Here and There
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Texas Tech Red Raiders (2-3, 1-1) |
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Kansas State Wildcats (2-3, 1-1) |
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October 14th @ 6:00 p.m. |
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Jones AT&T Stadium | Lubbock, Texas |
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Texas Tech -1.5 |
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FS1 | FOX Sports Live |
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68, Sunny |
Some Hither, Others Yon
While wondering whatever happened to Bradley Marquez. Bradley Marquez was from the Midland-Odessa area and I was sure that he was a can’t miss professional prospect and was always amazed what he could do on the field. Marquez played both football and baseball, even drafted in baseball by the New York Mets. And Marquez did play in the NFL, playing for the St. Louis and then Los Angeles Rams, the Detroit Lions, and the Mets until 2019 when he moved back home and appears (via LinkedIn) to be working in the oil and gas industry. You can find Marquez on the X.
Prologue
Basketball season is literally right around the corner. Don’t blink because it will be here before you know it. On3’s Jamie Shaw previews the Big 12, including Bill Self’s alleged toupee, complete with projected starting lineups and he’s got Texas Tech 8th in the 14-team Big 12:
The Buzz: Grant McCasland enters his head coaching tenure at Texas Tech with a defensive reputation. He has a team filled with guys who can move their feet and get into the passing lanes. Isaacs will be the focal point of the offense. He is the team’s leading returning scorer and assist-man; he also shot 37.8 percent from three as a freshman. Williams is the reigning MWC Freshman of the Year. He simply makes plays. Lamar Washington can defend and score points. Warren Washington averaged 6.9 rebounds and 1.8 blocks last season. Cambridge has knocked down 115 threes in 68 career starts. Toussaint brings experience and energy off the bench with a rugged defensive reputation. Jennings and Lindsay have a lot of upside. Walton has the reputation of a shooter; he and Williams should provide some backcourt/wing depth.
The Bakay Index
Nick Bakay is an actor, writer and TV personality who made regular appearances on ESPN and wrote on ESPN’s Page 2. Bakay did a segment on ESPN called “Tale of the Tape” where he would give an advantage to one side or the other, or if it was close, then it was a “push”. Bakay was also the voice of the cat Salem on Sabrina the Teenage Witch.
Rushing Team vs. Passing Team. I don’t know when Texas Tech crossed that Rubicon, but for the season, Texas Tech has 221 rushing attempts for an average of 4.86 yards per rush and have passed 209 times for a rate of 6.3 yards per attempt. For the year, Texas Tech has run the ball more times than passed and I think the general idea is that whatever it takes to win, please do that. Advantage? Rushing Team.
Goin Band From Raiderland vs. All The Rest. Yesterday, Joey McGuire said that he loved hearing and there were recruits that texted him, that told him that they could hear the Goin Band From Raiderland. Advantage? Goin Band From Raiderland.
Can’t say it enough. Big shoutout to @TTUGoinBand for making an impact on Saturday!@JoeyMcGuireTTU | #WreckEm pic.twitter.com/4UEgUg9baS
— Texas Tech Football (@TexasTechFB) October 9, 2023
Texas Tech Rush Offense vs. Kansas State Rush Defense. Here’s a sneak peak of some advanced stats, Kansas State is 23rd in the nation in allowing other teams effectively rush the ball according to Sharp College Football and 71st against the pass. Texas Tech’s offense is 23rd in the nation in effective rush and 68th in effective pass. Nearly mirror images of each other in the grand scheme of things. I think that the difference may be these teams’ respective other sides of the ball as this might be a stalemate and frustrating with glimpses of success and failure mixed in. Advantage? Push.
Quickie Previews & Recaps
All games are on Saturday, October 14th except for the West Virginia-Houston game, which is Thursday, October 12th.
This Week: West Virginia @ Houston (6:00 pm on FS1)
Last Week: West Virginia – Off :: Houston – Off
Is this a trap game for West Virginia? It would seem as if Houston simply doesn’t have the talent to compete and the West Virginia defense is a meat-grinder. Both teams are coming off of an off-week and West Virginia is favored by 3 on the road which is wild considering what West Virginia was coming into the season.
This Week: Iowa State @ Cincinnati (11:00 am on FS1)
Last Week: Iowa State 27, TCU 14 :: Cincinnati – Off
Iowa State being 2-1 in-conference after what seemed like a team that was going to struggle because of the betting scandal now has the same record as Texas Tech, Texas, and Kansas. Who would have thunk. Probably a pretty tough game for the Cyclones, on the road and with Cincinnati on a bye, that makes it difficult for them. Cincinnati is winless in the Big 12 and favored by 3.5 at home after an off week, while Iowa State has been on the road two weeks in a row. I think this might catch up with the Cyclones.
This Week: Kansas @ Oklahoma State (2:30 pm on FS1)
Last Week: Oklahoma State 29, Kansas State 21 :: Kansas 51, UCF 22
I didn’t see Kansas blowing out UCF and I certainly didn’t see Oklahoma State securing a win at home against K-State. On paper, Kansas is the better team, but with Oklahoma State playing decently with Alan Bowman, then maybe Oklahoma State makes it two-in-a-row with an upset. I would have thought that Kansas would be favored by more than 3.5, while Oklahoma State is home two weeks in a row.
This Week: BYU @ TCU (2:30 pm on ESPN)
Last Week: BYU – Off :: Iowa State 27, TCU 14
TCU hired Kendal Briles in the offseason and they scored 14 points against Iowa State and it was 7 for a long time. I think that BYU is a physical team that I could absolutely see beating TCU at home because the TCU home-field advantage may not be a real thing. TCU is favored by 5 here and that seems like a huge spread considering that I think BYU is pretty good, good enough to stay within 5.
This Week: Kansas State @ Texas Tech (6:00 pm on FS1)
Last Week: Oklahoma State 29, Kansas State 21 :: Texas Tech 39, Baylor 14
I mentioned after the game that it seemed as if Texas Tech played like Kansas State against Baylor, but what I didn’t see happening was Kansas State failing on the road against Oklahoma State. Will Howard was fine, but not great and I don’t know if K-State has a running attack like Texas Tech’s. Texas Tech is favored by 1.5 at home and K-State is coming off a loss they didn’t expect. I don’t like that.
Last Week: Oklahoma 34, Texas 30
LOL to this result. Both the best and worst and now Oklahoma has nothing but easy teams on their schedule and it would seemingly be as if they are bound to a college football playoff appearance. Texas will likely have a chance to revenge this result if they win out and they play in the Big 12 Championship game.