For the first time all season, it appeared Texas Tech faced some real adversity. The opening defensive drive of the game saw Skyler Gill-Howard leave the game with an apparent ankle injury. Kansas weathered the storm of the crowd and was within four points at halftime. However, the defense put the clamps on Jalon Daniels in the second half. The Red Raiders’ offense was powered by one man Saturday night in Lubbock: Cameron Dickey. Thanks to one of the best rushing performances in school history, this Texas Tech victory over Kansas wrapped up a perfect first half of the season by a score of 42-17.
Sloppy Second Quarter
Texas Tech has made a habit this season of starting fast. But the second quarter brought the first evidence that this team is vulnerable. It started with the defense. Daniels seemed unfazed by the pressure of the Red Raiders’ pass rush. Aided by multiple blow coverages, he carved up the Texas Tech defense for back-to-back touchdown drives. Additionally, quarterback Behren Morton left the game with what Joey McGuire would say in the post-game interview as a calf injury, similar to what he suffered against Arkansas Pine-Bluff. Will Hammond would run the offense for the rest of the game, similar to what happened in a win over Utah. However, Hammond and the Texas Tech looked disjointed. Hammond appeared to lack confidence in throwing the football. The first three drives he led before halftime resulted in 11 total yards of offense, two punts, and one interception.
Unrelenting Defensive Pressure
Coming out of halftime, there was a palpable uneasiness in the air inside Jones-At&T Stadium. Texas Tech had jumped out to a 21-0 lead, but came out of the locker room feeling some angst. But the best unit on the field took its game to another level. Shiel Wood’s defense pitched a second-half shutout. It was led by a pass rush that was violent. The Red Raider defense would finish the game with nine sacks, the most since at least 2000. It is also a number that could have been even higher.
Kansas only had six penalties, but almost all of them were offensive holding from preventing their quarterback from getting shallacked by an oncoming rusher. The Jayhawks had 157 yards of offense in the second quarter. They only had 162 yards in the other three quarters combined. When a Texas Tech victory appeared to be in doubt, this defense rose to the occasion. It is also time for David Bailey to start garnering Heisman consideration if Rueben Bain Jr. is getting that type of attention. Bailey finished this game with six tackles, three sacks, a quarterback hurry, and a forced fumble.
Offense Fueled By Dickey
Coming into this game, the redzone offense was the focal point. The box score shows this team scored on all trips inside Kansas’ 20-yard line. Three of those did result in touchdowns. It wasn’t perfect, but it was an improvement. Finishing the game with 505 total yards also tracks with how well this offense has played all year. However, only 133 of those yards came through the air. That was not a typo. A Texas Tech team threw for less than 150 yards. This night was about running back Cameron Dickey.
His night started off with a bang. The first play from scrimmage sent the crowd into a frenzy as he scampered untouched 71 yards for the opening touchdown of the game. It would be just the beginning of the fifth-best rushing performance in Red Raider history. Dickey finished the game with 21 carries for 263 yards and two touchdowns. On a night when the passing offense never got off the ground, it was impressive to witness this team dare Kansas to stop the run, and they could not.
Texas Tech Victory Wraps Up Homecoming, What’s Next
The Red Raiders are 6-0 with all of their margins of victory being at least 24 points. That is the longest streak by a Big 12 team since Baylor in 2015. Through the first three quarters in those six games, Texas Tech has outscored its opponents 220-31. It is also their first 6-0 start since 2013. However, a few major questions remain. Certainly, the prognosis of Gill-Howard and Morton will be critical moving forward. Penalties still are a problem. Texas Tech entered the game averaging nine penalties a game (third worst in FBS) for 76 yards (11th-worst). They finish this game with seven penalties for 77 yards.
The home crowd also needs to get a hold of the unnecessary tortilla-throwing. After the opening kickoff, it becomes a penalty concern. Tonight, Kansas got to start a drive on its own 40 because the tortilla-throwing couldn’t stop. Last Word will stop the rain on the homecoming celebrations for now. But for a team with Big 12 championship aspirations, they have polished off the first half of their season in impressive fashion.
Main Image: Michael C. Johnson-Imagn Images
