I don't think it's an overreaction to call what we witnessed on Saturday one of the worst losses of the Post-Leach era (66-6 and 66-10 have something to say probably). It wasn't just the score, which was humiliating, but it was also how we got there. Obviously, the game itself was basically a symposium on how to outclass an opponent on every level, but there was also expectation, built throughout the offseason and the first few games, on Tech's part, that led to complete disappointment.
That expectation was not unwarranted, no matter what the pilers on want to tell you. Matt Wells rebuilt a broken roster by bringing in a multitude of talented players, built depth like we haven't seen in sometime, and seemed to have put the Red Raiders in a position to have a much needed winning season. Now, after a defeat like that, it's hard to even imagine this team climbing back and putting together a respectable season. That conclusion is alarming considering the majority of people, whether this week or when the schedule came out, penciled this in as a loss. That speaks to the shocking nature of what we witnessed on Saturday.
Saturday was a microcosm of the worst of Matt Wells' tenure at Texas Tech, it showed every concern people have had about the way he's run this program just put under a microscope on national TV and against an in-state rival. The Red Raiders looked uninspired, tepid, reactionary. Just like they have this year against Houston, SFA, and in year's past against Oklahoma. Tech was dominated in the trenches, another area where fans have wondered about direction. Sark and his staff seemed have a copy of the Tech gameplan, just like the past SFA, Arizona, and Kansas State games. Tech started slow, down 14-0 before you could even get adjusted in your seat, another theme of this team the past three seasons. No consistent plan for in-game decisions, sometimes we go for it on fourth down in this spot, sometimes we don't. In my opinion, nothing has plagued Matt Wells more than this. Disastrous special teams play, punt blocked (would've been even if he was onside) and big punt return, again, an example list that is too long so just trust me when I say it's a theme. I'm sure I missed a few, but you see the point. In the future, if anyone is curious as to why Matt Wells failed here, you can just show them this game and say "just picture that over three seasons."
When I think about what happened Saturday, and the reaction that followed, almost none of it is over the top or dramatic. It's the natural reaction of a group of highly invested people who have been patient long enough with almost nothing to show for it. I posted this in another thread, but I genuinely believe that if Mike Leach would have hired a team of people to sabotage this football program, they could not have done a better job than "we" have done ourselves. @A. Dickens put it well...
I'm not going to waste my time on two separate articles about that game because that display doesn't deserve it, but I do want to look at a few plays, both offensively and defensively, that stood out.
I know most people like to dunk on Sark because of his history, but he is a damn good offensive coach. What he did to Patterson on Saturday is among one of the most offensive things I've seen on a television screen, and I watched The Sopranos instead of the second half (and it was the episode where Johnny Sack beats up one of Ralphie's men and then pees on him).
The first play in this clip is just the beginning. Sark knows what we all know, the Tech linebackers are not good in coverage, so what does he do? Uses motion to ensure that his best player is matched up on against one of Tech's weaknesses. It's too easy. Again, I am growing tired of these Pearson's tackle "attempts," a first down there is not devastating... a touchdown is.
This next play is another instance of Sark using Tech against Tech. He knows our linebackers are over aggressive and he knows they've been told to focus on Robinson all week. So he gets into a formation that makes Tech outnumbered on the play side, and then adds misdirection. Watch all the Tech linebackers during the mesh, Tech has NO CHANCE.
I get the frustration at the defensive line play, and it's warranted, but watch, in the third play, what happened when Tech did send pressure. It fits perfectly into Texas' pass protection scheme, again, it's like they KNEW our gameplan. On the backend, for as well as Taylor played in spots, why is he attacking the UT receiver like that? It's nonsensical, which is a word that could have been used a lot in terms of the defensive gameplan.
First off, I was extremely impressed with Colombi on Saturday. He is not the same guy we saw last season, there is no way he's making all those downfield throws last season and that is all credit to him. I was really hoping they'd pull the plug and just go with a young guy, but after watching Colombi, he played too well to do that.
To that end, the offensive line is getting thrown in to the "we got dominated in the trenches" argument, and while they may not have "won" their matchup, they settled into the game and actually played well enough to win. And I guess if "nonsensical" is the theme of the defense, then "played well enough to win" is the theme of the defense. I would've taken 35 points before the game and not thought twice.
This first play is kind of a shallow cross look, but Texas covers it, and since the protection is good, Colombi has time to go through his reads and drops an absolute dime to Loic for the touchdown. Let's not waste Loic, please.
Next play is just a basic Smash concept, but I like how Cumbie incorporates play action and a moving pocket to get Colombi comfortable. This is another absolute dime by Colombi and a throw we did not see last year. Look at Koontz's block, the dude is good and needs to be rewarded with targets.
Saturday sucked so bad, we wait all year for football season and a result like that makes you feel like the season is over. It's not, but that's going to be the feeling for at least a week, and that's appropriate. Even though I think that Texas is the best team in the Big 12, I am not anticipating some big turnaround the rest of this season, how can you after a result like that? It would go against nearly every historical and recent trend in both college coaching in general and Matt Wells' career. This group of players and staff are going to get the chance to turn this around, right or wrong, and, at the very least, I hope this program gets a definitive answer and a direction moving forward.
That expectation was not unwarranted, no matter what the pilers on want to tell you. Matt Wells rebuilt a broken roster by bringing in a multitude of talented players, built depth like we haven't seen in sometime, and seemed to have put the Red Raiders in a position to have a much needed winning season. Now, after a defeat like that, it's hard to even imagine this team climbing back and putting together a respectable season. That conclusion is alarming considering the majority of people, whether this week or when the schedule came out, penciled this in as a loss. That speaks to the shocking nature of what we witnessed on Saturday.
Saturday was a microcosm of the worst of Matt Wells' tenure at Texas Tech, it showed every concern people have had about the way he's run this program just put under a microscope on national TV and against an in-state rival. The Red Raiders looked uninspired, tepid, reactionary. Just like they have this year against Houston, SFA, and in year's past against Oklahoma. Tech was dominated in the trenches, another area where fans have wondered about direction. Sark and his staff seemed have a copy of the Tech gameplan, just like the past SFA, Arizona, and Kansas State games. Tech started slow, down 14-0 before you could even get adjusted in your seat, another theme of this team the past three seasons. No consistent plan for in-game decisions, sometimes we go for it on fourth down in this spot, sometimes we don't. In my opinion, nothing has plagued Matt Wells more than this. Disastrous special teams play, punt blocked (would've been even if he was onside) and big punt return, again, an example list that is too long so just trust me when I say it's a theme. I'm sure I missed a few, but you see the point. In the future, if anyone is curious as to why Matt Wells failed here, you can just show them this game and say "just picture that over three seasons."
When I think about what happened Saturday, and the reaction that followed, almost none of it is over the top or dramatic. It's the natural reaction of a group of highly invested people who have been patient long enough with almost nothing to show for it. I posted this in another thread, but I genuinely believe that if Mike Leach would have hired a team of people to sabotage this football program, they could not have done a better job than "we" have done ourselves. @A. Dickens put it well...
Whoever you believe is at fault, and there is plenty of blame to go around, this has been almost a completely joyless program for a decade. Saturday was nothing more than a symptom, the illness goes much deeper and is much more serious.
I'm not going to waste my time on two separate articles about that game because that display doesn't deserve it, but I do want to look at a few plays, both offensively and defensively, that stood out.
I know most people like to dunk on Sark because of his history, but he is a damn good offensive coach. What he did to Patterson on Saturday is among one of the most offensive things I've seen on a television screen, and I watched The Sopranos instead of the second half (and it was the episode where Johnny Sack beats up one of Ralphie's men and then pees on him).
The first play in this clip is just the beginning. Sark knows what we all know, the Tech linebackers are not good in coverage, so what does he do? Uses motion to ensure that his best player is matched up on against one of Tech's weaknesses. It's too easy. Again, I am growing tired of these Pearson's tackle "attempts," a first down there is not devastating... a touchdown is.
This next play is another instance of Sark using Tech against Tech. He knows our linebackers are over aggressive and he knows they've been told to focus on Robinson all week. So he gets into a formation that makes Tech outnumbered on the play side, and then adds misdirection. Watch all the Tech linebackers during the mesh, Tech has NO CHANCE.
I get the frustration at the defensive line play, and it's warranted, but watch, in the third play, what happened when Tech did send pressure. It fits perfectly into Texas' pass protection scheme, again, it's like they KNEW our gameplan. On the backend, for as well as Taylor played in spots, why is he attacking the UT receiver like that? It's nonsensical, which is a word that could have been used a lot in terms of the defensive gameplan.
First off, I was extremely impressed with Colombi on Saturday. He is not the same guy we saw last season, there is no way he's making all those downfield throws last season and that is all credit to him. I was really hoping they'd pull the plug and just go with a young guy, but after watching Colombi, he played too well to do that.
To that end, the offensive line is getting thrown in to the "we got dominated in the trenches" argument, and while they may not have "won" their matchup, they settled into the game and actually played well enough to win. And I guess if "nonsensical" is the theme of the defense, then "played well enough to win" is the theme of the defense. I would've taken 35 points before the game and not thought twice.
This first play is kind of a shallow cross look, but Texas covers it, and since the protection is good, Colombi has time to go through his reads and drops an absolute dime to Loic for the touchdown. Let's not waste Loic, please.
Next play is just a basic Smash concept, but I like how Cumbie incorporates play action and a moving pocket to get Colombi comfortable. This is another absolute dime by Colombi and a throw we did not see last year. Look at Koontz's block, the dude is good and needs to be rewarded with targets.
Saturday sucked so bad, we wait all year for football season and a result like that makes you feel like the season is over. It's not, but that's going to be the feeling for at least a week, and that's appropriate. Even though I think that Texas is the best team in the Big 12, I am not anticipating some big turnaround the rest of this season, how can you after a result like that? It would go against nearly every historical and recent trend in both college coaching in general and Matt Wells' career. This group of players and staff are going to get the chance to turn this around, right or wrong, and, at the very least, I hope this program gets a definitive answer and a direction moving forward.
