Double-T Nation News:

I hope everyone had a safe and Happy New Year.  Remember, if anyone wants to get together before the game, send me an email (doubletnation AT gmail DOT com) and I'll send you a text to let you know where I am.

Please note below, the Q&A I did with Red Solo Cup. I should have a prediction thread going up sometime this morning (I'm moving a little slower than normal) and then an open game day thread for the basketball game that starts at 3:00 p.m. with the game being shown on TTTN in Lubbock and FSN statewide.

I bit off more than I could chew and I'm not going to get to the Coaching portion of the previews, and although I said before that I wouldn't call one matchup a push, I think I would with the Leach vs. Nutt matchup. Yes, Leach has just won numerous awards, but both coaches have a truly unique style that produces wins on the field. Nutt truly transformed his team, while Leach's work has been a culmination of progress throughout his tenure.

If you missed any, here's my previews starting in December:

Quarterbacks :: Running Backs :: Receiver :: Offensive Line :: Defensive Line :: Linebackers ::Secondary :: Special Teams

There's a ton of stories this morning so to get this done relatively quickly, I've posted just links to stories.

Texas Tech Football:

• LAJ: Don Williams writes about the tradition of the Cotton Bowl and the Texas Tech football team enjoys the close proximity and the homecoming at the Cotton Bowl. There's also the Tale of the Tape and Three Keys to Victory for each team. Adam Zuvanich features dominating left tackle Michael Oher, his difficult upbringing and rise to success. Don Williams writes that Ole Miss performed better on the road than at home. Williams also catches up with former Texas Tech reciever Field Scovell.
• FWST: Dwain Price features Texas Tech defensive coordinator Ruffin McNeill and how he helped to fix the defense. Trae Thompson also profiles Ole Miss left tackle Michael Oher.
• DMN: Brandon George features running back Baron Batch's road to recovering from injury to a successful 2008. Kevin Sherrington writes that receiver Michael Crabtree's numbers are smaller, but had a bigger impact this year. And Bobbi Roquemore with another feature on Michael Oher.

Texas Tech Basketball:

Good story from LAJ's Jeff Walker on assistant coach Stew Robinson and his quadruple bypass heart surgery 4 months ago.