... This marks the first time that Texas Tech has won its Big 12 opener since Kliff Kingsbury's 2018 Red Raiders upset No. 15 Oklahoma State behind a strong showing by Alan Bow... Oh, wait. The Coogs aren't in the league yet? OK...
... It would have been hard to draw up a worse start for Texas Tech. The Cougars marched down the field on their opening drive and, after a pair of fourth-down conversions, scored to go up 7-0. They then caught the Red Raiders napping, recovered an onside kick and scored again to go up 14-0. Texas Tech eventually got on the board but entered the halftime break down 21-7. You can certainly understand any fan pessimism at that point as this program, under Matt Wells and his immediate predecessors, has rarely converted these types of situations into victories.
Maybe that's beginning to change. You, of course, can't say that definitively with any significant confidence after just one performance, but maybe - just maybe - all the talk about buy-in and culture and player-led accountability is more than just talk.
... For as lopsided as the first quarter was in favor of Houston, the second half was even more tilted in favor of Texas Tech. The Red Raiders kept the Cougars off the scoreboard, limited them to just 53 yards of offense and held them to minus-18 yards rushing. In the last two frames, Texas Tech's defense picked off Clayton Tune three times, allowed just one third-down conversion and gave up just one play of 10 or more yards. The Red Raider offense, meanwhile, piled up 246 yards in the second half and averaged a healthy 5.4 yards per carry.
... If you knew nothing about these two teams tonight, you would have thought that Tyler Shough was the third-year starter and Tune had just been on campus for nine months. Shough showed poise, a command of the offense and a bit of that mobility that we have heard so much about. It was a marked improvement from what we have seen from that position over the last three seasons.
... Erik Ezukanma is the best player on this Texas Tech team and I'm not sure that it's very close. Enjoy watching him in the Red and Black while you can.
... Tahj Brooks had a whale of a performance. The last offensive skill player that the Red Raiders flipped from Tulsa turned out pretty good. Here's hoping Brooks can follow the same trajectory as Jakeem Grant.
... Find the transfer addition that didn't show up tonight. Colin Schooler led the team in tackles and had two stops behind the line of scrimmage. Reggie Pearson had an interception, a forced fumble and several key thumps. Eric Monroe had an interception. Jesiah Pierre had five stops, Brandon Bouyer-Randle broke up a pass. Shough was unflappable. Kaylon Geiger was second on targets and third on catches.
... Hats off to Jonathan Garibay to drilling that 34-yard field goal to give the Red Raiders their first lead of the game. Austin McNamara had a nice evening punting. Trey Wolff had three touchbacks.
... The offensive line gave up more pressure than I'm sure everyone would have liked. Giving up the surprise onside kick was suboptimal. The Xavier White fumble was ugly.
... Texas Tech's 17-point margin of victory tonight is larger than the combined margin from its four wins last season (13) and its most lopsided victory over Houston since winning 34-0 in 1994. In fact, the Red Raiders have only topped the Cougars by more than 17 points three times since UH joined the Southwest Conference in 1976.
... Bottom line: Texas Tech is 1-0 and will be heavily favored to be halfway to bowl eligibility by the time Big 12 play starts. The early returns on all of the newcomers are positive. The defense's second-half adjustments and performance should inspire a bit of optimism. No raging, five-alarm concerns after a 17-point win.
... It would have been hard to draw up a worse start for Texas Tech. The Cougars marched down the field on their opening drive and, after a pair of fourth-down conversions, scored to go up 7-0. They then caught the Red Raiders napping, recovered an onside kick and scored again to go up 14-0. Texas Tech eventually got on the board but entered the halftime break down 21-7. You can certainly understand any fan pessimism at that point as this program, under Matt Wells and his immediate predecessors, has rarely converted these types of situations into victories.
Maybe that's beginning to change. You, of course, can't say that definitively with any significant confidence after just one performance, but maybe - just maybe - all the talk about buy-in and culture and player-led accountability is more than just talk.
... For as lopsided as the first quarter was in favor of Houston, the second half was even more tilted in favor of Texas Tech. The Red Raiders kept the Cougars off the scoreboard, limited them to just 53 yards of offense and held them to minus-18 yards rushing. In the last two frames, Texas Tech's defense picked off Clayton Tune three times, allowed just one third-down conversion and gave up just one play of 10 or more yards. The Red Raider offense, meanwhile, piled up 246 yards in the second half and averaged a healthy 5.4 yards per carry.
... If you knew nothing about these two teams tonight, you would have thought that Tyler Shough was the third-year starter and Tune had just been on campus for nine months. Shough showed poise, a command of the offense and a bit of that mobility that we have heard so much about. It was a marked improvement from what we have seen from that position over the last three seasons.
... Erik Ezukanma is the best player on this Texas Tech team and I'm not sure that it's very close. Enjoy watching him in the Red and Black while you can.
... Tahj Brooks had a whale of a performance. The last offensive skill player that the Red Raiders flipped from Tulsa turned out pretty good. Here's hoping Brooks can follow the same trajectory as Jakeem Grant.
... Find the transfer addition that didn't show up tonight. Colin Schooler led the team in tackles and had two stops behind the line of scrimmage. Reggie Pearson had an interception, a forced fumble and several key thumps. Eric Monroe had an interception. Jesiah Pierre had five stops, Brandon Bouyer-Randle broke up a pass. Shough was unflappable. Kaylon Geiger was second on targets and third on catches.
... Hats off to Jonathan Garibay to drilling that 34-yard field goal to give the Red Raiders their first lead of the game. Austin McNamara had a nice evening punting. Trey Wolff had three touchbacks.
... The offensive line gave up more pressure than I'm sure everyone would have liked. Giving up the surprise onside kick was suboptimal. The Xavier White fumble was ugly.
... Texas Tech's 17-point margin of victory tonight is larger than the combined margin from its four wins last season (13) and its most lopsided victory over Houston since winning 34-0 in 1994. In fact, the Red Raiders have only topped the Cougars by more than 17 points three times since UH joined the Southwest Conference in 1976.
... Bottom line: Texas Tech is 1-0 and will be heavily favored to be halfway to bowl eligibility by the time Big 12 play starts. The early returns on all of the newcomers are positive. The defense's second-half adjustments and performance should inspire a bit of optimism. No raging, five-alarm concerns after a 17-point win.
