Bye Week (Offense)
Texas Tech comes home for a week before the biggest test of the Wells era. The biggest question coming out of this week will be, “How does Tech respond to the loss and focus for OU?”
Unfortunately, Tech will be with out Bowman for several weeks due to a shoulder injury. Jett Duffey, Jackson Tyner, and possibly Logan Greene (if he balls out) will be competing for the starting job until Bowman can get healthy. Obviously, we will not know who will start until later next week, but it should be an interesting decision for Yost and Wells.
Tyner might be listed as the number two but look for Jett to be in the mix this week. I really think Jett should get the nod to start.
Now hear me out…I understand the performance from Jett was not ideal at all last year, but the way Yost runs his offense it will allow success for mobile QBs if they capitalize on the opportunity. For example, when David Yost was at Missouri, his first quarter back to coach was Brad Smith (2001-2005). Both Smith and Duffey are similar in that they are explosive with their legs and can make plays with their arm. The biggest difference is that Brad Smith, yes turned it over, but went out and scored the next series. He never let a mistake influence his performance.
Brad Smith, under Yost, was the first QB to throw for 2000 yards and rush for 1000 twice and became the only QB the pass for 8000 yards and rush for 4000 yards in a career. There is a chance for mobile QBs to have success, it’s depends on if they are willing to listen in the film room, and on the practice field.
Bye Week (Defense)
The defense will have a week to get conditioned for conference play next week. They looked impressive for three quarters forcing 3 turnovers and having the field flipped multiple times thanks to McNamara. The defense gave the offense plenty of chances to win but failed to get off the field in the 4th quarter.
In order to be successful in Big 12 play, you must force opponents to 3-and-outs in the 4th quarter, force opposing offenses to make mistakes, and be conditioned for the top offenses in the country. We looked worn down towards the one-minute mark in the 3rd and eventually had Arizona’s will forced upon in the 4th.
Tech went 7-16 on third down while the Wildcats went 15-21 on third down. That must be addressed because you won’t be successful if you’re only stopping teams six times on third down.
Tech has two weeks to get ready for the biggest test of the Wells era. Coach Wells has coached in rough environments while he was at Utah State, but this is a completely different level. I understand the difficulty of playing at Boise State at night in November, but nothing compares to the environments in the Big 12. Playing in Norman, Austin, Stillwater, and Ames are not the same as playing in Boise, or Reno. Teams don’t win often at OU, especially after a loss the previous week. How Wells and the rest of the staff will be able to prepare these guys for a strip up north will be interesting in this phase of adversity.
Week 4 Preview
Even though the Red Raiders don’t start conference play for another week, other schools start league play this week as West Virginia takes on Kansas, and Oklahoma State takes on # 12 UT in a possible thriller in Austin. As far as conference play goes, #12 UT vs OSU is the most attractive. This game will have determined a lot later on in the year if the Cowboys are going to have the type of year many predicted and if UT wants to win the Big 12 this year.
Looking at the rest of the country…. #11 Michigan takes on #13 Wisconsin in a must win for Jim Harbaugh. If the Wolverines want to have say in anything this year, they must beat the Badgers.
The SEC kicks off conference play for some of their schools including a couple of games that will have playoff implications on the line. #9 Florida takes on Tennessee in one of the oldest rivalries east of the Mississippi.
#4 LSU takes on Vandy.
#8 Auburn takes on #12 Texas A&M at Kyle Field. Bo Nix, the QB for Auburn will have his first real test. If they believe he is the future of that program, he must take care of business. Same goes for A&M. They haven’t made a significant impact in the SEC since 2012. The Aggies face both Alabama schools at home this year. This is a huge game for both.
Lastly, in the game of the week for the SEC, #7 Notre Dame travels to Athens to take on #3 Georgia. For Notre Dame to have a fighter’s chance at making the playoffs, they must beat Georgia, but that’s not going to happen. Georgia must win this game if they are to make it into the playoffs and that’s the bottom line.
These are the more important games. These games have possible playoff implications and New Year’s Six Bowls tied to each of these games.
Enjoy your bye week….Wreck’ Em!!
Now for some Saddle Tramp News:
This past weekend was an exciting one for us. Our new guys went on their retreat and figured out their pledge class song and their pledge class name. Their pledge class name is The Knightswatch. You can find their name on the Rushing Information page. Now that they have a name, they are officially part of our history as an organization. Congrats guys!
If you have not yet, please consider subscribing to our email list. We promise we won't spam you with a bunch of nonsense. When you subscribe you'll just be getting email updates of major news and when a new Newsletter post is out. We hope you have a great rest of your week! Wreck 'Em!