Bruce Feldman (The Athletic)...good story. Don't get all jimmied...it's not a bad thing.
The Feldman Files: Texas Tech’s new QB has a lot of yards and a little Baker Mayfield to him
By Bruce Feldman 45m ago
One of the most remarkable stats I saw this offseason came from colleague Max Olson regarding Texas Tech coach Kliff Kingsbury: The average season stats from his quarterbacks since 2010 are ridiculous: 4,797 passing yards, 5,129 total yards, 46 total touchdowns, 14 interceptions.
So with that kind of track record, whether it was Case Keenum, Johnny Manziel, Baker Mayfield, Davis Webb, Patrick Mahomes or Nic Shimonek, it shouldn’t come as a shock that the former Red Raiders star QB has developed another prolific passer.
Maybe the only surprising part is that it only took the new guy, Alan Bowman, three games to smash Mahomes’ Big 12 freshman single-game record with 605 passing yards in the Red Raiders’ victory against Houston last weekend. Bowman finished 6 yards shy of the NCAA freshman passing record set in 1998 by Nevada’s David Neill. It marked only the third time in FBS history that a freshman has thrown for at least 600 yards in a game.
Alan Who?
Bowman, a true freshman three-star recruit from Grapevine, Texas, was the longshot to emerge as this year’s starter in Lubbock behind former four-star Jett Duffey and junior McLane Carter, who started last year’s regular-season finale win in Austin against Texas. Carter, though, suffered an ankle injury in the opener against Ole Miss. Kingsbury had been very impressed with Bowman’s attitude and grasp of the offense. He earned the starting job before proceeding to shred Houston, going 43-for-59 for five TDs and those 605 yards in a frenetic shootout against a defense featuring the great Ed Oliver. Tech has topped 60 points in each of his two starts, marking the first time the school has done that in successive weeks in 13 years.
“I remember when Pat broke it and I said it’d never be broken,” Kingsbury told me after the game. “We couldn’t run the ball — Ed Oliver is an absolute beast, so we had to throw it and he did a nice job protecting the football and going through his reads. Hopefully he builds some confidence moving forward.”
What’s even more impressive is that the offense not only had to find a new quarterback, it also had to replace four wide receivers who are now playing in the NFL. Bowman is not available to the media as a true freshman, due to Kingsbury’s policy.
Kingsbury says he’s always been really hard on true freshmen in his system, calling it a rite of passage, but Bowman’s approach to all of that has been “bring it,” the coach says. The 6-foot-3, 210-pounder, who picked Tech over Houston, Ole Miss and several others, doesn’t run as well as the Tech’s other QBs but is very decisive, sees the field well and has enough mobility and pocket presence to keep plays alive.
Sixth-year senior Zach Austin, like fellow starting wideout Ja’Deion High, is six years older than Bowman. Austin grew up with Mayfield and came to Tech with him as walk-ons. He said Bowman reminds him some of his old buddy, who went on to win the Heisman at Oklahoma.
“I say this in the best possible way: They’re both smartasses, meaning they can keep people loose,” said Austin. He said they both also have an important ingredient for a quarterback in the form of the uncanny ability to forget bad plays.
This week, Bowman and Tech will face another test when they visit No. 15 Oklahoma State. “What Alan lacked is what he’s getting these first few weeks,” said Red Raiders offensive coordinator Kevin Johns, noting that the kid just doesn’t seem to get rattled. “He’s faced an SEC defense (Ole Miss), the No. 1 player in the country (Oliver) and has to go on the road to Oklahoma State. That’s a baptism by fire.”
The Feldman Files: Texas Tech’s new QB has a lot of yards and a little Baker Mayfield to him
By Bruce Feldman 45m ago
One of the most remarkable stats I saw this offseason came from colleague Max Olson regarding Texas Tech coach Kliff Kingsbury: The average season stats from his quarterbacks since 2010 are ridiculous: 4,797 passing yards, 5,129 total yards, 46 total touchdowns, 14 interceptions.
So with that kind of track record, whether it was Case Keenum, Johnny Manziel, Baker Mayfield, Davis Webb, Patrick Mahomes or Nic Shimonek, it shouldn’t come as a shock that the former Red Raiders star QB has developed another prolific passer.
Maybe the only surprising part is that it only took the new guy, Alan Bowman, three games to smash Mahomes’ Big 12 freshman single-game record with 605 passing yards in the Red Raiders’ victory against Houston last weekend. Bowman finished 6 yards shy of the NCAA freshman passing record set in 1998 by Nevada’s David Neill. It marked only the third time in FBS history that a freshman has thrown for at least 600 yards in a game.
Alan Who?
Bowman, a true freshman three-star recruit from Grapevine, Texas, was the longshot to emerge as this year’s starter in Lubbock behind former four-star Jett Duffey and junior McLane Carter, who started last year’s regular-season finale win in Austin against Texas. Carter, though, suffered an ankle injury in the opener against Ole Miss. Kingsbury had been very impressed with Bowman’s attitude and grasp of the offense. He earned the starting job before proceeding to shred Houston, going 43-for-59 for five TDs and those 605 yards in a frenetic shootout against a defense featuring the great Ed Oliver. Tech has topped 60 points in each of his two starts, marking the first time the school has done that in successive weeks in 13 years.
“I remember when Pat broke it and I said it’d never be broken,” Kingsbury told me after the game. “We couldn’t run the ball — Ed Oliver is an absolute beast, so we had to throw it and he did a nice job protecting the football and going through his reads. Hopefully he builds some confidence moving forward.”
What’s even more impressive is that the offense not only had to find a new quarterback, it also had to replace four wide receivers who are now playing in the NFL. Bowman is not available to the media as a true freshman, due to Kingsbury’s policy.
Kingsbury says he’s always been really hard on true freshmen in his system, calling it a rite of passage, but Bowman’s approach to all of that has been “bring it,” the coach says. The 6-foot-3, 210-pounder, who picked Tech over Houston, Ole Miss and several others, doesn’t run as well as the Tech’s other QBs but is very decisive, sees the field well and has enough mobility and pocket presence to keep plays alive.
Sixth-year senior Zach Austin, like fellow starting wideout Ja’Deion High, is six years older than Bowman. Austin grew up with Mayfield and came to Tech with him as walk-ons. He said Bowman reminds him some of his old buddy, who went on to win the Heisman at Oklahoma.
“I say this in the best possible way: They’re both smartasses, meaning they can keep people loose,” said Austin. He said they both also have an important ingredient for a quarterback in the form of the uncanny ability to forget bad plays.
This week, Bowman and Tech will face another test when they visit No. 15 Oklahoma State. “What Alan lacked is what he’s getting these first few weeks,” said Red Raiders offensive coordinator Kevin Johns, noting that the kid just doesn’t seem to get rattled. “He’s faced an SEC defense (Ole Miss), the No. 1 player in the country (Oliver) and has to go on the road to Oklahoma State. That’s a baptism by fire.”
