Opponent Watch: Texas Tech 2018

Really surprised they didn’t go after Minshew from ECU as he would have been a good fit.

Funny that the author thinks “something can be worked out” in regards to Hurts. No chance he’ll play next year if he transfers.

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Sucks for them, especially if Big Ed tees off on a couple of them.

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Why do you think nobody wants to play there, lol?

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Lol exactly!!!

https://twitter.com/Jake_Trotter/status/988807940567191552

10 starters back on defense?

"Houston at Texas Tech

The Cougars may fashion themselves an AAC contender, but this early season test in Lubbock will tell us a lot about both teams. Last year Houston’s offense sputtered against Tech, turning the ball over and failing to sustain drives while the Tech defense asserted itself for the first time since 1997. This season Gibbs’ group might be the strength of the team as Tech fills voids on offense. For Houston, the question is whether D’Eriq King and Kendal Briles can put up enough points to pressure the Red Raiders and quiet the crowd in Lubbock."

https://swcroundup.com/news/2018/5/28/our-top-5-under-the-radar-out-of-conference-games

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Texas Tech Red Raiders
Head coach: Kliff Kingsbury (30-33, sixth year)

2017 record and S&P+ ranking: 6-7 (58th)

Projected 2018 record and S&P+ ranking: 6-6 (47th)

Five key points:

Kingsbury has averaged just 5.5 wins per year since a solid debut season. It’s so damn hard to stand out in the Big 12’s huge middle class.

A young Tech defense took a definitive step forward last year and returns almost everyone. Tech’s offense doesn’t need much help.

The offense has a ton of new starters to break in, but the line’s solid, and it’s just really hard to worry about a Kingsbury offense.

The defense did a much better job of preventing big plays, and the pass defense should improve further with experience and a solid pass rush. The bar’s still pretty low, though.

The schedule features seven relative tossup games, so a little bit of added improvement (or regression) will go a long way.

https://twitter.com/brett_mcmurphy/status/1007390040388001793?s=21

Holy crap i knew Christian Taylor in high school… wow

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http://www.orlandosentinel.com/sports/college-football-rankings/os-sp-college-football-rankings-texas-tech-0615-story.html

https://swcroundup.com/news/2018/6/13/season-preview-texas-tech

Kliff Kingsbury’s grace period is gone. So is his margin for error. It’s make or break for the sixth year Tech head coach. He survived 2017 by the skin of his teeth, it’s been two seasons since the Red Raiders enjoyed a winning record, and they haven’t finished than fifth in the league in his tenure.

That’s the bad news for Kingsbury. Here’s the good news, oddly the Red Raider defense should be pretty good, not dynamic, but robust and that might be all the Tech offense needs to get on track. If they can’t, then Tech will be in the market for a head coach in December.

We won’t have to face this kid, but figured this one was a wow moment. Kid is 6’11" and 355 pounds; offensive tackle. Better have a tall QB.

https://twitter.com/TrevorMRoberso1/status/1008176858825928705

In a position where quick feet and leverage is key, Big Ed would completely destroy that kid.

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Returning the starters and DC from a team that gave up over 30 points / game and over 400 yards / game makes for a “pretty good” defense? We know the UH offense struggled until King took over (except for the Rice game) and then it struggled at times after that. I like UH’s chances if they do not have multiple turnovers.

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And, as good as our defense was last year, it should be even better this year. DL and secondary will be better. LB corps is the question mark, but I don’t think we’ll see much, if any drop off there.

On offense, just the change from Johnson and whoever his OL coach was to Briles/Clements will make a world of difference. Not to mention a full healthy offseason and camp for D’Eriq King as QB 1. I’m very excited about the offense this year. I 100% agree that if we can limit the turnovers, the combo of our elite defense and a more potent offense will mean very good things for us this year.

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most of their defense was young. i think their defense will be very good. 10 starters returning? yeah they have nowhere to go but up.

Arkansas had a giant OT a few years ago- Dan Skipper- All Sec.

Had a health issue diagnosed @combine that left him undrafted.
Kicking around on practice squads in the NFL.

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Texas Tech had 70 scholarship players on campus this spring and the most competitive depth at every position in recent history. The Red Raiders bring back 10 of 11 starters on defense going into David Gibbs’ fourth year as defensive coordinator. They patiently stuck to Gibbs’ plan and had one of the most improved defenses in the country last season, a unit that forced 29 turnovers and finished fifth in the Big 12 in yards per play allowed.

“He didn’t bail or change strategy or change focus,” Kingsbury told The Athletic. “He knew what he wanted, and he’s got it to a place that Tech hasn’t been in a long time on that side of the ball.”

Every starter on the offensive line is back, and the Red Raiders are the strongest they’ve been up front on both sides of the ball. They have a pristine, new indoor practice field, a long-awaited necessity considering how many practices have been paused or cut short by inclement weather over the years. All those areas where they have been consistently deficient during Kingsbury’s tenure? They’re much better now.

And the two positions where they have real question marks? Quarterback and wide receiver. If that’s all that Tech is unclear about, given Kingsbury’s offensive résumé, they’re in darn good shape.

https://twitter.com/Ryan_King_Now/status/1014291173828190208

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