yes, the Red Raiders lost and yes they did not look great on offense...but that was last week
it is Friday, let's Flare...
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WEEKLY CLICKS
...a quick list of links from the various stories posted on RRS this week
Red Raiders fall in Manhattan 37-28
Thoughts: Texas Tech fights but fails yet again in Manhattan to Kansas State
Things I Liked & Disliked Against Kansas State
Grading the Red Raiders: Defensive line plays well in road loss
Kittley, DeRuyter "looking for consistency" against Oklahoma State Saturday
Parity in the Big 12: Week 6 Power Rankings
McGuire shifts attention to road battle against No. 7 Oklahoma State
Red Raiders in the NFL: 2022 Week Four
Fun facts about new Texas Tech OL commit Kasen Long
Eldridge looking to contain Cowboys, childhood friend in Sanders
Texas Tech commits and targets tracker: Week Six
Tracking Red Raiders: Losing Streaks Snapped & Starting Jobs Reclaimed
Gundy on Texas Tech's pressure: "I don't know if I was ready to see that"
Texas Tech looks for gritty road win against playoff-hopeful Cowboys
RRS TV: OL commit Nick Fattig
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TTU RECRUITING THIS WEEK
no new commitments this week, but a new offer and some various 2024 notes...
The Red Raiders became offer No. 1 for Bellevue (NE) West 2024 athlete Isaiah McMorris earlier this week. The standout junior is also receiving interest from Nebraska and Minnesota. He mostly plays wide receiver and returns kicks & punts on special teams - as of a few weeks ago, McMorris posted his mid-season highlights with the following stats...8 receptions, 638 yards (19.3 yards per reception) and eight (8) touchdowns.
with the 2023 recruiting class nearly full, most of the updates we see are coming from the underclassmen and 2024 prospects...
https://twitter.com/Will_Hammond13/status/157820518801129472
Hutto 2024 pro-style quarterback Will Hammond is feeling the love from Lubbock. The standout junior camped at Texas Tech over the summer, earning an offer after the camp. Since then, Hammond has visited Lubbock twice and most recently visited for the home game against Texas.
Through five (5) games this season, Hammond has completed 76 passes for 1,217 yards and 15 touchdowns to zero interceptions passing along with 56 carries for 363 yards and five (5) touchdowns rushing.
Another 2024 target that attended the game against Texas is Lake Dallas wide receiver Keonde Henry. The standout junior posted a ton of mail from the Red Raider coaches and appears to be a top target for the coaching staff.
Through six (6) games this season, Henry lists 24 receptions for 583 yards and 10 touchdowns.
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HIM-REE WILSON
it is not some secret or breaking news that Tyree Wilson is coming into his own and starting to dominate on the football field this season...and anyone reading this is a rabid Texas Tech fan, so of course you guys & gals know that, but the nation is starting to take notice
Wilson was named the Senior Bowl Defensive Player of the Week this past week. He lists 33 total tackles, 21 solo tackles, five (5) sacks and one (1) forced fumble. Through five (5) games this season, Wilson has nearly met or exceeded his stat totals for tackles and sacks from last season.
Mike Gundy specifically spoke to the Texas Tech pass rush in his weekly press conference, and that absolutely starts with No. 19 bringing pressure and blowing up players for this Texas Tech front.
of course this type of attention from the Senior Bowl leads to attention from the NFL, and Wilson's name is being mentioned among the first round of next year's NFL Draft by most mock draft pushers on the internet.
so the question is...if Wilson continues to produce and pressure on defense this season, then where does young Tyree get drafted?
Wilson is being mocked as early as the No. 10 overall pick in the first round to the No. 33 overall pick, or the first pick of the second round - just seeing his physical makeup and the progression he is making on the field, I'm going to say Wilson is a no-doubt first round pick and that he falls somewhere into the 15-20th pick range.
thoughts?
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COLLEGE FOOTBALL FREE AGENCY
This has already been talked about and debated from an SMU standpoint earlier this week, but College Football free agency is here and we should not all act so surprised. We should also not point at NIL and other variables, because this is a direct result of rule changes to both the redshirt rule and the overall transfer rules.
Yes, NIL exists and yes kids are going to leverage NIL to make money during their college careers, all depending on the success they have on the field. At some programs like Texas Tech and SMU, there are established collectives that pay the players ___ amount per money on an annual basis...so if anything, it could be argued these SMU transfers are 'leaving' $35k on the table or walking away from that guaranteed amount to transfer.
So no, it is not about NIL, these young men committed to a previous coach and were already at SMU when the new coaching staff came in. I'm imagining a conversation with their parents or coaches about the coaching change, about staying and giving it a shot...well, if they gave it a chance and weren't feeling it through four (4) games, then these young men have the opportunity to save their redshirt by playing four (4) or less games...again - per the rules that the NCAA put in place.
Once the NCAA opened the transfer portal and removed the 'sit out a year' reality, then we started to see this become more and more of a normal thing in college football. There were quarterbacks who lost jobs before the season, then immediately transferred. Baylor head coach Dave Aranda was praised for naming a starting quarterback this past spring, allowing Gerry Bohanon the opportunity to transfer with plenty of time to win a starting job elsewhere.
There are a ton of examples to point to, but to me the main point is that the biggest amount of 'risk' when leaving one program for another is still on the players. The coaches have to re-recruit their own roster, keep players happy and create a culture that players want to be a part of...but that being said, coaches can grab a transfer player at anytime of the year and essentially 'replace' a player on the roster they recruited out of high school.
This is not a cry for empathy for the players at all. This is simply a reminder that these kids are taking the risk, not the college coaches.
In this instance, these young men are leaving SMU and leaving behind the $35k per year from NIL to find something different, something better, something better suited for them.
For me, I find it hard to get angry about that or declare that college football is changed forever. How many times have we seen fill-in-the-blank three-star prospect commits to Texas Tech out of high school over other Power Five offers, gets to campus and is never heard from again until they announce their transfer to Jackson State, Angelo State, JUCO or whatever else.
This is truly a two-way street, one where the players have to always look out for No. 1
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BIG 12 POWER RANKINGS
is TCU...good? or is Oklahoma...pretty bad?
I don't really know, but what I do know is that ranking the Big 12 over the past month has been a very frustrating process.
1. Oklahoma State
The No. 7 Pokes went into Waco and won convincingly and will host your Red Raiders at home this weekend. It appears that Gundy has talent and depth on both sides of the ball. There are very talented players, but no standouts or household names...yet. In a year of 'who knows' when it comes to these rankings, it is completely possible for Tech to knock out the Cowboys in Stillwater this weekend.
2. TCU
The Frogs are nationally ranked after taking it to the Sooners at home last weekend, putting up over 50 points in the process. It was not a shock for them to win at home, however, it was a shock to see Oklahoma lose so badly. The Sooners have lost two (2) straight games and face the Ewers-lead Longhorns this weekend, so maybe time will tell us if they are the same level of 'good' we are used to seeing from the Sooners. TCU travels to Kansas this weekend for a battle of undefeated, nationally ranked teams...yes you read that correctly, nobody would have guessed that before the season, nobody.
3. Kansas
The Jayhawks handled business at home against Iowa State this past weekend and the Cinderella story continues this year for Kansas. On one hand I'm happy for KU fans who have suffered through some awful seasons to get here, but on the other hand I feel bad for KU fans who have to listen to Lance Leipold rumors on a weekly basis with now 6-7 college jobs now open and looking for head coaches. The focus will be on beating TCU at home with College Gameday on campus for the Jayhawks this week though, and KU has a real shot at continuing their undefeated season with a win this weekend.
4. Kansas State
Overlooking the home loss to Tulane might be easier later this season, but it happened. The Wildcats have responded with two (2) wins in a row, on the road against Oklahoma and home last weekend against your Red Raiders. There has not been a ton of consistency, but this No. 20 Kansas State team has the opportunity to win three (3) in a row with a win on the road against a reeling Iowa State team this Saturday night.
5. Baylor
The Bears did lose their second game at home against No. 7 Oklahoma State this week, but that puts them at 1-1 in conference play going into their bye week. The loss earlier this season to BYU looks bad in hindsight, however, Baylor comes back next week with a game against West Virginia and then games against Kansas at home and Texas Tech on the road. With KU having success this season and the Texas Tech game being announced as a sell out, this bye week and the next three (3) weeks will be make or break for this Baylor team.
6. Texas Tech
The Red Raiders did not look great on the road against No. 20 Kansas State last weekend, but overall the team has somewhat over-achieved on the young season and has a great opportunity to go into Stillwater against No. 7 Oklahoma State this weekend. The offense has to put together scoring drives on a more consistent basis and the defense will have to continue playing well on the road, but they could either go into the bye week with a huge win or as a 3-3 team (1-2 in conference play) with upcoming home games against both West Virginia and Baylor to finish the month of October.
7. Texas
The Longhorns announced yesterday that QB Quinn Ewers is back from injury and will start against Oklahoma this weekend in the Red River Rivalry. This should rally a Texas team looking for consistency in this young season. Rivals create craziness, so anything can happen this weekend when Texas and Oklahoma faceoff, but neither team is ranked and both teams need a win to turn things around. Texas has this rivalry matchup, then they are home against Iowa State next weekend, on the road against Oklahoma State and finish the month with a bye week.
8. Oklahoma
The Sooners are a staple to win the Big 12 conference, there is no other way to put that. All the changes in Norman have seemed to catch up with the team though, as Oklahoma has now dropped two (2) straight games to Kansas State at home and TCU on the road. These weren't close losses either, TCU beat the Sooners 55-24 this past weekend. To make matters worse, starting quarterback Dillon Gabriel is reportedly injured and will not play in the Red River Rivalry this weekend. The Sooners have not lost three (3) games in a row since the 90's and the line alone makes that a very real possibility this weekend. Oklahoma needs a win this weekend with upcoming games at home against Kansas next weekend, a bye wek and then Iowa State on the road to finish the month of October.
9. Iowa State
The Cyclones are 3-2 on the season, but have dropped two (2) straight conference games against Baylor and Kansas to start 0-2 in conference play. Iowa State hosts No. 20 Kansas State tomorrow night and needs a conference win at home. The Cyclones finish the month of October with a road game against Texas, a bye week and a home game against Oklahoma. This Iowa State team needs to find points in conference play after scoring 24 points against Baylor with 10 of those points coming late in the 4th quarter and scoring only 11 points against Kansas.
10. West Virginia
The Mountaineers traveled to Austin this last weekend and lost to the Longhorns 38-20 in a game that was never close. Neil Brown's team is now 2-3 on the season and 0-2 in conference play. West Virginia has a bye week this week, then they finish the month of October with a home game against Baylor, on the road against Texas Tech and at home against TCU.
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have a great weekend everyone!
