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Watching the TicketCity Bowl and remembering the reports from last week regarding Tommy Tuberville stating Tech will be running more next year, I got to thinking..

Is that really a bad thing? I don’t necessarily think so.

Like most people, I thoroughly enjoyed Mike Leach and the Air Raid offense. The 2008 season was phenomenal – one that’ll be remembered. How did that season end? Losses in two of the last three games: a 65-21 shellacking at Oklahoma and a 47-34 loss to Ole Miss at the Cotton Bowl. Still a great season though.

But what else was there?

Seasons full of mediocracy and usually extremely poor defense. In order for Tech to seriously become a competitor, three things are needed:

1. One trick pony on offense is not sustainable. I don’t think Tech necessarily has to be 50/50 balanced; however, we need to be able to run the ball. Tuberville knows this with his SEC background. Until today’s TicketCity Bowl, Taylor Potts had the longest run from scrimmage. Yes, our quarterback had the longest run from scrimmage.. that’s pathetic.
2. We need a defense. Ruffin did great things in his all-too-brief tenure, but that’s about it. We’re in the bottom few this year in defense and dead last in pass defense.
3. The team needs discipline, and Tuberville has done a great job of preaching that this year. Penalties (as a general rule) were out of control under Leach. Also, while it was fun waiting all of the 4th and n to go gambles, there is nothing wrong with kicking a field goal!

I’m still not happy with how things played out with Leach; Kent Hance and Gerald Myers should have been fired for that. Although, I said it before and I’ll say it again – Mike Leach wasn’t the coach to lead this team to the next tier of play.

If you look at the last ten years of BCS bowl games, you’ll see that the bulk of teams had solid defenses and an offense that relied on both passing and running. Sure, there may have been an emphasis on one over the other, but both were a big enough threat for opposing defenses.

The jury is (should be) still open on Tommy Tuberville. I’m anxious to see how the next few years will go.. it’ll definitely be interesting.

I have been rather vocal about my opinions on Mike Leach (link 1, link 2, link 3), but I am always one to give credit where credit is due: the man is coming off of the greatest football season in Tech’s history. Unless you’re A) not a sports fan or B) living under a rock (and you’re a sports fan), you’ve undoubtedly heard all of the commotion regarding Texas Tech, Gerald Myers, Mike Leach, and the status of Leach’s contract. I’ve remained quiet on the subject..

Until now.

Gerald Myers – you’re a complete moron. How you ever made it as high as Athletic Director is beyond me. You screwed over James Dickey back in 2001 and now you’re trying to do the same to Mike Leach. Dickey deserved firing; no argument there. But the way you did it was pathetic, shallow, and cowardly.

Texas Tech Regents — If you let Mike Leach go, you will reap the whirlwind in terms of fan support, season ticket renewals, and ticket sales. You better think twice.

Here’s my suggestion to the Regents: keep Mike Leach and fire Gerald Myers. Promote Marsha Sharp to Athletic Director as she truly deserves it.

I am a band geek.. and there’s definitely no shame in admitting that. I marched a bunch of shows throughout my seven years of marching band.

The below video is from Spring 1997.. my freshmen year at Tech. It happens to be the last light show performed under the direction of Keith Bearden and, at the time of this post’s writing, the last light show performed by the Goin’ Band. The Star Wars/Star Trek light show is one of my top two favorite shows I’ve marched.

Ah, nostalgia..

If anyone had told me that Texas Tech at some point this season would be ranked #2 I would have said they were crazy. I have been rather vocal about my opinions on Mike Leach (link 1, link 2, link 3), but maybe I’ve been wrong. 

After seeing the potential displayed this season, Tech absolutely can play on par with the big dogs. Sure, we lost big to Oklahoma. But that’s one game in a season of twelve games. 

This season proves two things in my mind:

1. Defense still wins games. Ruffin’s defense played consistent the entire season — up until the Oklahoma game. They looked discombobulated that entire game, and it spilled over into the first half of the Baylor game.
2. Of equal importance to defense is consistency at quarterback. Graham’s maturity in the program is one of the reasons Tech had such a great season. We cannot go back to the one-year-starter routine again. I think Taylor Potts only has two years of eligibility remaining, so maybe he shouldn’t be the starter.

One final thought regarding this season.. the Tech-Texas game. I am sick and tired of hearing football “experts” on ESPN, ABC, etc. state that Texas lost the game on the last play. The way they are saying it is rather condescending towards Tech. Why? Tech did what it needed to do to win — especially in the first half. Texas came out firing in the second half.. there’s no doubting that. But just because Tech won on the final play only means that they performed well exactly when they needed to in order to win. That exemplifies the media bias against Tech.

In any event, it’s been a great season. If things play out like it seems they will, we’re likely going to the Cotton Bowl. Hopefully we can finally win the game.

Wreck ‘Em Tech!

Classic example of how important football is to Texans.

Lubbock is currently under a state of emergency due to heavy flooding. All three colleges cancelled classes. The local school districts cancelled school. Many daycares did not open.

Where did some first responders go on Friday?

Texas Tech Athletics is grateful for the support of the Lubbock Fire Department and other campus groups who came to the rescue in order to get the field prepared for Saturday’s game. The Lubbock Fire Department had four trucks on the scene on Friday to help drain the field and other campus groups were able to help get the campus pumps back up and running.

http://texastech.cstv.com/sports/m-footbl/spec-rel/091208aab.html

That’s Texas folks.

Two ESPN articles peaked my interest today.

Allstate Sugar (BCS vs. BCS) projection : Auburn Tigers vs. Texas Tech Red Raiders

ESPN link

No, you didn’t misread that. This writer actually has Tech going to a BCS bowl game!

The Red Raiders are gunning for big things in 2008. QB Graham Harrell and receiver Michael Crabtree lead what might be the country’s best offense, and coach Mike Leach believes he finally has a defense that can stop opponents.

ESPN link

Classic quote about our wonderful defense.

I just hope these articles don’t jinx our season.. When Tech football is being discussed, I tend to take a “I’ll believe it when I see it” attitude.

This will be a hodgepodge post containing a random assortment of topics. So clear your mind, start reading, and try to keep up.

Family & Friends
Monica and I have some of the greatest family and friends. Everyone has been exceedingly generous with baby gifts. To everyone that has been kind enough to send us or give us cards and gifts, thank you from the bottom of my heart. Additionally, a huge thank you to my Mom, my sister Kim, Monica’s sister Amanda, and friends Dru, Stephanie, and Mandy for throwing two wonderful baby showers for Monica.

Fuel Costs
Gas costs significantly less in DFW then it does in Lubbock. By significant I mean $.10 – $.20 cheaper. Ridiculous.

Tollways
I love tollways. Sure you have to pay, but it’s worth the money. Driving from Irving to Frisco took ten minutes. Can’t beat that.

Texas Tech
I hate using this phrase, but once again, it fits. Typical Tech. Come off a great win versus Texas A&M, get cocky, get put in your place by Mizzou. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again – Mike Leach is not the man to lead Tech to the next level. Until we hire a head coach that realizes a team is only as good as its weakest link, Tech will continue to be the red-headed stepchild of the Big XII South. On a happier note, we received our Red Raider and Lady Raider basketball season tickets in the mail. This is the first year we’ve bought both men’s and women’s season tickets, so we’ll have an abundance of games to attend!

Chicago Cubs
Swept out of the first round. I’m definitely not a fair weather fan, but it’s rather repetitive to have to keep saying “Just wait until next year”. I guess it could be worse..

NFL
The Bears are struggling for consistency. It’s too early to assess whether or not they can rebound and turn the season around. The best news is that Grossman was finally benched; he was given far too many chances and failed almost every time. On a happier note, I’m in a fantasy league for the first time, and through yesterday, in first place! Let’s hope I can sustain that for the rest of the season; I could use the $120 prize.

Work
I’ve been at my new job for over a month now and I’m loving it. Like all jobs, there have been some stressful situations – namely a rather large one that still is on my mind. It’s a different kind of stress than my former job, and I am much happier where I am now. It’s what I was born to do.

2007-2008 TV Shows
Lots of great shows this year – new and returning!

• Damages – GREAT new show on the FX network. If you haven’t been watching this show, wait until they start over and replay it from the beginning. It’s another “serialized” show in that you can’t just pick it up mid-season. It was a summer show that I would imagine will come back next summer. The season finale airs this coming Tuesday.
• CSI: Las Vegas. We have too many shows we DVR, so we’re only following CSI: Las Vegas this year. We don’t watch the Miami version as David Caruso is a horrible actor. We’ll put CSI:NY in our Netflix queue.
• Heroes. After a rather slow start in the first episode, it’s gotten far better. I don’t know how long this show will last after last year’s fantastic rookie season.
• Back To You – A new show on Fox staring Kelsey Grammer and Patricia Heaton.
• Carpoolers – A new show on ABC staring Jerry O’Connell and a bunch of other people I’ve never heard of before.
• Grey’s Anatomy – This is more Monica’s show than mine, but it’s actually not that bad.
• Private Practice – As we watch Grey’s Anatomy, of course we’d watch its spin-off..
• Desperate Housewives – We’ve watched this show since day one, and this season is already far better than last year’s.
• Jericho – After the widely-covered fan outrage, CBS will be bringing Jericho back as a mid-season show to close up the storylines.
• Cold Case & Without A Trace – We love these mystery-type shows!
• The Big Bang Theory – This is definitely Monica’s show.. I’m not really that sold on it.

Hmm.. that list makes it seems like we have no life! Oh well – we enjoy it.

Well, that’s the end of this post.. I’ll be surprised if anyone makes it this far!