5 THINGS WE KNOW ON A FRIDAY: 7/16/10

1.  The looming QB battle between Taylor Potts and Steven Sheffield is the best at that position in the last 40-years for Texas Tech. No two players have fought for the job coming in with as many skins on the wall as these two.  For the record, I think Potts wins the battle but Tech fans can’t lose either way. It should be one of the great stories around the Big 12 and the national media this August, but probably won’t. Too bad for them.

2.  Tiger Woods will never again be the consistent, clear-cut top golfer in the world. He’ll be amongst the best, he’ll have some nice runs at number one, but never again the dominant top golfer. Does that mean he won’t catch Jack? Don’t know…ask me again  at the end of 2011.

3.  The toughest athletes in Lubbock aren’t playing for Texas Tech. They are the Lubbock Firefighter Combat Challenge team. If you’ve never seen this stuff you’ve got to watch it. You can catch them in action in the Hubbbaplex in a few weeks.  They could always use some more financial support so if you’ve got a business in Lubbock and want to help out, do it! Thanks to Carpet Tech for the great support they’re giving these fine representatives of Lubbock. Rumor has it they were going to do a calendar to help raise money, but the City Manager spiked the idea because it might not present a “professional image”. That’s a laugh. Someone downtown lecturing the firefighters about being professional. . .

4. If you knew half of what went on in college football you probably wouldn’t be a fan. Then again, if most folks knew half of what went on at other businesses they might never shop there, eat there or purchase their services. Sometimes ignorance is both bliss and good for business.

5.  Has anyone noticed Gerald Myers is still the Athletic Director at Texas Tech? Just wondering.

Well, I guess winter was just waiting for Texas Tech to wrap-up the regular season before arriving on the South Plains! I must admit that it feels good and gets my blood pumping more for the Christmas season than the recent warm temps. I like seasons.

Speaking of seasons, bowl speculation season is now upon us after Tech’s lackluster win in Arlington over the Baylor Bears last night 20-13.  The stage was all set for Mike Leach and crew to announce their presence with authority for either a Holiday or perhaps even return trip to the Cotton Bowl.  The Tech fans showed up great. The stadium was rocking and even the Texas Tech defense was ready to do its part. The offense on the other hand laid the kind of egg that doesn’t exactly wow bowl reps and TV execs going into December.

Don Williams has a fantastic write-up of this game so we won’t comment on the X’s and O’s much other than to say again this team just doesn’t have the talent and experience this year to not play its best offensively and expect to win much less dominate quality opponents. Luckily it was a beat-up Baylor team last night and not some one else that might have really sent Tech fans into December on a sour note wondering where exactly this program is after the 2009 season.

And that gets us to the end of season battle damage report and trying to figure exactly how to rate this 8-4 team.

I predicted Texas Tech to go 8-4 so I’ve got no problems with the record. I think that’s right on par with the talent level that this team had compared to the teams they were playing. Of course that was all done in August before injuries to Tech and most other Big 12 South teams played a role in how we’d look at each game week-to-week. That’s what will make this season so frustrating for Tech fans. Not the final record, but how the Red Raiders got there.

If I’d told you in August that you’d lose at Houston and get stomped by A&M at home you’d think Tech was missing out on a bowl for the first time since Bill Clinton was President. If I’d told you Tech would smoke Oklahoma in Lubbock and dominate Nebraska in Lincoln you’d probably be making plans for a BCS trip.

The inconsistency of the season, mainly because of injuries to Taylor Potts at QB, numerous offensive line issues, twitter-gate and Facebook-scandal, the emergence of a split fan-base over Potts vs. Steven Sheffield and a defense that could look great and weak all on one drive drove Tech fans to drinking. Thankfully because of the vote last May by Lubbockites it was a short trip this fall!

Fair or not many fans will look at 2009 as a season of missed opportunity. You got to face Oklahoma, Oklahoma State and Baylor all with-out their biggest weapons and you played an A&M team that no one thought could stay on the field with you and you came away with a 2-2 record out of that bunch.

The Houston game for many was decided not by plays on the field but by game-management and decision making on the sidelines by the Lead Pirate. How different might the season had been for Texas Tech had there been no 4th and one debacle and instead Tech takes the points and wins the game? Is there a Brandon Carter post-game melt-down that leads to a suspension and perhaps contributed to Potts getting waylaid by New Mexico? Does Twitter and Facebook-gate ever happen? Does Sticks even see the field other than mop-up duty after that? Does the Tech team team play with greater confidence after a Houston win and sweeps into the A&M game on a massive high playing for BCS hopes? I won’t even get into the ramifications of the cheap money-grab of moving the Texas game up and what it may have cost the program in the final analysis.

No, 8-4 in a rebuilding year is nothing to sneeze at and Tech fans should be impressed with how hard the Lead Pirate worked to keep things together through a year of odd occurences the likes we haven’t seen in his tenure in Lubbock. Had Tech “won the ones they were supposed to and lost the ones the were supposed to” this year most fans would be pretty pleased waking up today knowing it is either Holiday or Alamo Bowl for the Red Raiders.

As it is though, many will look back and wonder what might have been. That’s human nature. That’s college football.

MORE LATER

HYATT

This morning I almost talked myself out of picking Tech to win, 27-24 in OT. I told myself Tech couldn’t run on OU, that they’d be hard-pressed to get a pass off against that rush, that they’d be lucky to score 21 points.  I was right. Tech did much more than that in a 41-13 win against what most consider Bob Stoops best defense in his tenure at Oklahoma. So much for that.

Here’s the latest from the A-J.

Baron Batch was all that with 136 yards and two TD’s on the ground and Taylor “Nick” Potts threw for another 388 yards and two TD’s against the supposedly inpregnable OU defense.

So Tech Fans, how do you like Potts now?

I’m personally thrilled that Potts had a great game. He wore a jersey today with “Nick” on the back in reference to the nickname that Leach had given him this seaon. There’s the “good Potts”  i.e. Nick and the bad Potts that holds on to the ball to long and tries to make the perfect play each and every time instead of just making the average play that Leach preaches. Today “Nick” embraced all of the teachings and more, just like he did before his head injury that so many Tech fans wanted to discount this year.

Tech fans have been far too hard on Potts this year, in no small part because of the lack of support by Mike Leach publicly. I’m glad Potts got the chance to prove himself today. I hope the fans appreciated his efforts. . .

I’ll have much more later, but this has to rank as one of Mike Leach’s best wins in his time at Tech because of the way the season has gone, the opponent and the fact that even the Lead Pirate had waffled on his QB this year. Sometimes it is worth waiting for. . .

More Later

Hyatt

I’m sitting here listening to former Tech and NFL QB Billy Joe Tolliver on SportsRadio 1340 The Fan’s pre-game coverage wondering what kind of impact Big Opie might have on today’s game is he suited up and played for the Red Raiders. As he just said he might go from fifth to second on the all-time passing chart in one afternoon!

If I were like a lot in the media I’d change my pick this morning from last night’s Show at The Overton. I woke up with a bad feeling, but it could be supper from last night, so who knows. Instead I’ll stay with what I went with on-air.

Here’s a little preview from the A-J to get your day started.

I think both teams’ defenses will dictate to the offense. I think OU’s stellar bunch will make points hard to come by and I think Tech’s front four and five will pressure Landry Jones all-day.

At the end of regulation it will be 21-all. In the first OT OU gets the ball first and kicks a field goal. Tech responds by getting sacked and then on 4th and forever Taylor Potts launches a laser beam into the endzone that gets tipped by Torres and caught by Lewis. Brian Jensen’s head explodes in the Tech radio booth and all you’re left with is John Harris going,”ooooooohhhhhhhhhhh”.

Texas Tech wins: 27-24 in OT. Add another chapter to the great finishes (for Tech) at Jones Stadium against Oklahoma.

Get your picks in today and let’s see how you do.

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HYATT

The Lead Pirate admitted Monday that he shouldn’t have taken Taylor Potts out of the game Saturday night in Stillwater during his Monday presser. 

Don Williams has the nice write-up that puts the comments into context, something most media places don’t bother to do any more.

The real story now becomes who gets the nod this week against OU. In my view Steven Sheffield just isn’t healed enough to bring his best qualities to the field, namely his mobility and ability to move the pocket and throw on the run. Because of that I think Potts is the best option. The Pirate needs to trust his gut and swing his QB Selector Sword better than he has lately. It is odd to see Leach waffle like this over the QB spot, something he’s never done in the past.

The move against OSU was one of panic, the move to decide who starts against OU won’t have to be born of such circumstance. Leach has plenty of time to decide and judging from his comments who ever you see start will be who you see finish. I’m hoping that is Potts, but I’ve got a funny feeling Tech fans will have something to talk about come Saturday morning when the starters trot out on the field.

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HYATT

Ruffin McNeill couldn’t get his defense off the field and Mike Leach couldn’t figure out which QB to put on the field Saturday night in Stillwater. In between Oklahoma State proved they were stronger, tougher, faster and just a slightly better football team than the Red Raiders as they won 24-17 to extend the home team’s winning streak to eight games in this Big 12 series.

On a night when Texas Tech couldn’t find much of anything on offense and no stops on defense the big story may very well end up being Next Week. Next Week as in who will be you’re QB. To be sure, Leach panicked in the first half when he pulled Taylor Potts. It has become more and more obvious that the Lead Pirate wants anyone other than Potts out there and only went back to him late when it was obvious Steven Sheffield couldn’t play and might end up injured if he stayed out there. Even ABC analyst Craig James, father of Tech WR Adam James, was getting more and more adamant that Sticks didn’t need to be out there playing. Finally Leach heeded the call and put Potts back in. Too late. Would Tech have won if Potts had stayed out there? Will never know. I would however have liked to have seen him have the chance. Back to that in a minute.

Ruff’s bunch hung in there for a while tonight but it was more of the same from the A&M game when they got blown off the ball, laid back with the LB’s and couldn’t get a stop when needed as OSU pounded and pounded the ball at the Red Raiders. It was ironic that it played out like this tonight considering it was here in Stillwater two years ago that Lyle Setencich lost his job and Ruff got promoted. One of the complaints against Lyle was a bend but don’t break defensive scheme, a scheme many attributed to Leach’s directive to not give up quick scores. Tonight it was throwback night as the Tech defense bled to death by paper cuts. No big plays given up and no chance to get the offense back out there. Sounds familiar.

You can’t just say it was the defense tonight and you can’t lay it all on an offense that doesn’t have a leader because the Lead Pirate won’t let it have one. This was a program loss tonight.

All of this points though to the uncomfortable truth that OSU is a better team this year. Tech fans won’t want to hear it. In fact it may be the toughest thing for a fan to hear, that they’re team isn’t good enough. You always want to blame someone, anyone for a loss. A coach’s call. A players bad performance. An officials call. Anything. Tonight though, OSU proved that in 2009 they’re better. Ouch.

The A-J’s Don Williams has the initial game report.

Here’s their Notebook section as well.

The Tulsa World is also chiming in tonight.

Now, back to Sticks, Potts and Leach.

What an odd love triangle. . .

I’ll stand by what I’ve said all along and that is that Leach should have stood by Potts much more publicly after his injury. I think he pulled him far to early tonight in a panic move and it is a tribute to Potts that he had the maturity to keep his head in the game and nearly save his 2.5 million dollar a year coach’s butt tonight. Potts has taken more “garbage” this year from fans and others mainly because he hasn’t been supported by his coach. That bothers me.

I think we now know why Leach didn’t change QB’s at all during the previous years at Tech. It is becoming apparent this year that he may not have a solid grasp on how to handle having two QB’s. If you are a young coach out there and you want a primer on how to ruin a QB and how to compromise his ability to lead, just watch how Leach has handled Taylor Potts this year. I don’t know what and I don’t know why and I don’t pretend to have inside information, but there must be more than meets the eye between those two now. The TV cameras caught a nice exchange in the first half when Potts came to the sidelines before being benched. Potts was animated and Leach was not even looking at him. . . who knows. All I know is that something isn’t right.

So, now what happens?

You’ve got OU left who just pulverized an A&M team that manhandled you at home and a Baylor team that is already home for the holidays. You may or may not have Sticks available after watching him get hammered around tonight and you may or may not have a locker room split between your two QB’s. You also have a fan-base that is wondering exactly who is supposed to be running this team on the field. Fun.

Some of the challenges for this team are because of outside challenges. Most I think are coming from within. We’ll see how they respond next Saturday at 11:30.

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HYATT

5 things we know on a Friday: 11/13/09

1. I love it when folks who aren’t from around here lecture me and others on what it takes to be “true basketball fans” and how to support a program or two. The A-J’s Courtney Linehan should probably do a little more research before she talks about fans in West Texas for the Lady Raiders and the Tech men’s program. Linehan has already written some fine articles but she’s off-base here. I’ve learned over the years when upper-midwestern types talk about their love of basketball they usually mean men’s basketball. They forget that West Texas has long supported two programs with a much higher combined ticket sales number than most schools around the nation, including those so-called basketball hotbeds. Is it down right now? You bet. Will it get better when the programs get better? You bet. That’s logic.
2. TCU deserves to lose this weekend for mocking the football gods with their new uniforms. Someone stop them. Please.
3. I still think Mike Leach should have supported his QB Taylor Potts more publicly over the past few weeks since coming back from a head injury. Players and fans alike have taken their cue from the Lead Pirate in their Potts bashing. It wouldn’t have taken much for Leach to say that Potts was the guy, is the guy and that they can’t wait to win with him again after the concussion. He didn’t. Hum. Some controversies are of your own creation. Meanwhile it’ll be up to Potts to save their bacon again this week at OSU.
4. John Tesh was in Lubbock last night? Who knew.
5. When did it become The United States is vs. The United States are? I’d like to know that answer as I think it would be most revealing as to the attitudes of the governed towards the government.

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HYATT

Thank God the open date has passed for the Red Raiders. Now we can move on to real stories again like whether Steven Sheffield will get to play QB for Texas Tech against OSU. The Lead Pirate got the internet fans going crazy yesterday when he said to the media that Sticks will try and get some reps in practice this week. Don’t read too much into that though. There’s a long way to go from taking a few reps to getting the start on the road at # 17 OSU. Tech fans need to remember that Taylor Potts was “medically cleared” to play at Nebraska but there was no way Leach and crew really wanted to throw him back out there. Same goes for Sticks this week. You got him if you desperately need him but you really have to hope and expect Potts to be the guy that gets it done Saturday.

The best attribute Sticks brings to the field is his ability to move and create inside and out of the pocket. You really can’t expect him to have all of that mobility back this week. It is unfair to him and the team to put him back out there when he can’t be the best he can be. I can’t see Leach doing that to his team, just like he didn’t do it with Potts earlier this year.

The more interesting question what happens next Saturday against OU IF Tech can go get the upset win on the road with Potts at QB. Does Leach stay with the hot-hand or does he bench Potts and go back to Sticks? If you thought there was a controversy before, wait til you see the fan-base howling about that call, either way it goes. We haven’t seen a fan-base more divided over a QB call in Lubbock since the 1970′s. Oh well, it does give folks something to talk about besides health care reform, so that’s a good thing.