It’s times like these that I have a really hard time wrapping my head around exactly what I witnessed on the field. It’s a strange combination of the emotions of disappointment and trying to process what I feel to maybe come to a possible feeling of content.
It is impossible to feel satisfied with the overall result that occurred last night. Going into Saturday’s game, we likely knew very well that Tech could play a phenomenal game and still lose. That was the nature of the beast that laid in front of you with Oregon.
The man under the microscope was always going to be Tyler Shough. After turning in a pretty underwhelming performance in Laramie, the storyline only amplified with the narrative of him facing off against Oregon. You, the reader, can either agree or disagree with my next statement and you will be totally justified either way.
I thought Tyler Shough somehow played the best game and the worst game he could, all in the same night. The good numbers were there, 282 yards and three touchdowns through the air. 101 yards and 23 carries on the ground with a score to match. Time and time again, Shough was asked to be the answer. And I would say for about 50 percent of the time he was. Then you get into the bad. The four turnovers. Unfortunate, untimely and honestly probably avoidable plays that swung in Oregon’s favor. And that is the part that we will remember. Just a lot of really questionable decisions that we didn't expect from a guy with his experience.
Tech went punch-for-punch with Oregon and despite taking several swings right to the jaw, the Red Raiders stayed upright. There was a point in time when Tech was trailing 15-7 and it looked like it could have blown open for the Ducks and the Red Raiders stayed in it.
The pass rush continued to be either questionable or a non-factor entirely. There were shades of Wyoming, especially in the second half, where we saw Bo Nix evade pressure and get out of the pocket where the contain was ineffective. For the most part however, Tech was able to take Bucky Irving out in the run game and I think you can feel satisfied with what you saw from a pure run-stop perspective. Up to the 17-play drive it seemed like Tech’s defense did a solid job at getting Oregon off the field. The Ducks made mistakes, which you needed if you were going to win, and the linebackers/secondary made up for the lack of pass rush.
At the end of the day, when looking back at what I said earlier about Tech playing well and still losing, it will be hard to fall back on that because Tech was not chasing this game. The whole week leading into the game I continuously asked myself what were we going to see from this team against Oregon. The team we watched last night was, I believe, a more accurate representation of what this team is. There were several questions that have been answered. The caveat is there are still many more questions that have not.
Founded by a Red Raider, All Hands Craft Cocktails is proud to announce their partnership with RedRaiderSports.com. Try these bar strength, ready-to-drink vodka cocktails at Jones AT&T Stadium this football season or find them at a retailer near you. Cheers.
It is impossible to feel satisfied with the overall result that occurred last night. Going into Saturday’s game, we likely knew very well that Tech could play a phenomenal game and still lose. That was the nature of the beast that laid in front of you with Oregon.
The man under the microscope was always going to be Tyler Shough. After turning in a pretty underwhelming performance in Laramie, the storyline only amplified with the narrative of him facing off against Oregon. You, the reader, can either agree or disagree with my next statement and you will be totally justified either way.
I thought Tyler Shough somehow played the best game and the worst game he could, all in the same night. The good numbers were there, 282 yards and three touchdowns through the air. 101 yards and 23 carries on the ground with a score to match. Time and time again, Shough was asked to be the answer. And I would say for about 50 percent of the time he was. Then you get into the bad. The four turnovers. Unfortunate, untimely and honestly probably avoidable plays that swung in Oregon’s favor. And that is the part that we will remember. Just a lot of really questionable decisions that we didn't expect from a guy with his experience.
Tech went punch-for-punch with Oregon and despite taking several swings right to the jaw, the Red Raiders stayed upright. There was a point in time when Tech was trailing 15-7 and it looked like it could have blown open for the Ducks and the Red Raiders stayed in it.
The pass rush continued to be either questionable or a non-factor entirely. There were shades of Wyoming, especially in the second half, where we saw Bo Nix evade pressure and get out of the pocket where the contain was ineffective. For the most part however, Tech was able to take Bucky Irving out in the run game and I think you can feel satisfied with what you saw from a pure run-stop perspective. Up to the 17-play drive it seemed like Tech’s defense did a solid job at getting Oregon off the field. The Ducks made mistakes, which you needed if you were going to win, and the linebackers/secondary made up for the lack of pass rush.
At the end of the day, when looking back at what I said earlier about Tech playing well and still losing, it will be hard to fall back on that because Tech was not chasing this game. The whole week leading into the game I continuously asked myself what were we going to see from this team against Oregon. The team we watched last night was, I believe, a more accurate representation of what this team is. There were several questions that have been answered. The caveat is there are still many more questions that have not.
Founded by a Red Raider, All Hands Craft Cocktails is proud to announce their partnership with RedRaiderSports.com. Try these bar strength, ready-to-drink vodka cocktails at Jones AT&T Stadium this football season or find them at a retailer near you. Cheers.
