Good morning, happy Saturday everyone.
As always, the Saturday* Flare is brought to you by our friends at Gator's Bayou. Need an adult beverage to round out your week? Head over to the patio at Gator's Bayou and have a few this afternoon.
Check out their website and follow them on social media for more upcoming events.
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WEEKLY CLICKS
...a quick list of links from the various stories posted on RRS this week.
2020 Texas Tech commits and targets: Week Three results
TTU offers East TX 2021 standout
Red Raiders in the NFL: Week Two recap
The "Voice of the Owls" discusses QB Jackson Tyner's time at Rice
SpindleTap Spitballin': Your weekly fix of Texas Tech tidbits
Texas Tech offers JUCO DE
Breaking down Texas Tech's Big 12 schedule
Texas Tech Hoops Recruiting Notebook
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NEW OFFERS THIS WEEK
The coaches made a handful of new offers this week, dipping into the JUCO ranks for the first time in months.
Deandre Butler - DE, Independence C.C. (KS)
The 6-foot-5, 285-pound defensive lineman will have four years to play three years at the college level. The Red Raiders join Colorado, Iowa State, Arizona and Rutgers as the other Power Five programs to offer Butler so far.
Ronald Williams - CB, Hutchinson C.C. (KS)
The 6-foot-2, 180-pound corner will have two years to play two years at the college level. The Red Raiders join Oklahoma State, West Virginia, Oregona State, UMass and Houston as the other Power Five programs to offer Williams so far.
Tavierre Dunlap - 2021 RB, Del Valle (TX)
The 6-foot, 195-pound junior back now holds five (5) offers, including offers from Arkansas, Boston College, Houston, Syracuse and now Texas Tech. There are several other programs showing interest in the three-star prospect, coaches from Notre Dame, Texas, Iowa State and others have been in touch this off-season.
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TIME FOR BED
1am last Sunday, it was time for bed.
Yes, it really happened. The Red Raiders went to Tuscon last weekend and things did not go well.
The team left town with a loss and an injured starting QB. But this isn't breaking news or something you don't know.
I don't think anyone reading this expected 8, 9 or 10 wins this season...but maybe 6-7 wins and a bowl game seemed achievable, right?
The bottom has fallen out in years past, the Red Raiders have experienced three (3) 5-7 seasons since 2010 and the program finished 4-8 in the 2014 season.
The team is 2-1 going into this bye week.
Oklahoma on the road.
Oklahoma State at home.
Baylor on the road.
Iowa State at home.
Kansas on the road.
West Virginia on the road.
TCU at home.
Kansas State at home.
Texas on the road.
With the combination of Tyner and Duffey at quarterback, where do the wins come from this season?
Iowa State at home? Kansas on the road? WVU on the road?
Maybe TCU at home, in a low scoring affair?
K-State looks very solid through three games, but always possible at home?
Your guess is as good as mine at this point, but here is to hoping we see something against Oklahoma next weekend from the offense with Tyner/Duffey behind center.
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THE QB ROOM - HOW DID WE GET HERE?
No, this is not a negative towards Kingsbury or the former coaching staff...it's just a question that I kept asking myself this week.
For a program known for excellent quarterback play and offense, and the injuries aside, the remaining options in the QB room seem limited.
2013 - signed Davis Webb, added a PWO named Baker Mayfield
2014 - signed Patrick Mahomes, he was a good one
*somewhere in between late 2014 and 2015, Kingsbury and the Red Raiders added a graduate transfer in Nic Shimonek from Iowa - another former East TX standout.
2015 - the Jarrett Stidham year, a late decommit and the coaches do not sign any QBs in this class...interestingly enough, they pursued eventual SMU signee Ben Hicks who now plays at Arkansas as a graduate transfer. This is also the same class where the coaches offered McLane Carter a PWO spot, but he chose another route after high school.
2016 - signed Jett Duffey...but not after a somewhat brief commitment from Tristen Wallace and the recruitment of both Shane Buechele and Jalen Hurts...wouldn't name Hurts if it wasn't a consideration, spent time at Channelview with Hurts and his father, both big fans of Kingsbury the quarterback guru.
Duffey did not have the offer list, but he was an electric player at Mansfield Lake Ridge and led his team to the state championship as a senior - earning various awards in the process.
He had the dual threat ability and Elite 11 credentials, TX Top 100 ranking, etc.
Off the field issues and inconsistency on the field have been the story of Duffey's career at Texas Tech, but he has shown promise in spots over the past two seasons when called into games.
2017 - signed Xavier Martin and McLane Carter, and Martin arguably never played QB for the Red Raiders outside of some scout team and spring game action at the position. Carter and Tech came full circle from a few years ago when he was offered a PWO, he earned a full scholarship out of Tyler J.C. and came to Lubbock ready to compete for a starting spot.
2018 - signed Alan Bowman, three-star prospect with a solid offer list and someone who came into the program ready to play...a few injuries have derailed an otherwise very promising 1-2 years on campus for the Grapevine product.
While Bowman eventually became the guy and has performed well on the field, the coaching staff had targeted several other prospects before offering him.
Spencer Sanders, now starting QB for Oklahoma State.
Tanner Mordecai seemed like priority No. 1 for months at QB, now backup QB for Oklahoma.
Adrian Martinez, now starting QB for Nebraska.
Then, the late season recruitment of Jerry's grandson, John Stephen Jones - who followed the family ties to Arkansas and is now a backup for the Razorbacks.
2019 - signed Maverick McIvor, the three-star prospect originally committed to Kingsbury and reopened his recruitment after the coaching change, but eventually committed to new head coach Matt Wells after late interest from several other programs...a ton of upside, got onto campus and went through a few practices before going down with an injury - surgery, out for the season.
Last recruiting cycle was odd, everyone knew Kingsbury was on the hot seat, but that did not mean talented quarterbacks weren't still interested in working with or checking out the program.
The coaches went after some higher level targets - Grant Gunnell, Michael Johnson Jr. - but everything started to center around Jacob Zeno for what seemed to be 6-7 months and the eventual Baylor commitment was the program's No. 1 target.
That didn't work out and things quickly focused on McIvor, who is an extremely talented passer with a bright future...but he is just not available and will most likely stay sidelined for a redshirt this season.
The new coaches added Jackson Tyner, a graduate transfer from Rice over the summer. The former two-star prospect and dual sport athlete (baseball) could be your starting quarterback next Saturday in Norman against the Sooners.
2020 - verbal commitment from Donovan Smith, former Bishop Gorman wideout turned Frenship starting QB and budding star with a very strong start to the season.
It makes you wonder, injuries and current state considered...could Smith come into the program and use his 6-foot-5, 210-pound frame to help with the QB run option near the goal line or 3rd & short situations?
But there it is, that is how we got here...
Matt Wells does not seem like the type to wait around and hope the situation improves with better health. It seems more likely the Texas Tech coaches will be very involved in the quarterback transfer market to improve the talent in their QB room and create competition regardless of who is healthy/injured.
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BIG 12 GAMES TODAY
Bye week, yeah!
Here is some of the Big 12 scouting you can do today...
UL Monroe at Iowa State - 11am, FS1
Iowa State has not looked great, but taking the Cyclones at home for an 11am game against what should be an inferior opponent.
SMU at TCU - 2:30pm, FS1
Want to watch this one a little bit, haven't really watched TCU this season and they are playing a true freshman quarterback. SMU has looked better this season, and while it would be great, I see TCU taking this one at home.
WVU at Kansas - 3:30pm, ESPN+
Give me the fighting Les Miles led Jayhawks here at home...maybe. West Virginia might be due here, but Neal Brown's squad has looked bad this season...right? WVU did rebound on offense last week with 44 points at home against NC State, so I'm changing my pick...give me the Mountaineers.
Baylor at Rice - 6pm, CBSSN
Baylor big, no real question here.
Oklahoma State at Texas - 6:30pm, ABC
The LSU wideouts made the "You Got Mossed" segment on NFL Countdown due to so many 'big boy' plays made against the Texas secondary.
Oklahoma State has some of those guys at wideout, and the Cowboys have owned Texas over the past 5-7 seasons.
A night game in Austin, a solid game from Ehlinger with zero turnovers can equal a win for Texas here...my biggest question is the defense, interested to see what that looks like for the Longhorns against a Big 12 opponent.
Also, very interested to see what OkState QB Spencer Sanders looks like against Texas tonight.
Give me Texas.
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BIG 12 POWER RANKINGS
1. Oklahoma
The Sooners made easy work of Chip Kelly and UCLA last weekend to remain undefeated. They too enjoy the bye week this weekend and will play your Red Raiders at home this time next weekend.
2. Texas
Picked the Longhorns to beat OkState this evening, so they have to stay at No. 2 this week, but a loss could leave them further down the list.
3. Oklahoma State
Tonight's game helps separate OkState from No. 3 and potential contender to a clear No. 2 and threat to Oklahoma for the conference title. That being said, the Cowboys are an improved program through three games, but give me Texas at home tonight.
4/5/6 - Baylor/TCU/K-State
There is little separating Baylor and Kansas State at the moment, both programs are playing well on both sides of the ball. There is more to learn about TCU, but until they slip, I'm keeping them in this group of programs. The Horn Frogs beat SMU today, then they have Kansas at home followed by Iowa State and K-State on the road...so a few make or break weeks for TCU coming up.
K-State is the real surprise, they went on the road to Mississippi State and won last weekend. The Wildcats are also enjoying the bye week this weekend and will face Oklahoma State in Stillwater next weekend.
7. Iowa State
The Cyclones lost a heart-breaker to in-state rival Iowa last weekend, but now the 2-2 Cyclones have a stretch of 4-5 winnable games starting this weekend against UL Monroe at home. From there, they travel to Baylor and host both TCU and West Virginia at home before traveling to Lubbock and playing your Red Raiders.
8. West Virginia
The Mountaineers seemed to rebound on offense at home against NC State last weekend, and that momentum should continue today against Kansas on the road. Neal Brown and WVU will face Texas at home, Iowa State at home, OU on the road and Baylor on the road over the next four weeks.
9. Texas Tech
The QB situation is difficult to predict or forecast, and games against Oklahoma and Oklahoma State might not help...but the Red Raiders still have a solid defense and the offense could rebound over the course of this season.
10. Kansas
The Jayhawks went on the road and beat Boston College in what seemed to be pretty easy fashion, did not watch the game. But this is the same team that lost to Coastal Carolina a few weeks ago, so let's not crown them just yet. Les Miles and his team could get another win against Neal Brown and WVU today, but then they face games at TCU, at home vs OU, at Texas, at home vs TTU over the next four weeks.
----------
TTU RECRUITING EDITS THIS WEEK
Pretty cool, giant Ant-Man like presence towering over Jones AT&T Stadium while the Blue Angels fly over before kick-off edit.
"yeah, who cares? whatever"
-----------
WHOA(s)
WANTEEEDDDDD, DEAD OR ALIVE
I mean, you hate to see it...yikes.
I LIKE STEAK
Meat Judging Blueblood program*
ALMOST @died TO SCORING TWO TOUCHDOWNS
Tremendous story out of the DFW area this week, worth a read.
TXHSFB THROWBACK
This predates my txhsfb fandom, but I could imagine this was an all-timer...down 41-17, mount the come back and finally take the lead, and then this happens...whoa.
As always, the Saturday* Flare is brought to you by our friends at Gator's Bayou. Need an adult beverage to round out your week? Head over to the patio at Gator's Bayou and have a few this afternoon.
Check out their website and follow them on social media for more upcoming events.
----------
WEEKLY CLICKS
...a quick list of links from the various stories posted on RRS this week.
2020 Texas Tech commits and targets: Week Three results
TTU offers East TX 2021 standout
Red Raiders in the NFL: Week Two recap
The "Voice of the Owls" discusses QB Jackson Tyner's time at Rice
SpindleTap Spitballin': Your weekly fix of Texas Tech tidbits
Texas Tech offers JUCO DE
Breaking down Texas Tech's Big 12 schedule
Texas Tech Hoops Recruiting Notebook
----------
NEW OFFERS THIS WEEK
The coaches made a handful of new offers this week, dipping into the JUCO ranks for the first time in months.
Deandre Butler - DE, Independence C.C. (KS)
The 6-foot-5, 285-pound defensive lineman will have four years to play three years at the college level. The Red Raiders join Colorado, Iowa State, Arizona and Rutgers as the other Power Five programs to offer Butler so far.
Ronald Williams - CB, Hutchinson C.C. (KS)
The 6-foot-2, 180-pound corner will have two years to play two years at the college level. The Red Raiders join Oklahoma State, West Virginia, Oregona State, UMass and Houston as the other Power Five programs to offer Williams so far.
Tavierre Dunlap - 2021 RB, Del Valle (TX)
The 6-foot, 195-pound junior back now holds five (5) offers, including offers from Arkansas, Boston College, Houston, Syracuse and now Texas Tech. There are several other programs showing interest in the three-star prospect, coaches from Notre Dame, Texas, Iowa State and others have been in touch this off-season.
-----------
TIME FOR BED
1am last Sunday, it was time for bed.
Yes, it really happened. The Red Raiders went to Tuscon last weekend and things did not go well.
The team left town with a loss and an injured starting QB. But this isn't breaking news or something you don't know.
I don't think anyone reading this expected 8, 9 or 10 wins this season...but maybe 6-7 wins and a bowl game seemed achievable, right?
The bottom has fallen out in years past, the Red Raiders have experienced three (3) 5-7 seasons since 2010 and the program finished 4-8 in the 2014 season.
The team is 2-1 going into this bye week.
Oklahoma on the road.
Oklahoma State at home.
Baylor on the road.
Iowa State at home.
Kansas on the road.
West Virginia on the road.
TCU at home.
Kansas State at home.
Texas on the road.
With the combination of Tyner and Duffey at quarterback, where do the wins come from this season?
Iowa State at home? Kansas on the road? WVU on the road?
Maybe TCU at home, in a low scoring affair?
K-State looks very solid through three games, but always possible at home?
Your guess is as good as mine at this point, but here is to hoping we see something against Oklahoma next weekend from the offense with Tyner/Duffey behind center.
----------
THE QB ROOM - HOW DID WE GET HERE?
No, this is not a negative towards Kingsbury or the former coaching staff...it's just a question that I kept asking myself this week.
For a program known for excellent quarterback play and offense, and the injuries aside, the remaining options in the QB room seem limited.
2013 - signed Davis Webb, added a PWO named Baker Mayfield
2014 - signed Patrick Mahomes, he was a good one
*somewhere in between late 2014 and 2015, Kingsbury and the Red Raiders added a graduate transfer in Nic Shimonek from Iowa - another former East TX standout.
2015 - the Jarrett Stidham year, a late decommit and the coaches do not sign any QBs in this class...interestingly enough, they pursued eventual SMU signee Ben Hicks who now plays at Arkansas as a graduate transfer. This is also the same class where the coaches offered McLane Carter a PWO spot, but he chose another route after high school.
2016 - signed Jett Duffey...but not after a somewhat brief commitment from Tristen Wallace and the recruitment of both Shane Buechele and Jalen Hurts...wouldn't name Hurts if it wasn't a consideration, spent time at Channelview with Hurts and his father, both big fans of Kingsbury the quarterback guru.
Duffey did not have the offer list, but he was an electric player at Mansfield Lake Ridge and led his team to the state championship as a senior - earning various awards in the process.
He had the dual threat ability and Elite 11 credentials, TX Top 100 ranking, etc.
Off the field issues and inconsistency on the field have been the story of Duffey's career at Texas Tech, but he has shown promise in spots over the past two seasons when called into games.
2017 - signed Xavier Martin and McLane Carter, and Martin arguably never played QB for the Red Raiders outside of some scout team and spring game action at the position. Carter and Tech came full circle from a few years ago when he was offered a PWO, he earned a full scholarship out of Tyler J.C. and came to Lubbock ready to compete for a starting spot.
2018 - signed Alan Bowman, three-star prospect with a solid offer list and someone who came into the program ready to play...a few injuries have derailed an otherwise very promising 1-2 years on campus for the Grapevine product.
While Bowman eventually became the guy and has performed well on the field, the coaching staff had targeted several other prospects before offering him.
Spencer Sanders, now starting QB for Oklahoma State.
Tanner Mordecai seemed like priority No. 1 for months at QB, now backup QB for Oklahoma.
Adrian Martinez, now starting QB for Nebraska.
Then, the late season recruitment of Jerry's grandson, John Stephen Jones - who followed the family ties to Arkansas and is now a backup for the Razorbacks.
2019 - signed Maverick McIvor, the three-star prospect originally committed to Kingsbury and reopened his recruitment after the coaching change, but eventually committed to new head coach Matt Wells after late interest from several other programs...a ton of upside, got onto campus and went through a few practices before going down with an injury - surgery, out for the season.
Last recruiting cycle was odd, everyone knew Kingsbury was on the hot seat, but that did not mean talented quarterbacks weren't still interested in working with or checking out the program.
The coaches went after some higher level targets - Grant Gunnell, Michael Johnson Jr. - but everything started to center around Jacob Zeno for what seemed to be 6-7 months and the eventual Baylor commitment was the program's No. 1 target.
That didn't work out and things quickly focused on McIvor, who is an extremely talented passer with a bright future...but he is just not available and will most likely stay sidelined for a redshirt this season.
The new coaches added Jackson Tyner, a graduate transfer from Rice over the summer. The former two-star prospect and dual sport athlete (baseball) could be your starting quarterback next Saturday in Norman against the Sooners.
2020 - verbal commitment from Donovan Smith, former Bishop Gorman wideout turned Frenship starting QB and budding star with a very strong start to the season.
It makes you wonder, injuries and current state considered...could Smith come into the program and use his 6-foot-5, 210-pound frame to help with the QB run option near the goal line or 3rd & short situations?
But there it is, that is how we got here...
Matt Wells does not seem like the type to wait around and hope the situation improves with better health. It seems more likely the Texas Tech coaches will be very involved in the quarterback transfer market to improve the talent in their QB room and create competition regardless of who is healthy/injured.
----------
BIG 12 GAMES TODAY
Bye week, yeah!
Here is some of the Big 12 scouting you can do today...
UL Monroe at Iowa State - 11am, FS1
Iowa State has not looked great, but taking the Cyclones at home for an 11am game against what should be an inferior opponent.
SMU at TCU - 2:30pm, FS1
Want to watch this one a little bit, haven't really watched TCU this season and they are playing a true freshman quarterback. SMU has looked better this season, and while it would be great, I see TCU taking this one at home.
WVU at Kansas - 3:30pm, ESPN+
Give me the fighting Les Miles led Jayhawks here at home...maybe. West Virginia might be due here, but Neal Brown's squad has looked bad this season...right? WVU did rebound on offense last week with 44 points at home against NC State, so I'm changing my pick...give me the Mountaineers.
Baylor at Rice - 6pm, CBSSN
Baylor big, no real question here.
Oklahoma State at Texas - 6:30pm, ABC
The LSU wideouts made the "You Got Mossed" segment on NFL Countdown due to so many 'big boy' plays made against the Texas secondary.
Oklahoma State has some of those guys at wideout, and the Cowboys have owned Texas over the past 5-7 seasons.
A night game in Austin, a solid game from Ehlinger with zero turnovers can equal a win for Texas here...my biggest question is the defense, interested to see what that looks like for the Longhorns against a Big 12 opponent.
Also, very interested to see what OkState QB Spencer Sanders looks like against Texas tonight.
Give me Texas.
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BIG 12 POWER RANKINGS
1. Oklahoma
The Sooners made easy work of Chip Kelly and UCLA last weekend to remain undefeated. They too enjoy the bye week this weekend and will play your Red Raiders at home this time next weekend.
2. Texas
Picked the Longhorns to beat OkState this evening, so they have to stay at No. 2 this week, but a loss could leave them further down the list.
3. Oklahoma State
Tonight's game helps separate OkState from No. 3 and potential contender to a clear No. 2 and threat to Oklahoma for the conference title. That being said, the Cowboys are an improved program through three games, but give me Texas at home tonight.
4/5/6 - Baylor/TCU/K-State
There is little separating Baylor and Kansas State at the moment, both programs are playing well on both sides of the ball. There is more to learn about TCU, but until they slip, I'm keeping them in this group of programs. The Horn Frogs beat SMU today, then they have Kansas at home followed by Iowa State and K-State on the road...so a few make or break weeks for TCU coming up.
K-State is the real surprise, they went on the road to Mississippi State and won last weekend. The Wildcats are also enjoying the bye week this weekend and will face Oklahoma State in Stillwater next weekend.
7. Iowa State
The Cyclones lost a heart-breaker to in-state rival Iowa last weekend, but now the 2-2 Cyclones have a stretch of 4-5 winnable games starting this weekend against UL Monroe at home. From there, they travel to Baylor and host both TCU and West Virginia at home before traveling to Lubbock and playing your Red Raiders.
8. West Virginia
The Mountaineers seemed to rebound on offense at home against NC State last weekend, and that momentum should continue today against Kansas on the road. Neal Brown and WVU will face Texas at home, Iowa State at home, OU on the road and Baylor on the road over the next four weeks.
9. Texas Tech
The QB situation is difficult to predict or forecast, and games against Oklahoma and Oklahoma State might not help...but the Red Raiders still have a solid defense and the offense could rebound over the course of this season.
10. Kansas
The Jayhawks went on the road and beat Boston College in what seemed to be pretty easy fashion, did not watch the game. But this is the same team that lost to Coastal Carolina a few weeks ago, so let's not crown them just yet. Les Miles and his team could get another win against Neal Brown and WVU today, but then they face games at TCU, at home vs OU, at Texas, at home vs TTU over the next four weeks.
----------
TTU RECRUITING EDITS THIS WEEK
Pretty cool, giant Ant-Man like presence towering over Jones AT&T Stadium while the Blue Angels fly over before kick-off edit.
"yeah, who cares? whatever"
-----------
WHOA(s)
WANTEEEDDDDD, DEAD OR ALIVE
I mean, you hate to see it...yikes.
I LIKE STEAK
Meat Judging Blueblood program*
ALMOST @died TO SCORING TWO TOUCHDOWNS
Tremendous story out of the DFW area this week, worth a read.
TXHSFB THROWBACK
This predates my txhsfb fandom, but I could imagine this was an all-timer...down 41-17, mount the come back and finally take the lead, and then this happens...whoa.
