in a row to ranked teams and a quarterback change.

Instead of insinuating and grasping, it's easiest to ask people who know the answers. In this case, that would be Seth at Double T Nation, our SB Nation Texas Tech site. He joins us for a blogger Q&A.

It's hard to gauge what's going on at Tech. It seemed like things were coming apart after the loss to Houston, Twittergate and Brandon Carter's suspension. Where is this team right now?

There may not be a team that deals with drama better than Texas Tech. In regards to RG Brandon Carter's suspension, he wasn't suspended because he was on Twitter, he was suspended for what happened after the Houston game (i.e. being angry, very angry, about the loss). I thought LB Marlon Williams' tweet was inappropriate (i.e., why is he here waiting on Leach for practice), but it turns out that practice was canceled so really it's not that big of a deal.

As it turns out, giving 18 to 22 year old kids a place to voice any and every concern might not be such a good idea. If the team was in any sort of disarray, it was after the Houston loss and the lackluster first half against New Mexico. There's the thought that QB Taylor Potts still wasn't right after the hit against UT and his rough play was a result of that. In steps 6'4" and all 180 pounds QB Steven Sheffield who seems to have captured the attention of this team and has been lights out against New Mexico and Kansas State. The ship has been righted, at least for now.

Potts or Sheffield? or Both?

I like both. Potts has taken quite a bit of criticism because he's thrown some interceptions, and he hasn't been perfect, but I do not believe that his performances against Texas and Houston were the reasons Texas Tech lost. Did he play perfectly those games, certainly not, but he wasn't the sole reason for either of those losses. Potts still has a 2:1 TD to INT ratio and was part of the team was at the top of the nation in passing. I think Potts' struggles have been exaggerated a bit and I try to keep in mind that he's a 20 or 21 year old kid who got the crap knocked out of him and wasn't quite the same since.

With Sheffield at the helm, he's been absolutely electric and the team seems to have responded to his energy. The last two games, Sheffield has been near perfect, sans a couple of interceptions, one in each game. Sheffield is a bit more mobile and more likely to dodge pressure. Sheffield's arm isn't quite as strong as Potts, but he can still make all of the throws required by this offense. If I had to pick a starter for the Nebraska game, I'd go with the hot-hand in Sheffield. If I had to pick a quarterback who I think who has the better chance to lead the program going forward, I'd pick Potts. Sheffield's been great but he hasn't been tested . . . yet.

What receivers should Husker fans be watching?

All of them? Seriously, it's somewhat ridiculous to see so many receivers step up each game.

Tramain Swindall has consistently been this team's leading receiver and averaging almost 20 YPC, which is ridiculous in this offense. Detron Lewis was expected to replace Crabtree in some respects, but Swindall's been electric, and Lewis has been a tad injured and reliable, but hasn't really had a break-out game.

Alexander Torres has proven to be a very reliable receiver outside, he won't beat you deep, but he'll catch just about anything thrown his way and he's pretty strong. Lyle Leong has been relatively quite since his 3 touchdown performance against Rice, but he's still a threat.

Nebraska will still need to account for the running backs who have been really good catching the ball out of the backfield (Harrison Jeffers is averaging 10.5 YPC and Baron Batch is averaging 8.87 YPC).

Tech has been exceptional at home, horrible on the road. 2008: 4 for 5 in road games last year (losses - OU); 2007: 3 for 6 (Oklahoma St., Missouri and Texas); 2006: 3 for 6 (TCU, Colorado, and OU). Can you explain such a huge discrepancy?

I think programs that are struggling to break-through to an upper tier of the football elite tend to do this for a period of time. Last year was an exception, and I think that most teams that make it to middling bowl games tend to follow the same path that Texas Tech has (i.e. win the non-conference home games + beat the crappy teams on the road = bowl game).

I'm not sure I can explain it other than it's tough to win on the road and for a program trying to make that jump, I think it just comes down to having better players and that happens over time. And for the record I think a Texas and OU would have worse road game records if they didn't have a neutral game at the Cotton Bowl. I went to Norman last year and cannot imagine what that town would be if Texas were to ever roll into town and the same thought goes for Austin.

Last year's game was weird in that Nebraska held the ball for around 40 minutes. We don't have the same ball control passing offense we had last year (although we're working on it). Where should Nebraska attack if we're going to be successful on offense?

Even if Nebraska doesn't have the same type of offense, I think I'd stick with a similar plan of just taking what the defense will give you. Texas Tech defensive coordinator Ruffin McNeill has had quite a bit of success relying on his offense to outscore the defense, and I've always thought that Leach and McNeill discuss prior to the game how creative he needs to be to be successful on defense.

Some games, McNeill will stunt and blitz more than others. Surprisingly, Texas Tech leads the conference in sacks, this after losing their top guys in Brandon Williams and McKinner Dixon. Most of that success is due to out-working opponents and I think the Cornhuskers would be wise emphasize the quick passing game. Nebraska will have success running the ball against Texas Tech and I think that the key will be if the Texas Tech offense can score quickly, taking Nebraska out of what they might do best.

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

Position Matchups :: Kansas St. Wildcats Edition

Seth C — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 17:00:31 -0000

Texas Tech Passing Offense vs. Kansas St. Passing Defense

Texas Tech Pass Offense: This is going to be a bit tricky for Texas Tech. As much as everyone loves the backup quarterback, QB Steven Sheffield certainly has his deficiencies. He doesn't have the arm that Taylor Potts possesses, but I think the offense is in fine hands with Sheffield. What Sheffield does bring to the game is more mobility and because he doesn't have the big arm, he's going to rely on the short quick passing game, which if it looks anything like it did last week, then you can expect to see quite a bit more of Harrison Jeffers catching passes out of the backfield. Right now, it's a grab-bag of receivers and I think this is going to be what you see week-in and week-out. Someone is going to have a big day, whether it's Tramain Swindall, Lyle Leong, Alexander Torres, or Detron Lewis. And that's the rub, there is no Michael Crabtree drawing a double-team every play and these receivers need to work their tails off to get open each and every play. The fact that the offensive line will have Brandon Carter back is significant for this group. Although the line stumbled last week against New Mexico, giving up 5 sacks for 54 yards. That's uncharacteristic of this group, but that's the sort of thing that happens when an offensive line coach is trying to fill gaps on the line.

Kansas St. Pass Defense: The Wildcats have the 7th best passing defense in the nation, but this is a tad bit decieving. First, anytime you're in the top 10 of anything and the college football season is 5 games deep, there is something there, but in the case of Kansas St., of their 5 opponents they're not exactly throwing the ball around. UMass is 22nd in FBS, La-Lafayette is 74th, UCLA is 102nd, Tennessee Tech is 83rd and Iowa St. is 106th. Kansas St. hasn't quite played a true passing team so it will be interesting to see how the Wildcats hold up. K-State is led by SS Tysyn Hartman, who seems to do just about everything, but he's leading his team with 26 tackles, 3 interceptions and 4 pass break-ups. CB Joshua Moore is 4th on the team with 22 tackles, 1 interception and 3 PBU. The rest of the secondary is rounded out by CB David Garrett and FS Emmanuel Lamur. I mentioned the other day that K-State is having a tough time getting to the quarterback and thus far, the entire team has only managed 4 sacks for the year. I would imagine that K-State is going to do something to change that this weekend, or Sheffield is going to have plenty of time competing passes.

Advantage: K-State's been good thus far, but I'll put my money on Texas Tech.

Texas Tech Rushing Offense vs. Kansas St. Rushing Defense

Texas Tech Rush Offense: The rushing offense, despite the 120th ranking is improving. The problem is those pesky sacks getting included in the rushing totals. Last week, Harrison Jeffers (8 : 29 : 3 TD) and Baron Batch (8 : 47 : 1 TD) combined for 16 carries and 76 yards and 4 touchdowns. That's not too bad of production from this group and at the very least, it's better than what it was before where there was literally no production. I'll take 16 carries, although I'm still a proponent of more carries, especially when the running backs are having some success running the ball. Just as there will be an upgrade at right guard with the return of Brandon Carter, you can also expect to see the line struggle a bit with Justin Keown at center, if Byrnes is unable to go. I'm not as worried about Keown in the rushing game as I am in the passing game, but Keown is responsible for making the necessary reads and going into the meat of conference play with a brand new center is tough.

Kansas St. Rush Defense: A surprising (at least for me) 38th in the nation in stopping the run. Thus far, against their opponents, the Wildcats have allowed 110 (UMass); 102 (La.-Lafayette); 173 (UCLA); -19 (Tenn. Tech); and 207 (Iowa St.). Although statistically, K-State is pretty good against the run the numbers don't necessarily bear this out, especially when there are 2 games of over 170 yards. The defensive line and linebacking groups are led mostly by upper-classmen. LB's John Houlik and Ulla Pomele are seniors, while Troy Butler is a junior. DL Jeffrey Fitzgerald, Daniel Calvin and Hansen Sekona are all seniors, while DT Raphael Guidry is a sophomore. I'd like to think that a coach like Bill Snyder is going to try to take advantage of some young personnel along the offensive line and I'll be interested to see what, if anything, KSU does to stop the run against Texas Tech. Right now, the advantage goes to Kansas St.

Advantage: Just based on production alone, this goes to K-State.

Kansas St. Passing Offense vs. Texas Tech Passing Defense

Kansas St. Pass Offense: Some things are going to change with Grant Gregory at quarterback. I recall watching Case Coffman against Texas Tech last year and being relatively impressed, but I think Snyder likes the senior leadership that Gregory brings and it gives Coffman another year to take things in. I don't blame Snyder for wanting to win now and Gregory does seem give K-State a more steady signal-caller, but I do think the passing game takes a bit of a hit. Coffman's biggest problem was that he's already had 4 interceptions in only 95 attempts (that's 1 INT per 23.75 attempts, compared with Potts, who was just awful with 1 INT per 39.16 attempts). In any event, Gregory still seemed to find his play makers last week against Iowa St. in the speedy Brandon Banks (4 : 66 : 1 TD) and Lamark Brown (3 : 66 : 1 TD). Banks (23 : 289 : 2 TD) is clearly the game-breaker of the bunch as the rest of the receiving crew has 160 yards or less, but I think Red Raider fans would be wise to be mindful of TE Jeron Mastrud. Tight ends are something that Texas Tech really hasn't seen thus far this year and it will be interesting to see how that matchup will work.

Texas Tech Pass Defense: CB Jamar Wall and CB LaRon Moore were pretty good last week against New Mexico, enough to earn my defensive co-MVP, but I'm not sure how much these guys will get tested this week. I know what Ruffin is going to do defensively, and it's going to drive me insane, and I know that it should work against a quarterback that's not a game-breaker with his arm. That's not to say that Gregory can't beat a team, but Ruffin's going to make damn sure that doesn't happen. I'm not sure what McNeill is going to do at safety, but if neither Cody Davis or Franklin Mitchem are ready to play, I think you'll see a steady diet of Brett Dewhurst, Brent Nickerson and Will Ford willing in the safety positions. Julius Howard, despite being promoted to 2nd team linebacker with Blake Collier taking a leave of absense, could see a number of different positions on Saturday. The one thing I'd like to see the defensive line do this week is work on containment when K-State's Gregory goes back to pass.

Advantage: Push. Both have struggled to either really stop anyone or gain some yards through the air.

Kansas St. Rushing Offense vs. Texas Tech Rushing Defense

Kansas St. Rush Offense: The backbone of the K-State team is their rushing offense. Led by RB Daniel Thomas, who sits at 16th in the nation with 105.8 yards a game and 4 touchdowns. Add to that dual-threat QB Gregory and you've got me worried. Again, Gregory only had 29 yards last week against Iowa St., but from what I've read about Gregory, he's an athletic quarterback that can run if he wants. Behind that rushing attack is solid mix along the offensive line. The left side is led by LT Nick Stringer, a senior, and LG Zach Kendall a junior. The right side of the line has two sophomores leading the way, Colten Freeze and Clyde Aufner while C Wade Weibert rounds out the rest of the line. To speak a bit to K-State's efficiency in running the ball, Daniel Thomas has only had 19 lost rushing yards in 116 carries. When K-State gets a push, they move forward.

Texas Tech Rush Defense: Statistically, this group has made the most improvement over the past year and stopping opponents against the run is one of the biggest indicators of a successful team. Last year, the rushing defense was giving up 100.00 yards a game, good for 25th in the nation, against 2 FCS teams and SMU and Nevada. This year, playing against just 1 FCS team and 2 top 20 teams, the Red Raiders sit at 28th in the nation at 105.40 yards a game. I know you're thinking that this is not improvement, but this group has been better and Ruffin McNeill has done a good job of working in plenty of depth, regardless of whether or not he was forced to do it. The linebacker crew continues to play well, but there's room for improvement. I should also say that my favorite trait in watching Daniel Howard play is that he has a motor that just doesn't quit and the more I watch the defense, I keep thinking that the rest of the group has adopted that philosophy in just continuing to work the offense, play after play. Eventually, the offense is going to wear down or make a mistake.

Advantage: Kansas St. is the clear winner here.

Ed. Note: I've been a little busy this week and this is all I had the time to write.

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.

Post Game Thoughts :: New Mexico Lobos Edition

Seth C — Sun, 04 Oct 2009 14:34:06 -0000

SBN Box Score :: TTU Box Score :: Post Game Quotes

The Result :: Interesting: There were so many stories within the story of the game yesterday. I found myself thinking about what I was going to write this morning a number of times. The quarterback play, the injuries, the crappy announcing team and referees, the lack of defensive effort, etc. Of course you'd prefer to have the word describing the result more something along the lines of "dominating" or "crushing", but that just wasn't the case.

But in a number of ways, you could consider a 49-28 win over New Mexico, after losing 4 players to injuries, not playing with 2 other starters because of injuries, and losing the turnover battle 5-2 is a bit of a surprise.

Texas Tech won, despite the turnovers and despite the injuries.

You take those situations and you've got a recipe for a really, really bad loss, but at the end of the day, Texas Tech was the superior team and although I'm probably going to catch a lot of flack for this, I think the same result would have happened whether it was Sheffield or Potts in at quarterback. New Mexico could only muster spurts of defensive line pressure and Texas Tech had just lost Byrnes, and earlier in the week, I thought I had read something to the effect of almost any player can get injured, but not Byrnes. Keown played better as the game progressed, but that hit on Potts is the reason why the center position is such a big deal.

The Storylines ::

Quarterback Play: As mentioned above, I think that QB Taylor Potts would have rallied. I know, there's a lot of people who think that Potts has been terrible all year. I just don't think that's true and it's an easy statement to make now, after throwing two interceptions, but let's just pull the reins a bit. The first interception, to Zouzalik, was one where either Potts or Zouzalik got the play wrong. You could see Potts looking towards Zouzalik and motioning that he was expecting Zouzalik inside rather than to make the cut outside. Mis-communication happens in football and no one knows, unless they called the play, what happened. The second interception was simply a beautiful play by NM's Nathan Enriquez. Potts had delivered the ball over the top between a cornerback and safety before and tried it again, this time, Enriquez made a great play. That's football.

At the end of the day, Potts still had a 9.34 yards per attempt average, which is just tremendous and he was getting the ball down the field. Of course, Potts' first pass play helps that average, but I thought Potts was making a concerted effort to get the ball down the field in the second quarter, and that's either one of two things happening. That's the coaching staff telling him that there's opportunity down the field or that's Potts taking the initiative. I've got no problem with either one and let's not forget that WR Edward Britton dropped a sure touchdown in the middle of the field. Even the crappy FSN broadcasters noticed that.

And Steven Sheffield was electric. Absolutely electric. There was a certain energy to him and his ability to avoid the rush when the offensive line struggled was nice. Leading his team to 4 straight touchdown drives was spectacular. Sheffield put the game away quickly and was reminiscent of Potts performance in the second half of the Rice game. There's a lot to like about Sheffield and he seems to be a confident and smart quarterback.

But Sheffield also struggled as well. I mentioned a few weeks ago that a quarterback doesn't want to throw an interception inside their own 20 yard line and inside the opponent 20 yard line. Sheffield's only interception of the day was into triple coverage and that ball just shouldn't have been thrown. As well as the offense had been playing, there was no reason to throw that ball and that pass turned into a quick 7 points for New Mexico and pumped life into a team that was getting their head handed to them in the second half. The very next drive, Sheffield is handed the ball at the Texas Tech 48 as the defense turned the ball over on downs and it was a quick 3 and out and then had 3 more drives where he couldn't score including a fumble. Not perfect quarterback play.

Even Sheffield was critical of his play (I love that he's this aware of his deficiencies and Potts acknowledges his deficiencies too):

I think what I did well is I started good. And I brought tempo to the offense. I got everybody excited to play. And, um, as far as my overall performance, I don't know. I'd give it a B, B- or something, because I did a lot of stupid things and I didn't need to do them. And I created my own pressure a few times. That fumble, not having two hands on the ball was just stupid. And, you know, we just stalled three drives in a row when we shouldn't have, you know. And we have more ability than that. And we can play better than that and we should have just scored on the drive like we did on the first three. It's something they am going to need to work on and, you know, it's -- even though, you know, like I said it's a lot like practice, when it comes to game time, I mean, like both my calfs right now have cramped and I don't know why. I mean, maybe I didn't drink enough water. That never happens before. Usually because I stand on the sideline.
But I got to work on little things like that and not try to make too much happen and just make the routine play every time.

The quarterback controversy is something that every team faces.

The grass is always greener on the other side.

I have no idea what Leach & Co. are going to do, but what we do know about Leach is that he's not afraid to tell you like it is about the play of his team, especially quarterback play. Traditionally, Leach has stuck with the starter, even if it's Graham Harrell getting benched for a series or two in 2006. I think Leach prides himself on picking the best quarterback for his team and he saw something in Potts to believe that he's the guy from the start of the season. Thus far this season, Leach has been entirely supportive of Potts in just about every manner, even going so far as to praise Potts after the two losses the last 2 weeks.

I trust Leach's evaluation more than mine and I don't think that you can yo-yo quarterbacks. Once you find a guy, you've got to stick with him and I've never asked Leach that, but I think Leach feels the same way, although he's prone to talk about benching, he knows that the quarterback position is a maturation process.

I'll support any player that the staff believes can lead this team. Whether it be Potts or Sheffield, and as great as Sheffield was on Saturday afternoon, I don't think you're going to see a systematic dissection of a defense like Graham Harrell did in 2008 against teams like Kansas and Kansas St. This team is going to have to work for it, no matter who is at quarterback.

Injuries, Injuries, Injuries: Just a start: QB Taylor Potts, C Shawn Byrnes, FS Cody Davis, DE Daniel Howard and DB Nathan Stone. LAJ's Don Williams reported that Potts and Stone were admitted to the hospital last night. I'm throwing some good mojo the entire group's way and hope they all recover quickly. We're really not going to know the status of the injuries for the rest of the week and the worst part about all of this is that these injuries are at the worst positions. Losing Byrnes on an offensive line that's starting a two redshirt freshmen in LT Terry McDaniel and RG Mickey Okafor was really tough. Losing Davis at free safety when the starting strong safety was also already out with an injury. I though FS Brent Nickerson played much better in the second half, but I thought his first half was pretty bad and allowed way too many easy and open completions over the middle of the field. He did improve as the game continued. Losing Howard at defensive end, a position previously depleted with injuries. Howard has been the most consistent defensive end of the group, although I thought Brandon Sharpe eventually wore down the New Mexico defense and you like to see that. I think I'd still prefer to have Howard starting and his injury leaves this team awfully thin at this position. We've already talked about the loss of Potts. CB Nathan Stone is a special teams ace and I think the special teams needs all the help they can get right now.

Stopping Third and Fourth Downs: New Mexico was 6-20 on third downs and 3-6 on fourth downs. I found myself quite frustrated at the play of the defense on those critical downs. You can somewhat accept the 6-20 on third downs, but I thought early in the game, New Mexico was getting too many third down conversions, completing 5 of 11 in the first half and only 1 of 9 in the second. That seemed to keep the Lobos in the game, along with the turnovers. I've said this before and I'll say it again, I'm not entirely convinced that the lack of defensive pressure is all Ruffin McNeill. I think he and Leach work on a collective game-plan for the week, and if they both feel that the team can be conservative, then that's how they roll. It seems that the 61 yard touchdown pass late in the game (with only 0:46 left int he game) was the first time all year that the Texas Tech defense has been burned deep. That's by design, I'm almost certain of that. We'll talk about the defensive pressure, or lack thereof, in the next section, but this is a concern moving forward, especially if the two starters are out with injury.

Defensive Pressure: We've talked about the third down conversions, but the most glaring part about the defensive play was the fact that New Mexico, a team that was averaging 262 of total offense prior to yesterday, amassed 431 yards of total offense. I thought the defense was uninspired in the first half and it showed from the beginning. New Mexico's first drive was 10 plays for 47 yards and I think this set the tone. New Mexico missed a field goal on that drive, but there were wide gaps in the defensive line and there seemed to be little to no containment of the quarterback. I was fully expecting Colby Whitlock to dominate the middle, or at least draw a significant number of defenders to make it easier on the other defensive linemen and that just didn't happen.

New Mexico had 91 plays. That's right, 91 plays.

I understand the give, but don't break methodology of defense, but yesterday's performance was tough to watch.

But there were glimpses of good things on defense. S Will Ford is still a work in progress on pass coverage, but I thought that the 2 times that McNeill sent Ford on a safety blitz, they were successful. I'd like to see this a few more times and from some other positions.

There were a ton of reserves that got into the game, which I thought was good from a standpoint that this team is going to have to be deep, especially with all of the injuries.

DT Myles Wade might need to see more time with the regular unit. He may not be completely ready, but when he was in the game I tried to key on his play and he's disruptive. He is a wrecking ball of a player and there was one play where Wade drew a double-team and still helped make the tackle. Of course the announcing crew attributed the tackle to Adell Duckett (sarcasm). Not only that, you can see Wade's strength as he gets a good push against the offensive line.

Perhaps this is just me increasing expectations, but I'm expecting more out of the linebackers. I want and need to see those guys make more plays at or near the line of scrimmage, rather than down the field 5 or 6 yards.

Jeffers Has Attitude: Seemed like every time RB Harrison Jeffers touched the ball, he was looking for the endzone. Not only that, it seems as if he runs with a perpetual chip on his shoulder. Almost angry that he's not getting the ball. There's good and bad to that, but there's no denying that he's got talent. For the day, Jeffers finished with 8 rushes for 31 yards and 3 touchdowns, but also had 5 catches for 90 yards and another touchdown.

Receiving Concern: Already mentioned the Britton drop, and otherwise, he was quiet. That's the problem. Britton is supposed to be this team's deep threat and despite the fact that Britton has tremendous potential, he hasn't been able to put it all together. I also have this prevailing thought that as solid as Alexander Torres is, what he is not is a threat to get the ball down the field. I'm sure that the coaching staff doesn't need my help, but there's been something not right about the offense, but I haven't quite been able to put my finger on it.

It's a little bit the offensive line, it's a little bit the running backs, it's a little bit the quarterback and it's a little bit the receivers.

And it's not so much that the receivers are bad, but perhaps they're misplaced. As much complaining as fans do about the quarterback situation, I think there's some deserved criticism to the receivers as well. Britton hasn't played up to his potential, Torres cannot get the ball deep as the other outside receiving threat. Perhaps this team needs to make Tramain Swindall the primary option as he has the most big-play potential.

Locksley is Confused: So New Mexico wants to kick on-sides kick after on-sides kick, in the hopes of getting the score respectable, but then after the game he says this:

The smile was because they scored a touchdown with two seconds left. That means they’ve got a lot of respect for us, in my opinion. They had a chance to take a kneel and Mike’s (Leach) got to coach his team the way he coaches his team and I’ve got to coach mine but for them to score a touchdown there at the end, in my mind, it looks like he had a lot of respect for the Lobos and the fight we have.

Ummmm, no. Sorry Mike, that's just not the case. What's good for the goose is good for the gander. Locksley wanted to score, despite Texas Tech was running out third-team reserves and then he wants to say that the reason Texas Tech scored is because Texas Tech has respect for New Mexico? I don't think so. Locksley is trying to put a good spin on things here and that's understandable, but if he really believes this and it's not just coach-speak, then he's going to have a very short tenure at New Mexico. Locksley attempted 3 on-sides kicks in the 4th quarter alone and then he wants Texas Tech to take a knee. I don't think so. I'll say this a few different ways.

If you play with fire, you're going to get burned.

If you play with the bull, you're going to get the horns.

Awful Announcing and Awful Officiating: Would it be too big of a deal for the announcing crew to pick up a roster a day or two before the game and get familiar with the players? I could count on two hands where they both were clueless as to certain players making plays and mis-identified players. I shudder to think how many New Mexico players were mis-identified.

The officiating was awful as well and I typically don't comment on officiating. Just awful on so many levels.

The Offensive Co-MVP's :: RB Harrison Jeffers, WR Tramain Swindall and QB Steven Sheffield: The outcome of the game was truly dependent on Jeffers turning the corner and getting outside, Swindall making huge plays after the catch and Sheffield turning it on in the second half.

The Defensive Co-MVP's :: CB LaRon Moore and CB Jamar Wall: I really wanted to just give this to Wall, who forced a fumble, recovered it, broke up 2 passes and had 6 tackles, one of those going for a loss. Moore deserves credit too as he also had 6 tackles, 1 fumble recover and broke up 1 pass. I didn't think anyone along the line deserved this honor and I thought the cornerbacks had pretty good days.

The Special Teams MVP :: Ryan Erxleben: I think there's problems when for two games straight, the MVP is the punter. Erxleben had 4 punts total, and of those 4, 3 were inside the 20 yard line.