SB Nation - LaRon Moore

Quarterbacks, Defenses, Intangibles And Other Stuff About Texas Tech

ccmachine — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 21:18:07 -0000

More photos » by Mike Fuentes - AP

Seth C, from SBN's Texas Tech site Double T Nation, is aboard the Machine today to give a fan's perspective on this weekend's opponent. We've seen crazy things happen in Lubbock during Oklahoma's last two trips there and now a team that's been snake bitten over and over this season travels to play in the Twilight Zone.

CC Machine: Tell us about the quarterback situation at Tech. What's going on between Potts and Leach and how healthy is Sheffield? Who should we expect to see Saturday morning?

Seth C: Leach mentioned earlier this week that he regrets pulling Taylor Potts out and putting in an injured Steven Sheffield. Sheffield was clearly not ready to go and despite his early season magic, without an offensive line that will adequately protect him, he's simply not as effective as when he had an ankle that wasn't broken. To answer your question, I think you'll see Taylor Potts for the entire game on Saturday, barring an injury. If Potts is injured during the game, I think Leach will probably turn to redshirt freshman Seth Doege.

CC Machine: The Red Raiders are dead last in the conference in rushing. Is that because of inability or is it just pass-happy game planning?

Seth C: The rushing numbers do look abysmal this year and there's lots of reasons why those number don't look so good. I mentioned this in my Five Reasons Texas Tech Will Lose as Texas Tech has lost a total of 283 yards to sacks this year. Compare that with 2008 where the Texas Tech offensive line gave up a total of 113 yards for the year. I'd also add that the line is giving up 2.7 sacks a game and to do the math quickly, that's a little over 10 yards a sack. That will hurt a running game quickly. I'd also add that Texas Tech is only averaging about 2 attempts less than last year, so it's not as if the running game has changed dramatically. The offensive line has also struggled in replacing 3 starters from last year, and despite thoughts that the team would have no issues replacing those guys (I'm sure that Sooner fans can relate), there has been consistency issues along the line. For the first time, in quite some time, the offensive line is starting the same unit for what appears to be 3 consecutive games and there's the thought that that consistency will pay off a bit with an improved running game this week.

CC Machine: This game features the Big 12's top passing attack against the conference's best pass defense. Share some intangibles that could work for and against Texas Tech in this matchup.

Seth C: If there's one intangible I'm counting on this week, it's the fact that the receiving corp is littered with guys who have the potential to make plays. The previous two years, it was a one-man-show with Crabtree and this year, it's really been a combination of guys who have stepped up at various points of the season to lead the team in receiving. Conversely, you could say that having a lead receiver generally means that you've got at least one player that an opposing defensive coordinator has to account for during the game. The fact that there are 10 players with 17 or more catches for the year should demonstrate that it's not just one guy. I also keep thinking that the running backs are due for a break-out game catching the ball out of the backfield. Last week, the passes to the running backs were telegraphed and just didn't work. I'm hoping like hell that Potts and Leach make a determination if they need to stay in for pass protection, and if not, then get those guys in open space, especially Baron Batch.

CC Machine: How in the world did this team lose 52-30 to A&M?

Seth C: For me, it was the defense and this is really symptomatic of the entire season. Quarterbacks who have the ability to scramble for first downs have had quite a bit of success against Texas Tech. Whether it be Case Keenum, Jerrod Johnson or Zac Robinson, all three guys were more than capable of seeing that the Texas Tech defense was dropping all but the front four into coverage, leaving huge chunks of yards for the quarterback to easily get first downs. Third down conversion rates for Texas Tech's four losses are 50.00% (Texas); 52.63% (Houston); 57.14% (Texas A&M); and 50.00% (Oklahoma St.). There's also something to be said for the fact that DE Brandon Sharpe hardly played against Texas A&M and he is Texas Tech's best pass rusher. I don't think he would have made a huge difference, but he's still a big part of getting to the quarterback and not having him hurt some.

CC Machine: When it comes to Texas Tech football most people immediately think of the fast paced spread offensive attack. However, Tech has made significant strides of the defensive side of the ball the last two years. Tell us about some of the strengths and weaknesses of the Red Raider defense.

Seth C: The biggest strength lies in the pass defense, and really all facets of pass defense. The Red Raiders are tied with the Sooners for 2nd in the nation in sacks. This is in large part credit to the defensive ends, including the aforementioned Brandon Sharpe, Daniel Howard and Rajon Henley. All guys play with fairly high motors and I think that's been a big key to their success, aside from being talented, in that they are all hard workers. I also think the entire secondary has done a pretty good job of not giving up many big plays (this again goes back to playing it safe, typically in a cover-2 scheme) and the cornerbacks have been really good. The unit is 3rd in the Big 12 in passes defended at a little over 6 a game. The biggest difference has been an increase in overall athleticism across the board. I think the safeties, Cody Davis and Franklin Mitchem, are overall more athletic than their predecessors and corners Jamar Wall and LaRon Moore have been much better at defending the pass. Fortunately for Oklahoma, it looks as if the hit that laid out OSU's Zac Robinson will keep Wall out for this weekend's game.

Crunching the Numbers :: Oklahoma St. Cowboys Edition

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

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

vs.

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

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

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

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

Team Leaders


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

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

Seth C — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 15:00:29 -0000

by Dave Weaver - AP

Nebraska's Chris Brooks (1), is brought down by Texas Tech's Cody Davis, in the second half of their NCAA college football game in Lincoln, Neb., Saturday, Oct. 17, 2009. Texas Tech beat Nebraska 31-10.(AP Photo/Dave Weaver)

View full size photo »

THE DEFENSE

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 defensive 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
DE	Ryan Haliburton	6-4/245	SO
	Aundrey Barr	6-3/238	RS FR
	Christopher Knighton	6-3/240	RS FR
	Kerry Hyder	6-3/255	RS FR
DT	Colby Whitlock	6-2/287	SR
	Chris Perry	6-4/300	JR
	Pearlie Graves	6-1/278	RS FR
	Myles Wade	6-2/340	JR
LB	Bront Bird	6-3/240	SR
	Brian Duncan	6-1/240
	Tyrone Sonier	6-2/225	JR
	Sam Fehoko	5-11/220	JR
	Brandon Mahoney	6-2/203	RS FR
	Dion Chidozie	6-1/194	RS FR
CB	LaRon Moore	5-9/200	SR
	Taylor Charbonnet	5-10/175	JR
	D.J. Johnson	6-0/170	SO
	Yashua Williams	6-3/181	RS FR
S	Franklin Mitchem	6-2/198	SR
	Cody Davis	6-2/200	SO
	Brett Dewhurst	6-0/193	JR
	Will Ford	6-1/186	SO

If it's not incredibly clear, the weakness of this team will be at defensive end. I've mentioned this a couple of times and for 2 years straight, Texas Tech is losing quite a bit of production from the defensive end position. The key to all of this is that no one has seen any of these guys play on the collegiate level, other than Haliburton, who has done reasonably well in some spot duty early in the season and filling in for Howard, Sharpe and Henley during the early part of the season when there were so many injuries.

The strength of the defense will be up front with the return of Whitlock and Perry, who should form a formidable front and I think there's plenty of talent behind them in Graves and Wade. Much like Jacob Karam, Graves travels with the team and that's an indication that his personality in infectious and reading the tea leaves, he is going to be a player next year. I'd also mention that I do not see any of these tackles moving to defensive end. Perhaps that changes during the spring, but for the time being, I think this is your 2-deep.

Linebacker also returns 2 of the 3 starters from this year. Marlon Williams has been servicable, but he's been virtually non-existent for the better part of conference play, this past weekend's game excluded. You can expect Sonier to fill Williams spot at WLB. I'm also intrigued by Mahoney and Chidozie, who perhaps represent a change in the type of linebacker that Ruffin McNeill wants, which are projectable athletes who can run. If you see a change in philosophy, I think it starts at linebacker and continues to the secondary.

Jamar Wall will be the only player that needs replacement in the secondary next year and Johnson will have to step up his game during the offseason. I think the staff is enamored with his athletic ability, but you saw against TAMU how athletic ability can only carry you so far, he's got to be better from a technique standpoint as well. Ford should also take a step in the right direction this offseason and I may be in the minority, but I'd like to see more Charbonnet and expect Y. Williams to get some time next year as well. All in all, a pretty experienced group returning next year.

Lots more after the jump.

Don't Sleep On

DT: Britton Barbee (6-2/296; SR) and David Neill (6-5/280; JR)
DE: Jonathan Brydon (6-3/220; SR)
LB: None
CB: Jarvis Phillips (6-0/189; RS FR)
S: Jared Flannel (5-11/167; JR); Aaron Charbonnet (5-11/201; RS FR); Andre McCorkle (6-2/204; JR); Daniel Cobb (6-1/211; RS FR) and Terrance Bullitt (6-3/182; RS FR)

I think the only guys that I'm comfortable stating could make an impact from this group is Cobb and Bullitt, although I like Barbee and Neill from a depth perspective

Recruiting

POSITION	PLAYER	STATS	RR	STARS
DE	Kedrick Dial	6-5/215	5.6	3
DE	Jackson Richards	6-4/245	5.8	4
DT	Coby Coleman	6-3/290	5.7	3
DT	Lawrence Rumph	6-4/270	5.7	3
LB	Zac Winbush	6-2/200	5.5	3
DB	Urell Johnson	6-1/185	5.6	3
DB	Desmond Martin	6-0/173	5.6	3
DB	Russell Polk	5-11/200	5.6	3
DB	Tre'Vante Porter	6-0/185	5.7	3
DB	Brandon Smith	6-1/175	5.6	3
AVERAGE			5.63	3.09

If additional recruits are added, I think it's on the defensive side of the ball, namely at defensive end or linebacker. The one guy that I think could get some burn next year is Rumph, especially with the lack of defensive end. Keep in mind that Rumph was luke-warm when he committed to Texas Tech, so I would not count on his commitment until he's actually signed. I think you could also see Richards make an impact next year and Dial is another player who might make a difference next year. Richards is one of the more higher rated players of the class, he's a mature player and already has the size to play defensive end on the collegiate level. At this point, I'd imagine that it's about technique more than anything else. The sleeper of this group might be Martin, who was highly impressive in his film and possibly Porter.

Recruit Trending

YEAR	AVG. RR	AVG. STARS	WASHOUT RATE
2010	5.63	3.09	-
2009	5.57	3.00	2/15 = 13.33%
2008	5.63	3.13	5/8 = 62.50%
2007	5.47	2.70	2/10 = 20.00%
2006	5.53	2.89	7/19 = 36.84%

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

To explain again, the Washout Rate are players who either never made it on campus or played only 1 year. As you'll note, the 2008 class was small, only 16 recruits total (keep in mind that there will be some classes that are smaller than others and a staff is typically limited to a certain number of scholarships in relation to the number of players on scholarship) but you had guys like Joey Fowler, McKinner Dixon, Broderick Marshall, Brandon Sesay and Brandon Reid (who could return to Texas Tech after a stint at JUCO) that all never made it at Texas Tech. This was Ruffin's first class officially, but this was also the same year that he replaced Setencich. If you wanted to take a look at the year that McNeill was in place early as the defensive coordinator then it's really the 2009 class that's his first class from start of the recruiting season to signing day. In that 2009 class you only had Romario Cathey who never made it on campus and James Scott, another guy who has gone the JUCO route but has a good chance of returning to Lubbock.

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.

Crunching the Numbers :: Houston Cougars Edition

Seth C — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 17:00:18 -0000

vs.

Game Information:
Texas Tech Red Raiders (2-1, 0-1) vs. Houston Cougars (0-0, 0-0)
September 26, 2009 :: 8:00 p.m. CST :: Weather: Houston, TX
TV: ESPN2 :: Radio: Texas Tech, :: Game Cast: Fox Sports

CATEGORY	STATISTIC (NCAA RANK, CONF. RANK)	WINNER
TTU Pass Offense vs. UH Pass Defense	444.33 (1, 1) 173.00 (34, 1)
TTU Rush Offense vs. UH Rush Defense	28.67 (118, 12) 175.50 (97, 9)
UH Pass Offense vs. TTU Pass Defense	406.50 (4, 1) 178.67 (39, 3)
UH Rush Offense vs. TTU Rush Defense	118.50 (86, 6) 89.33 (27, 4)
TTU Scoring Offense vs. UH Scoring Defense	39.00 (19, 5) 21.00 (52, 2)
UH Scoring Offense vs. TTU Scoring Defense	50.00 (1, 1) 19 (40, 7)

Team Leaders


STATISTIC	TEXAS TECH	HOUSTON
Passing	Taylor Potts :: 116-167 : 1,281 : 12 : 4	Case Keenum :: 55-76 : 725 : 7: 1
Rushing	Baron Batch :: 17 : 65 : 1	Bryce Beall :: 27 : 136 : 2
Receiving	Lyle Leong :: 19 : 252 : 5	Charles Sims :: 11 : 175 : 1
Punt Returns	Austin Zouzalik :: 5 : 39 : 0	Tyron Carrier :: 1 : 31 : 0
Kickoff Returns	Eric Stephens :: 8 : 236 : 0	Tyron Carrier :: 2 : 41 : 0
Tackles	Marlon Williams :: 26	Marcus McGraw :: 20
Sacks	Daniel Howard :: 2.0 : 11	Tyrell Graham :: 1.0 : 15
Tackles for Loss	Colby Whitlock :: 5.0 : 14	Tyrell Graham :: 2.5 : 22
Interceptions	D.J. Johnson Marlon Williams LaRon Moore :: 1 : 10 : 0	Jamal Robinson :: 1 : 26 : 1

Five Initial Thoughts

One :: Getting in the Backfield: Perhaps this is a signal that the offensive line will have a little bit of a rest as Houston is 92nd in the nation in sacks and 106th in the nation in tackles for loss. Not that Taylor Potts could use an off day, but perhaps he could have a day without as much pressure as last week.

Two :: Keenum is Ridiculously Efficient: Yards per attempt is the end-all in terms of quarterback efficiency, but it's not a bad indicator of how well your quarterback is performing. After 2 games, Case Keenum is averaging 9.5 yards for every passing attempt. For those of you keeping records of that sort of thing, that's pretty good.

Three :: Turnover Margin: Thus far, Houston is 2nd in the nation in turnover margin. I didn't get to watch the Houston vs. Oklahoma St. game but that was a game where OSU lost it because they turned the ball over 4 times to Houston's 2.

Four :: Another Team to Run Against: I guess I get to keep repeating myself, but Houston has an absolutely abysmal rushing defense. To the tune of 175.50 yards a game. I know, you're saying that one of those games was OSU, but Northwestern St. did gain about 180 yards on the ground in the first game (excluding a few sacks by the QB).

Five :: Average Defensively: Houston is just about dead-center in terms of total defense, 66th in the nation. They aren't awful, but they're not good either. I've already mentioned the rushing defense being fairly porous, but the passing defense hasn't truly seen a passing team. I'm tempted to say that the Cougars will be susceptible defensively, whether it be in the air or on the ground, assuming Texas Tech can figure out how to run the ball.

Post-Game Thoughts :: Rice 10, Texas Tech 55

Seth C — Sun, 13 Sep 2009 21:56:05 -0000

via spotted.lubbockonline.com

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Box Score :: SB Nation Coverage :: College Football on SB Nation

This was an incredibly quick trip to Lubbock. I ended up leaving, somewhat on a whim, and returned by noon (DFW) on Sunday. I made the trip for one reason and one reason only, in that listening to two games on the radio just wasn't going to cut it for me. I felt that I needed to see some things with my own eyes, especially before Texas next week. I was hoping for and did see quite a bit of improvement from last week to this week and there's definitely more positives coming from last night's game that against North Dakota. With that being said, Rice is the same team that lost to UAB, who just lost to SMU, 33-35. In other words, we can be excited that some things have been ironed out, but neither UND or Rice are very good and this was the expected result.

Lots of small things to talk about.

The Offense

Yes, Potts was really working the underneath stuff and there seemed to be quite a few short passes than last week, but especially in the second half, Potts worked the ball down the field and his arm allowed him to complete passes over the middle that most Texas Tech quarterbacks would not be able to complete. Potts squeezed the ball in to coverage, which can be incredibly dangerous, but he's got all of the confidence in the world in his arm.But I think this is part of the maturation process of our quarterback. And despite working most of the stuff underneath, he still had 8 yards per attempt for the game. Potts didn't throw an interception, but Rice did drop at least 1, but on the other side of things, Potts did throw the ball away on one play in the 2nd half. It's going to be a give-and-take. And as far as that maturation process is concerned, after the game, on the 4th and 2 from the Rice 2 yard line, Potts made the call to go for it, and here's what he said after the game:

That was a dumb call on me really. You check what you see. That was just a dumb call by me. Looking back on it, I should have thrown a fade to Jacoby there on the outside, but I didn't. That's that. But that was just a dumb call by me.

That's two weeks in a row that Potts has acknowledged a mistake he made in the game and as perfect as well all want him to be, it's going to take time. With that being said, we have a quarterback that's willing to take responsibility for his actions. I like that.

The line looked much better and the insertion of Lonnie Edwards for Mickey Okafor probably has something to do with that. Not seeing what transpired last week the line looked solid. Plenty solid to handle Texas. It still bothers me to no end that the running game hasn't gotten on track and that should have happened this week. At some point, I think every Texas Tech quarterback has to figure it out on their own that checking down to run the ball can be a good thing. Back to the line, I think the experience factor with Edwards is what caused Moore to make the move. And this isn't a knock on Okafor, who needs to continue to work on his strength and quickness, but with Edwards to left guard, Brandon Carter moved back to his right guard position, and Chris Olson and Marlon Winn remained at the tackles. I liked the fact that Moore was willing to make this change early in the season and as stated above, the line will be plenty good against Texas, bu the key will be whether they can figure out how to fix the running game in one week, but it starts with more than 13 carries for the game.

There's no doubt that Baron Batch is back. He played like he had something to prove last night. He was putting his head down, moving the pile and running with wreckless abandon. Harrison Jeffers and Eric Stephens are freaking electric. I don't know what else to say about the runners themselves. They are talented and there's three of them. Somoeone needs to figure out how to get them the ball.

I had pegged Tramain Swindall as one of my guys this season. I thought that from what I saw last year, he was going to be an incredibly talented receiver for Texas Tech. A week 1 benching and things seem to have changed dramatically for Swindall. Think about 6 catches for 123 yards and 2 touchdowns. Lyle Leong deserves praise too and he should have first billing here because he's not the guy that got suspended, but he dropped a pass last night (I'm pretty sure of it) and I was shocked. It's probably going to be the only pass he drops all year. And speaking of drops, Edward Britton missed a gimmie in a flea-flicker and there were groans in the crowd, justifiably so, but the key that everyone needs to keep in mind is that Britton does something that no one else does. Stretch the field. Yes, there are players than can do this, but experience still counts and despite Britton's frustrations he's incredibly important to this team. You hate the drops, but he's a big piece of this team, including being an incredible blocker. And to top it off, all of this was done without Detron Lewis for a good chunk of the game. There were 13 different receivers who caught a Potts pass yesterday, Austin Zouzalik caught his first touchdown pass on a beautiful fake inside and a pass zinged right where Potts knew that Zouzalik would be.

You saw quite a bit of the jumbo set with Ryan Hale and Adam James, with mixed results. When Texas Tech did run out of this set, there was success, but those opportunities were few and far between.

The Defense

The defensive line was really good. Yes, Rice did manage to move the ball some, but the line allowed a net of -60 yards on the ground. Yep, some of those are sacks, but the defense was all about trying to make things happen, and the entire defensive unit improved on those things that needed improving from last week (forcing turnovers, quarterback pressure, and pass deflects). Brandon Sharpe was featured in the morning paper and he delivered big time. An early injury to Rajon Henley (which does not appear to be serious) left a depleted defensive end unit of Daniel Howard, Sharpe and a good chunk coming from Bront Bird and Ryan Haliburton later in the game. Howard and Sharpe were relentless all night and those two were the big reasons for the 6 sacks on the night. That group was relentless and that was without Henley who was pretty good last week. Colby Whitlock and Richard Jones gave their usual effort up front and although Victor Hunter and Chris Perry do an admirable job as theh second unit, there is a drop-off. I do think that David Neil and Ryan Haliburton are going to be contributors by the end of the season, especially Haliburton. He can play and I was wrong about him during the spring. In fact it would benefit this program tremendously if Haliburton played more than he does. With the eventual loss of Henley, Howard and Sharpe there's going to need to be someone who has playing experience.

I'm tired of talking about this, and maybe I just need to stop, but Bront Bird should not be covering slot receivers. This isn't Bird's fault, and he gives 100% effort every play, but he gets picked on by opposing coaches and players because he just can't keep pace with those quicker players. Bird is a really good linebacker when playing the run and he was more than decent rushing the passer, although he needs to develop a few more moves, but making plays in coverage is not one of them. And that's not to say that Bird is incompetent, but whenever Bird was in the game and covering the slot receiver, Rice seemed to find the open receiver, but when McNeill switched to a Daniel Cobb or Brent Dewhurst rather than Bird, the defense was that much more effective. Bird's a tough guy to place for McNeill because he does give maximum effort, but he's also limited on what he can do well.

I don't have many things to say about the other linebackers other than Brian Duncan can sometimes be plagued by the same thing that Bird does in that he's not great in coverage, but he's still really good. Marlon Williams also played very well and although he was credited with the sack, Howard and he were there at the same time.

The biggest difference between this week and last week was the pass-breakups. LaRon Moore had the hit of the day, de-cleating a Rice receiver. This is something that I didn't get to visualize last week, but the secondary is a hard-hitting group. They're not the biggest, but they will hit you and I think this type of thinking is becoming infectious because Moore and Wall are hitting receivers. D.J. Johnson is going to move into Wall's starting job next year. He was tested almost the entire last series by Rice and he stepped-up. He is long and rangy and can do things that Moore and Wall cannot do, but he is good. Will Ford seemed to be all over the field, although he didn't really show up much in the box score.

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."

Double-T Nation Daily Diatribe // 08.24.09

Seth C — Mon, 24 Aug 2009 11:26:36 -0000

Odds and Ends

Quiet Days: There's not much news out there, other than what I've found below, so make sure and check out Saturday's and Sunday's Daily Diatribe. The team has today off as they are trying to simulate a game week this week, just to get used to the routine. I was pretty busy this weekend and starting either today or tomorrow, I've got positional depth charts for us to cuss and discuss and well as finishing up my game previews this week so we can get on our game schedule next week.

Texas Tech Football

Okafor Continues to Work at Right Guard: LAJ's Don Williams features RG Mickey Okafor, who is making the switch from tackle to guard, and is expected to start in two weeks, all as a redshirt freshman. Here's Okafor on he feels thus far and that he knows he needs to keep his rear-end down:

"I think I’m getting comfortable,’’ said the 6-foot-7, 319-pound sophomore from Houston Westbury. "There’s still a few things I need to work on, as in hips movement. Just the run game is the only thing that’s bothering me right now, but I’m getting better at it, and as I continue to work on it I think I’ll be fine.’’

Snip

"It’s a big issue,’’ he said. "You’ve got to drop that butt. You’re going against 300-pound DTs that can move. I never had a problem getting bull-rushed from the outside, but inside it’s a lot more bull rushing, so I’ve been working on (flexibility) before practice.

And here's offensive line coach Matt Moore on some of his coaching philosophy about the type of player he wants at Texas Tech:

"Four of the five guys I have right now can all play tackle,’’ Moore said, "and that’s what you want in this offense. You want to get five tackles across the board, where all the guys are 6-6, 6-7, 6-8, good feet and the whole deal.’’

Okafor is going to be very interesting to watch, especially early. I can certainly see teams keying on Okafor's inexperience and how he handles that will be a key for Texas Tech.

Moore and Olson Still Leading: LAJ's Don Williams notebook has a couple of interesting updates. First, LaRon Moore looks like he's leading the way at right cornerback:

"I’ll put it this way,’’ McNeill said. "I’ve been really impressed with LaRon’s maturity and how he’s grown over the past year. He’s really been very consistent and very physical at corner. He’s playing to the potential we thought he had when we signed him, this spring and this fall. He had a great summer with Bennie (Wylie, the team’s strength and conditioning coach), and it’s carried over into fall camp.’’

. . . also of note, Chris Olson is still leading Terry McDaniel for the left tackle spot:

"Right now, I’d say Olson’s ahead,’’ Moore said this weekend. "But Terry’s so gifted and so talented, once he starts doing all the little things right that Olson does, Olson’s going to have a hard time holding him off.

. . . and defensive coordinator Ruffin McNeill stated that he will not redshirt DT Pearlie Graves, CB D.J. Johnson, S Terrance Bullitt and S Will Ford (this is fairly significant news and something that probably deserves a little more attention) . . .

Potts = Best First Year QB: The AP's Betsy Blaney talks with Mike Leach, who believes that QB Taylor Potts is going to be the first year quarterback hes had:

"As far as having new guys going in, I feel better about this year than I have most of them in the past," Leach said. "He’s talented, and he’s learned and developed very quickly."

And Leach thinks of John Wayne when he thinks of Potts:

"He had that whole John Wayne quality," Leach said. "The ultimate dust and tumbleweeds coming from Abilene, quiet kind of guy. Even now he kind of is."

Scouting the Enemy: This really isn't scouting the enemy since Texas Tech doesn't have an SEC opponent on the schedule, but Team Speed Kills has the SB Nation 2009 SEC preview for your Monday viewing pleasure . . .

5 Things // Biggest Questions Heading into Fall Practice

Seth C — Thu, 06 Aug 2009 14:00:32 -0000

Five Things is a handful (i.e., five) of thoughts about a single topic. Hopefully, discussion ensues.

Biggest Questions Heading into Fall Practice

Practice is mere days away (Saturday actually) and I thought that it might not be a bad idea to ask what are my biggest questions heading into fall practice. These are obviously my biggest questions, but I'd like to know what's bothering you as we start the season?

1: Who will play left tackle?

I think we've discussed the options ad naseum, but it appears that the two options will be reshirt freshman Terry McDaniel (6-7/335) or junior Chris Olson (6-5/296). From my very untrained eye, I think McDaniel is ready to be the guy this year, but I can understand, especially with some early games against difficult opponents, that Olson may be the safer option. McDaniel has all-conference talent, right now, but there's no doubt that Olson knows the blocking schemes backwards and forwards, perhaps better than anyone on the team as Olson is prepared to play a number of positions this fall if he doesn't lock into the left tackle spot.

2: Who will step up as the third and fourth receiver options?

Looking back in past years, the top four receivers usually account for about 69% of the yardage and 72% of the touchdowns in the Texas Tech offense. A lot of this talk about fifth and sixth guys stepping up sounds nice, but history tends to lean towards four guys. Right now, we're looking at Ed Britton at the split end, Tramain Swindall and Detron Lewis at the inside receivers and a mix of Jacoby Franks, Alexander Torres or Lyle Leong at the flanker position. I'm pretty comfortable with thinking that Detron Lewis is more than capable of being the lead guy and I'm slightly torn that as to whether or not the second guy is going to be Britton or Swindall, but I'm thinking that Swindall has a break-out year. That means Britton has to be the guy that steps up the consistency of his game. He's great at a lot of other things that make this offense click, but the dude needs to catch four to five passes a game. That leaves the flanker position completely up in the air, at least right now. And don't get me wrong, I'd love to see guys like Austin Zouzalike or Cornelius Douglas or someone else get some burn at any receiver position, but history is not on their side.

3: How quickly will the inexperienced safeties adjust?

It's not a stretch to think that Cody Davis is going to be pretty damned good for quite some time. He has good size, not great speed, but all you hear about the defense rave about with Davis is his ability to take good angles making tackles. If anything, this somewhat demonstrates his ability to understand how the game is played. I must say that I'm a bit concerned about Davis' counterpart, Franklin Mitchem, only because he's really not getting the same type of recognition that Davis is. Mitchem didn't do anything during the spring game to make me think that he couldn't play, but he didn't stand out either. If it's not Mitchem, then you can look for one of the freshmen defensive backs to make a splash, and if I had to guess right now, it would be Will Ford or Terrance Bullitt.

4: Will Ruffin McNeill be more creative in his defensive philosophy?

This is the $64,000 question, isn't it? I think Ruffin is at a crossroads with the defense and he's slowly but surely building it into what he's envisioning, which is lots of speed, and then some extra speed, just in case. The lone remaining position that needs some upgrade is the linebacker spot, and there are guys that have speed, but they haven't quite yet cracked the top three spots . . . yet. And although this bit is focused on the linebackers, I think there is something to be said about how the defensive line and the defensive backs are athletically and how McNeill perhaps changes scheme to be more aggressive. This is going to be a big spring for guys like Bront Bird and Marlon Williams. They're going to need to step up and make some plays, all over the field, if they're going to keep their jobs on a full-time basis. That means moving sideline to sideline, and McNeill has recruited guys that can do this in Brandon Mahoney and Dion Chidozie. That's not to say that guys like Sam Fehoko, Tyrone Sonier or Blake Collier are positioning themselves to be right in the mix as well, but the philosophy is changing, it's just a matter of time.

5: Will a second cornerback step-up?

Another defensive back question, and much like the safety position, there's the incumbents and then there's the freshmen. Last year, the hasty L.A. Reed experiement failed, for a variety of reasons, but mainly because he couldn't stay on the field. Brent Nickerson struggled to keep receivers in front of him, which I think is one of McNeill's big tenants in playing his defense. During the spring, it was a neck-and-neck-and-neck race between Nickerson, LaRon Moore and Taylor Charbonnet. I'm almost at the point that I know what Nickerson can do and I know what Moore can do, but I'm getting to the point that I'd like to see more out of Charbonnet. I know that he's a bit undersized, however, he has put on about 15 pounds since last fall and is up to 175. That's respectable and if speed is his biggest attribute, then perhaps that speed can be a bit of a neutralizer. Then again, if none of those three can step up opposite Jamar Wall, then perhaps you see one of the freshman back here. Maybe Yashua Williams is the best choice, and D.J. Johnson is probably too raw at this point.