We solicited Texas Tech football questions this week just before kickoff and again at halftime. So maybe the angry tone of so many has something to do with the Red Raiders white-knuckling it on upset alert for at least three quarters before they pulled away to win handily at Colorado.
Then again, the Message Board Geniuses account on X provides weekly reminders that fans everywhere spend many a Saturday mad at one side of the ball or another and calling to fire that unit's coordinator.
Tech moved to 5-0 and 2-0 in the Big 12 by winning 29-7, although it was a one-possession game until the fourth quarter andthe Red Raiders were outgained in first downs (22-19) and yards of total offense (375-315). Coming up with four interceptions after halftime
enabled Tech to outscore the Buffaloes 26-0 in the second half.
On to the questions.
Q: Why do we continue to roll out [Will] Hammond when he is not good? If it isn’t a screen pass or something less than 7 yards, he can’t have better than a 25% passing percentage. The closest the ball gets to the receiver is 6 yards overthrown. — Tyler
DW: He's the best option, and to get where he and the Red Raiders need him to be was going to require some patience after how the past 12 months unfolded. You can say that in August, but I think a lot of people don't grasp how rough that can look until you see it play out. Or that Hammond's working with, counting the tight ends, six new pass catchers in the rotation.
I don't have Hammond's completion percentage broken down by throws beyond, say, 10 yards, but he's better than 68% for the season, which is about as normal as it gets for Tech quarterbacks this century.
Q: Did we practice offensive plays inside the 10 with Hammond or did [Thomas] Castellanos take the practice snaps all week? — Eric H.
DW: Castellanos didn't go from eligible back to ineligible until Friday, Oct. 2. The Red Raiders didn't learn about the latest court ruling until they landed in Denver, so it's my understanding that, yes, Castellanos prepared through the week as normal, including the short-yardage packages that he specialized in for the first month. Heavy game-prep days are typically Tuesday and Wednesday, so there was not much to be done after the status change.
Q: Don, can we ask why we cannot move the ball on offense? This is the 2nd QB that somehow has a “confidence” issue. — Paul
Q: Do we have anyone else who can take over play calling? — Eric M.
DW: No one who has any play-calling experience to speak of, and to do something like that in the middle of the season isn't the best time, especially for an undefeated, top-10 team.
I get the frustration. Hammond put up season lows Saturday in passing yards (134) and yards per attempt (5.2). His 5 TD passes are second-fewest among the Big 12's regular quarterbacks, and his 5 interceptions are tied for the most.
Though Kenny Johnson has been a nice addition, Tech's top three receivers this year don't measure up to last year's top three (Coy Eakin being part of both). I thought the one-two of J'Koby Williams and Cameron Dickey would provide a plus run game, but a plus run game doesn't get stuffed for little or no gain as often as this one.
Q: Why on 4th and inches do we go for it 5 yards behind the LOS [line of scrimmage]? It seems sticking to a normal offensive play has better odds. — Greg
DW: Tech likes running Cameron Dickey out of the wildcat formation, especially on third- or fourth-and-short. They've had success with it, but with Castellanos unavailable on Saturday and Dickey leaving the game with an ankle injury in the first half, the Red Raiders' favorite short-yardage options were off the table.
In the first half, Colorado blew up two fourth-and-1 plays, one with J'Koby Williams carrying and the other with Quentin Joyner. After the game, Joey McGuire said Dickey would have been the man to carry the ball on both plays.
That's a problem that could be more than a one-week thing, with Castellanos' eligibility back in question and Dickey perhaps facing a multi-week recovery with what McGuire fears is a high-ankle injury
Q: Is the coaching staff having second thoughts on not landing a safety in the portal? How is this line better than last year because it’s worse? — Mark
DW: No, they very much wanted another safety in the portal and went hard after Koi Perich. He was quite a playmaker at Minnesota, but he picked Oregon over Tech, which was the Ducks' second win against the Red Raiders in a two-week time frame.
I don't think I ever said this offensive line would be better than last year's. There was no real reason to believe that, given that the successors to Davion Carter and Will Jados didn't have nearly as strong of resumes going into this season. Jordan Church started only three games last year at Louisville, Hunter Zambrano had the significant recent injury history, and Cash Cleveland had started only four games in his first two years at Colorado and Tech.
Q: Doesn’t $20M really buy you a season full of “gutting it out” with the bottom of the Big XII? — Paul
DW: Running this through the translator, Paul, I think you're asking whether Texas Tech's well-compensated roster should have blown out Colorado, against whom it was favored by nearly two touchdowns, and whether more of these agonizing games are in store.
As to the latter, I think so. It's plain to see Tech's talent advantage against the rest of the Big 12 isn't what it was last year. For the record, I picked the Red Raiders to beat the Buffs but not cover the spread, and they covered easily.
Q: Did anyone find out whether the guy on Red Raider Sports got Colorado's playbook to the Tech coaching staff and whether the staff looked at it? — MaceDog
DW: For those who don't know, a Tech fan posted Friday on a message board that he'd discovered pages of the Colorado game plan/playbook apparently left by accident in the CU team hotel where just anybody could find the material. They substantiated afterward that a lot of the plays on the sheets matched up to what the Buffaloes ran to start the game and coming out of halftime.
Joey McGuire said after the game he didn't know anything about it. Nor did three other Tech people who were asked about it.
This article originally appeared on Lubbock Avalanche-Journal: Texas Tech football Q&A: What’s next for offense, and did staff see Colorado’s alleged playbook?
