LUBBOCK, Texas — Texas Tech fell to 3-4 Saturday with a 34-24 loss to Iowa State. After an awful start, the Red Raiders couldn’t quite pull off a second half comeback. Their next test is 2-5 Kansas in Lawrence on Saturday.
Monday morning, Texas Tech head coach Matt Wells, linebacker Evan Rambo and offensive tackle Travis Bruffy met with the media to discuss last week’s loss and the upcoming game against Kansas. Here are some key takeaways from the press conference.
“It’s not fair for me to speculate on any of that because that’s not today and it’s not this week. So that’s not fair.”
coach wells on whether bowman would start when he comes back
Looking back
Lack of detail
Texas Tech came out flat Saturday, falling behind Iowa State 20-0 early. After the game, Wells said that “something just wasn’t there.” With some time to reflect, he thinks he’s discovered what that “something” is: communication and detail.
“Just weren’t very detailed oriented,” he said. “That comes back to didn’t communicate, I thought, whatever adjustment to a formation. Weren’t real sharp and then all of a sudden, that’s the Big 12’s leading passing offense right now. They make you pay. They make you play real quick.”
Defensively, the Red Raiders had some busts in coverage that led to big plays. Going forward, they will have to communicate and execute better to prevent that from happening.
Quarterback play
Jett Duffey had his least efficient start of the season Saturday, collecting just 239 yards on 52 passes. Duffey did complete 76.9 percent of his passes, but wasn’t able to create big plays. Wells thinks Duffey needs to raise his game a level.
“I just think he’s gotta take another step,” Wells said of his quarterback. “Saturday there were some good stuff and there were some things that he did outside the framework of the offense, and you can’t do that.”
Duffey’s low yards per attempt number came partially from the high volume of screen passes he threw, and his long pass of the day was just 25 yards. Alan Bowman remains out for the time being, and Wells would not say anything about who the starter will be when Bowman does return.
“That’s a long time from now,” Wells said. “I don’t know. It’s not fair for me to speculate on any of that because that’s not today and it’s not this week. So that’s not fair. So I’m not going to comment on that.”
“[We] just weren’t very detailed oriented… That comes back to didn’t communicate.”
coach wells on what went wrong on defense
Capitalizing on turnovers
Down 10 at the end of the third quarter, Damarcus Fields caught an interception in Iowa State territory. With great field position, the Red Raiders had an excellent opportunity to make it a one-possession game. But the offense picked up just 13 yards and Trey Wolff missed a field goal, severely damaging Texas Tech’s chances of a comeback.
The unsuccessful possession followed a trend of the Red Raider offense not being able to take advantage of takeaways by the defense. Bruffy admits that the blame falls on the offensive players.
“We’re not capitalizing on the opportunities we need to to win football games,” the senior tackle said. “And that, again, is nobody’s fault except the players on offense. We’re not executing at a high enough level. We’re not executing the game plan that has been crafted throughout the week.”
Texas Tech’s defense has proven it can force turnovers, but the offense has to turn those opportunities into points.
Looking ahead
Winning on the road
Texas Tech has started the season 0-3 on the road and the team knows it has to start winning in hostile environments to make a bowl game. Its next chance to do so comes Saturday in Lawrence.
“I mean it’s definitely something that’s thought about,” Rambo said. “We gotta win on the road. You can’t get to a bowl game, you can’t win this conference without winning on the road. It’s definitely a lot harder. I mean you’re behind the 8 ball with the fans and the crowd and things like that. You’re out of your comfort zone, but it’s something you have to do.”
Memorial Stadium may not get not as raucous as other Big 12 venues, but it will be huge if the Red Raiders can get back to .500 with that first road win under their belts.
“We’re not capitalizing on the opportunities we need to to win football games.”
offensive tackle Travis Bruffy
Containing Pooka
Kansas boasts one of the Big 12’s premier running backs in sophomore Pooka Williams. Coming off of a 1,000-yard freshman season, Williams currently ranks third in the Big 12 with 635 yards.
“He is very talented,” Wells said of Williams. “He’s shifty. He can one cut, but sometimes you think one-cut guys don’t have speed. This guy’s got home run speed.”
Iowa State’s Breece Hall burned Texas Tech twice with long touchdowns, and Williams certainly has the talent to do the same thing. Texas Tech has to stay disciplined and tackle well to prevent Williams from gashing its defense.
Program on the rise
Kansas has been the doormat of the Big 12 for a long time, but new head coach Les Miles has the Jayhawks playing better football. While they’re 0-4 in conference play, they have a Power Five win over Boston College and nearly beat No. 15 Texas in Austin last weekend.
“I think Coach Miles brings credibility to that program,” Miles said. “I mean, the job that he obviously did at Oklahoma State and did at LSU speaks for itself. He’s had success everywhere he’s been. And those kids played hard on Saturday… They emptied the tank and had every right to win and deserved to win.”
Kansas proved Saturday that Texas Tech can’t expect to sleepwalk through this game and expect to win. While it will be a test, this is a winnable game and one the Red Raiders need to get back on track to make a bowl game.
