Here come the Red Raiders
By Ryan Killian
Daily Texan Columnist
One if by land, two if by sea, Texas Tech if by air.
Defensive Coordinator Duane Akina better raise the alarm. The high-flying Red Raider offense is coming to town, and his secondary will be under pressure every time Graham Harrell calls for the snap.
Mike Leach is operating the best passing offense in the nation, and he’s parlayed that into the nation’s top overall offense. His counterpart at Texas, Mack Brown, has taken notice.
“Tech gets their yards against you if you play great,” he said. “And if you don’t play great, they’ll score a million.”
By that logic, the final score Saturday could be 1,000,026-35, unless Longhorn defenders show some improvement.
That’s not an official prediction though — even if Texas’ tackling doesn’t improve.
After last weekend’s unending blooper reel of missed tackles, it’s hard to imagine things not looking a little better. This team has two types of defenses. We saw the hungry, swarming, ball-chasing defense against Oklahoma and a few other opponents. The disinterested D has been on display more often.
With Brown’s sideline tirade still ringing in their ears, it’s hard to imagine that Texas’ safeties and corners won’t be out to prove something. Cornerback Ryan Palmer had a breakout game against the Red Raiders last season, basically winning the game with a pair of spectacular plays. Young Deon Beasley is already predicting that the explosive Michael Crabtree will have trouble making the plays that have turned him into one of the Big 12’s best receivers.
With Harrell completing almost 75 percent of his passes and Crabtree standing a few inches taller than most Texas defensive backs, it’s fairly unlikely that the pair won’t successfully make completions. The Longhorn defense — linebackers too — just need to make tackles on their first attempt.
Robert Killebrew, this means you. Everyone knows you can lay the wood after the whistle’s been blown. Now, you’ve got to do it when it counts. I’m still not sure how you missed Oklahoma State’s Keith Toston last week when he was too busy reeling in a one-handed catch to make a move and you still blew right by.
But it’s not just Killebrew. Last week no one was exempt. They made a traveshamockery out of tackling until the fourth quarter.
This week, like it or not, the secondary is in the spotlight. Even on Broadway the lights are hot and uncomfortable. This is college football in Texas. These lights can burn.
And that’s exactly what Crabtree and company have been doing to defensive backs all season.
Daily Texan Columnist
One if by land, two if by sea, Texas Tech if by air.
Defensive Coordinator Duane Akina better raise the alarm. The high-flying Red Raider offense is coming to town, and his secondary will be under pressure every time Graham Harrell calls for the snap.
Mike Leach is operating the best passing offense in the nation, and he’s parlayed that into the nation’s top overall offense. His counterpart at Texas, Mack Brown, has taken notice.
“Tech gets their yards against you if you play great,” he said. “And if you don’t play great, they’ll score a million.”
By that logic, the final score Saturday could be 1,000,026-35, unless Longhorn defenders show some improvement.
That’s not an official prediction though — even if Texas’ tackling doesn’t improve.
After last weekend’s unending blooper reel of missed tackles, it’s hard to imagine things not looking a little better. This team has two types of defenses. We saw the hungry, swarming, ball-chasing defense against Oklahoma and a few other opponents. The disinterested D has been on display more often.
With Brown’s sideline tirade still ringing in their ears, it’s hard to imagine that Texas’ safeties and corners won’t be out to prove something. Cornerback Ryan Palmer had a breakout game against the Red Raiders last season, basically winning the game with a pair of spectacular plays. Young Deon Beasley is already predicting that the explosive Michael Crabtree will have trouble making the plays that have turned him into one of the Big 12’s best receivers.
With Harrell completing almost 75 percent of his passes and Crabtree standing a few inches taller than most Texas defensive backs, it’s fairly unlikely that the pair won’t successfully make completions. The Longhorn defense — linebackers too — just need to make tackles on their first attempt.
Robert Killebrew, this means you. Everyone knows you can lay the wood after the whistle’s been blown. Now, you’ve got to do it when it counts. I’m still not sure how you missed Oklahoma State’s Keith Toston last week when he was too busy reeling in a one-handed catch to make a move and you still blew right by.
But it’s not just Killebrew. Last week no one was exempt. They made a traveshamockery out of tackling until the fourth quarter.
This week, like it or not, the secondary is in the spotlight. Even on Broadway the lights are hot and uncomfortable. This is college football in Texas. These lights can burn.
And that’s exactly what Crabtree and company have been doing to defensive backs all season.
posted by BurntOrnge at 3:50 PM
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