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One of my favorite pictures, ever.

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Previously on Texas Tech Depth Chartin' :: The Quarterbacks :: The Running Backs :: The Receivers :: The Offensive Line ::

Overall: It's well documented that the Red Raiders are losing the main punch of their pass rush and Tommy Tuberville is changing the defense (although it may not be as dramatic as some may think). The losses along the defensive line in are at defensive end, and this unit is essentially at the same place it was when Brandon Sharpe and Daniel Howard stepped on campus. This unit has three JUCO defensive linemen that everyone hopes and prays makes a difference along the line. If not, there's going to be some young players that will need step-up and become main players.

I should mention that I'm guessing on a lot of this stuff. It's hard to get into Tuberville's head in terms of what I think of a typical 3-4 defense and what Tuberville may decide to run. I'm accustomed to watching the Dallas Cowboys, where they have players like Demarcus Ware and Anthony Spencer playing outside linebacker. Tuberville may favor smaller faster outside linebackers rather than the pass-rushing types. There's also the thought that the change to the 3-4 defense won't be as dramatic in that Tuberville will also play plenty of the old 4-3 defense.

I think what you'll see at the end of the day is a very versatile defense that can do a lot of things. As I was trying to place players at new positions, I was excited about the large number of players that could see the field this year. I should also admit that this was a pretty tough assignment, which is why it's taken so long.

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I'm thinking that these videos should be attributed to Chip Brown of Orangebloods, but there are some very interest and NOT SAFE FOR WORK OR SAFE FOR INFANTS videos of Captain Mike Leach after the Baylor game, where he expressed his extreme displeasure and after the Kansas game.  Here's some of the stuff from Brown's article:

After a 20-13 victory over Baylor on Nov. 28, 2009, Leach is seen for several minutes using expletives to criticize his players for thinking they're "too good" to play Baylor and for an up-and-down season, including a "close" loss to Texas.

"There's a couple of you guys that your current living situation is going to change," Leach says. "We've got several of you, particularly on offense, all you do is pull mediocrity out of one another. Well, you're going to live somewhere else. Last time I checked, we're paying the (expletive) bills."

After a 42-21 victory over Kansas on Oct. 31, 2009, Leach directs some of his players, whom he calls "God squad guys," about how to pray.

"What does God say? 'If you're lukewarm, I'll spew you out,'" Leach says. "? If you're a defensive player, I don't need one side of the brain on playing defense and one side thinking, 'Oh gee, I wonder, this. I wonder that. I wonder the other thing.' No, no. Screw that.

"Your whole head's got to be on defense. Your whole head has to be on offense. Your whole head for that play has to be on special teams. If you're not doing that, you guys who are throwing the book around all the time, you're defying the book."

I'm still trying to digest all of this, but I'm probably thinking that this is nothing more than a coach being a coach and not being satisfied.  I'll just start out by saying that I'm not easily offended so the language or the reference to the God squad doesn't bother me.

[Note by Seth C, 03/11/10 8:49 PM CST ]  As I'm collecting my thoughts about these videos, they've been located on YouTube:

1. I am laughing.  There's so much gold to mine from these videos.  There will be .gifs and meme for years based on these videos.  I'm thinking that this is Leach's gift to the internet.  We all owe you a debt of gratitude.
   
2. I'm laughing out loud because Leach is exactly like I imagined him. 
   
3. Both of these extremely motivational speeches were after wins, which means that he wasn't satisfied with anything other than excellence.  I always imagined he was like that too.  The disdain he has for losing and not being at all satisfied with playing it close is how you're supposed to feel. 
   
4. Was it just me or was there a slight uproar after Leach referred to the "God squad"?  Again, I'm not an insider and I don't talk to players, but I could certainly see how certain players would not be appreciative of those comments and that sort of thing can cause a divide.  Singling out players because of their religious beliefs is a touchy subject and Leach's thought, that it doesn't necessarily belong on the football field, has some validity.  Whether prayer belongs on the football field is almost irrelevant for the sake of discussion as I get the feeling that there were probably a handful of players that were very much turned off by Leach's comments and language regarding this topic.  That's not to say that footbaw coaches don't cuss like a pirate, but it's not a job requirement either and I have to wonder how vocal the players were about this.
5. Is it too much of a stretch to think that this was a culmination of 10 years and an act wearing thin for a number of players?  There's not doubt that there were more than a handful of coaches, former players and others that came to the defense of Leach and how he treated his players, but sometimes an act gets old and with everything that's happened, it just seems too coincidental.  Leach has given half-time speeches that inspired:
   




6. So where do you stand?  How do you feel about these videos?  Offended?  Giddy? 
   

More photos » Mike Fuentes - AP

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Previously on Texas Tech Depth Chartin' :: The Quarterbacks :: The Running Backs :: The Receivers ::

Overall: First things first, Chris Olson will be a backup at just about every position. I only have him as a backup at left tackle, but truthfully, he'll probably back up every position and if any newcomer struggles, then I could see Olson step in just about anywhere and any position. I'd still consider right tackle and right guard to be somewhat of question marks and I feel fairly confident in left tackle, left guard and center. Still, this team will be replacing three starters for the second year in a row. This team went from 5th in the nation, giving up 1 sack per game in 2008 to giving up 2.38 sacks a game, good for 87th in the nation. For those of you keeping score, the offensive line gave up 13.0 sacks in 2008 and 31.0 sacks in 2009. For those of you who are curious, the Troy Trojans gave up 13.0 sacks in 2009 (tied with Texas Tech) and 25.0 sacks in 2009 (60th in the nation).

I think you'll see more movement in the backup roles and Tuberville has spoken about how he'd like to get players that are smaller than 6'5" or 6'7" to play the guard and/or center positions, i.e. 6'2" or 6'4", which I don't think is a big deal and might actually a bit of a benefit, especially considering that other than Potts and Sheffield, there's not a quarterback taller than 6'3" on the roster.

Follow me after the jump.

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Sue Ogrocki - AP

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Previously on Texas Tech Depth Chartin' :: The Quarterbacks :: The Running Backs ::

Overall: I'm personally of the opinion that this is as talented and deep group of players in the Big 12. Biased? Absolutely. The entire receiving corps loses only one significant player from last year, Edward Britton, and returns virtually every contributor from a year ago. When trying to put together these depth charts, I always run into issues when trying to project past the top two players, and would even suggest that I have a problem projecting the top player. Take the inside receiver spots, H and Y. Towards the end of the year, Zouzalik was clearly the starter and Swindall was in Leach's doghouse for a bit. My rational for starting Swindall over Zouzalik is nothing more than I think that Zouzalik should take over Lewis' spot next year and be an absolute beast. Not to mention, I still believe that Swindall has a tremendous amount of potential and now it's up to him to do something with all of that talent. In any event, the point is that all of this is incredibly fluid, especially with a new coaching staff. I fully admit that there's a certain amount of futility with trying to designate positions for players when there hasn't even been a practice, but this is the sort of thing that's fun.

Lots of good discussion after the jump.

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Last weekend, LAJ's Don Williams talked with new Texas Tech offensive coordinator Neal Brown regarding the offense. That particular day, I only had time to post a quick FanShot of the story, but promised to go into more detail at a later date. I thought we might take this article quote by quote and dive into some questions at the end.

First things, first. I took the time to chart at what appears to be the only lengthy recent video from the 2008 Troy Trojan's football team, which was apparently their first drive in a game against LSU, that ultimately led to a touchdown. Troy eventually lost the game, 31-40 and it was Brown's first year as an offensive coordinator, as well as the first year for their quarterback. I'll explain some of my abbreviations: SG = QB in shotgun; Rec = Receivers; 2 Rec L = 2 receivers lined up on the left side; Empty RB = Empty Backfield; Rec trips L = Receivers trips left. If you have any other questions or if I've gotten something wrong, let me know.

Play 1: QB SG; 2 Rec L; 2 Rec R, Empty RB, extra lineman at TE spot: pass complete for 8 yards
Play 2: QB SG; Rec trips R; RB to L, 1 Rec to L: pass incomplete
Play 3: QB SG; trips right; Empty RB; 2 Rec to L: pass complete for 4 yards
Play 4: QB SG; 2 Rec L; 2 Rec R; RB to L: pass complete for 12 yards
Play 5: QB Pistol; 1 RB behind QB; 1 RB behind LG; 2 Rec L; 1 Rec R: play action fake, pass incomplete
Play 6: QB SG; Rec trips L; 2 Rec R; Empty RB: pass complete for 24 yards
Play 7: QB SG; RB to R; 2 Rec L; 2 Rec R: pass incomplete
Play 8: QB SG; RB to R; 2 Rec L; 2 Rec R: pass complete for 9 yards
Play 9: QB SG; Rec trips R; 2 Rec L; Empty RB: pass complete 5 yards for 1st down
Play 10: QB SG; Rec trips R; 1 Rec L; RB to R: pass incomplete
Play 11: QB SG; Rec trips R; 1 Rec L: Penalty, no play
Play 12: QB SG; 2 Rec L; 2 Rec R; RB to R: run for 13 yards
Play 13: QB SG; 2 Rec L; 2 Rec R; RB to R: pass complete for 13 yards
Play 14: QB SG; 2 Rec L; Rec trips R; Empty RB: pass incomplete
Play 15: QB SG; 2 Rec L; Rec trips R; Empty RB: pass incomplete
Play 16: QB SG; 2 Rec L; Rec trips R; Empty RB: pass complete for 9 yards
Play 17: QB SG; Rec trips L; 2 Rec R; Empty RB: pass complete for 7 yard TD

We'll be using this film as a bit of a comparison to what we know in regards to the Air Raid offense.

Now that we've taken care of some of the details, let's get to some of Brown's comments regarding the offense after the jump.

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More photos » Eric Gay - AP

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In light of all of the news stories and chat transcripts that came out yesterday, I thought we'd highlight those articles by resurrecting the Thursday Five Questions.

1. Head coach Tommy Tuberville held an online chat yesterday with ESPN Dallas and there were a couple of interesting quotes, including on his non-conference scheduling (which we've talked about before): 

   As we speak, we're trying to schedule at least one BCS conference team in our OOC games. That would probably be a neutral site or a home and home. We'd like to do a multi year contract with some team across the country.

   
   Do you like the idea of trying to schedule at least one BCS conference team in the non-conference schedule, or do you like the cupcakes?
   
   
2. Tuberville continues to mention that he wants to keep things simple, somewhat similar to our former captain: 

   I like simplicity. I think the more the players repeat plays in practice, they execute better in games. I like short gameplans. They're explosive and get the job done. 

   I'd love to see a show of hands of those who believe that Tuberville and OC Brown will keep the offense generally the same and keep things simple.
   
   
3. ESPN's Mark Schlabach wrote yesterday that the quarterback competition between QB's Taylor Potts and Steven Sheffield is starting a bit slow as Sheffield is still recovering from the broken ankle he suffered in the Nebraska win: 

   "He's getting better and should be running around in a couple of weeks," Tuberville said. "We want to make sure we get a good look at him."

   Does it concern you that it's taken Sheffield 4 months to get over that broken ankle?
   
   
4. Tuberville also talked with ESPN's Schlabach regarding settling in at Texas Tech and he said that he treated IR Adam James the same as everyone else: 

   "I think Adam went through a tougher time than anyone," Tuberville said. "I met with him for about 20 minutes right after I got the job. I met with all the players. I didn't do him any differently than anyone else."

   Being somewhat serious for a minute, is anyone else really concerned about how James is going to be treated once football starts and what do you think the initial reaction is going to be once James steps on the field?  
   
   
5. DMN's Kyle Whitfield talked with incoming QB Scotty Young and this is somewhat connected with question #2 but OC Brown's discussion with Young prior to signing day appears to have convinced Young that the offense won't change very much:

   "It was mainly coach Brown who reassured me that the offense is going to make minor changes but nothing too crazy," Young said.

   Doesn't it make sense that unless Brown and Tuberville wanted to start gaining attention as men who don't keep their word that the offense will still be similar to last year's offense (more on this later next week) or are we having the wool pulled over our eyes?
   

Previously on Texas Tech Depth Chartin' :: The Quarterbacks ::

Tailback

Overall: A true position of strength for this team. Much of this unit's success will depend on the offensive line being able to replace three starters for the second straight year, but we'll get to that at a later point. I cannot recall a time when Texas Tech had, potentially, four 4-star running backs on the team at one given time. Think about that for a minute. Let it sink in. There's some real talent in the backfield, it's going to be interesting to see how this talent is utilized.

Who Is Gone: Same as the quarterbacks, everyone returns, and that's a good thing. There's quite a bit of stability and competition at the running back position and that's something I absolutely love.

Who Is Still Around: Baron Batch: This one is pretty easy. I don't think there's any question that Batch is the unquestioned starter this year. Batch will be one of this team's most important offensive performers in 2010 and if Brown increases the carries from 30% to 40% then Batch's potential impact on this team will be even greater. In fact, one of the things that will be interesting is whether or not Batch will top 1,000 yards on the ground this year. In 2009, Batch accounted for 16.9% of this team's all-purpose yards. There's a lot of yards to go around, and I can't shake the fact that I truly believe that this team's success will be largely dependent on Batch's ability to churn out positive yards on the ground.

Eric Stephens: I'll be honest, I was shocked when Stephens forced his way onto the field in 2009 and pleasantly surprised. The biggest issue that Stephens must improve his putting the ball on the turf too often. Other than that flaw, I think Stephens have tremendous potential to be a very good running back for Texas Tech. I don't want this to sound like a knock, because it's not intended to be, but Stephens isn't great at any particular dimension of his game, but he's just really solid. He's not a burner, but he's plenty fast, he's not big, but he's not small, he runs hard, but he's not going to run over people, etc. I'd also be remiss in not stating that I think the battle between Stephens and Jeffers will be incredibly close and right now, I think Stephens is ahead of Jeffers, but it wouldn't surprise me in the least to see Jeffers make a move in the spring.

Harrison Jeffers: I earnestly believe that Leach loved what Jeffers brought to the table in terms of game-breaking speed. I have no issues in stating that no one gets to the corner quicker than Jeffers and if forced to choose one player that could break a game wide open, it would be Jeffers. With all of that being said, I think there's a reason why Jeffers was behind Stephens in the running back competition and he only received 35 carries in 2009 despite absolutely destroying the scout team as a true freshman. Jeffers was in Leach's doghouse for whatever reason, but now he has an opportunity to impress a new coaching staff. I wholeheartedly believe that there's room for this team to have three outstanding running backs and I get the feeling that it's now up to Jeffers to prove that he belongs.

Delans Griffin:  Griffin is another game-breaking sort of player.  The same type of player mentioned above.  Griffin has the ability to break long runs, is a legitimate 4.5 running back and is already adept at catching the ball out of the backfield, i.e. he's a spread running back and I that's a compliment.  He's not going to run over you, at least he didn't in high school, he merely ran past you.  That's probably going to be Griffin's biggest adjustment, is just learning how to lower his head and grind out yards.  Griffin may be a possible grad-risk, so just keep that in mind if he doesn't hit campus in the summer.  We might get to see Tuberville's ability to send players to a JUCO to then return upon getting their grades in order.

Fullback

Overall: There's going to be quite a bit of guess-work until the spring practices start. So I've decided to take absolute and utter guesses about the fullback position, and of course there's also the question if there will even be a fullback. Honestly, I have no idea, but I can say that I thought that Acevedo did an okay job last year at the position, despite the fact that he wasn't utilized that often offensively, but I think that a team player like Acevedo has utility with this team.

Who Is Gone: After the departure of Ryan Hale in 2008, Leach shied away from the fullback position. Acevedo didn't see very many snaps at the fullback spot, and that meant that the jumbo package that Leach ran in 2008, which featured Hale at fullback and Adam James at tight end, faded away in 2009. It will be interesting to see if Brown resurrects this position and who might fill this spot.

Who Is Still Around: Gerardo Acevedo: As stated above, it's going to be interesting to see if and how Brown utilizes the fullback. Acevedo should at the very least be capable of handling the spot opportunity, but I'm not sure that Brown is will implement a full-time running back in that fullback spot. I'm thinking that this may be a situation where if there are some goal line opportunities then maybe he gets a look.

Aaron Crawford: Again, this is pure speculation. For those of you who have been around for a while, you'll know that I have an appreciation for Crawford, who played as a true freshman while Shannon Woods was working his way out of the doghouse. And I'd be remiss in now stating that I thought Crawford was instrumental against Oklahoma in 2007 in getting that win. Crawford should have a place on this team, and maybe it's as a fullback that has quite a bit of running ability. I'm not sold that Crawford has the ability to be a game-breaker as a tailback, but he's a tough runner, and maybe he finds his place as a fullback in some form or fashion.

Andre McCorkle: I know nothing about McCorkle other than he is a transfer from Texas State, initially started out as a running back after transferring to Texas Tech (I think), and then was moved to a defensive back position. With McCorkle, you have a player that could probably add on a few pounds and be a pretty effective fullback if needed. I have no idea what type of runner he actually is, and this is a longshot, but I don't know that McCorkle sees the field, especially considering last year's recruiting class and the current crop of defensive backs. It's going to get crowded pretty quickly and McCorkle may do well to find a spot where he can actually get some burn.

Overall: I don't know if it's the time and place to discuss if it's going to be Sheffield or Potts, I think all of this plays out over the course of the spring and even into the fall.  There's absolutely nothing to base our decision on what type of quarterback OC Brown will want to start. Despite who starts, I think it's a saving grace for Tuberville that he has two veteran options at the quarterback position. And I'd also like to add that I'm starting to get the feeling that the decision at quarterback and the entire offense is going to be left to Brown. Tuberville is obviously going to have his say on the defense and special teams, but I think that the offense is going to be left to Brown to manage.

At this point, what I'm hoping for during the spring, and this goes without writing, but I'll write it anyway, is that each and every position is pushed to their limits and the best player wins. Right now, I'm pretty comfortable stating that the starter role will probably lie with Sheffield or Potts, and I'm more than happy to see the backup role shake itself out. And the thought that Texas Tech needs a three or four year starter is a nice thought, but I'm always of the opinion, that a coach should play the best player, which takes into account physical ability, experience, etc. A coach has too much on the line, whether it's Tuberville or Leach, not to play who he thinks is the best player. Players get hurt and things change, so you always put your best foot forward and to give deference to the thought that it would be best to start a quarterback for three or four years sounds good in theory, but ultimately, the best decision is always to play the best player. I think there's a couple of reasons why Leach recruited a quarterback each and every recruiting class, mainly that I honestly believe that Leach always thought that repetition trumped talent most of the time and as a result, he always wanted a player that worked his way through his system and was ready and available to start. I have no doubt that Leach would have been content to start a senior for as long as he coached at Texas Tech.

Who Is Gone: No one. I guess you could consider Stefan Loucks, who transferred to North Alabama last year, to be one of the quarterbacks who left, but for now, this position is fairly intact.

Who Is Still Around:  Steven Sheffield: I know, I said that this may not be a time for debate, but that's why you pay me the big bucks. To make tough decisions. With that being said, from last year alone, I think the job is Sheffield's to lose. Right now, Sheffield gives you the best of two world's, a quarterback with a good head on his shoulders, a mobile quarterback as the offensive line is replacing three starters again, and a quarterback that doesn't make as many mistakes as his competitor. This isn't to say that Sheffield doesn't have his faults. He does, but right now, I think he's the better option.

Taylor Potts: I'm actually pretty interested to see if Brown will be as intrigued with Potts as Leach was. I'm not sure what it was about Potts that Leach loved, but I do think that ultimately, Leach saw a tremendous amount of potential, and if he played up to that potential, he should be one of the best quarterbacks to roll through Lubbock. Despite those physical traits, it's the mental game is where Potts struggles the most, quickly reading defenses and making the right calls. Despite his limitations, I still think he's better than the other three options as far as readiness to play in game situations.

Seth Doege: I tend to be really conservative regarding backups. It was just last spring that Seth Doege was apparently pushing Sheffield for the backup role. Leach even thought so much of Doege that he inserted Doege into the starting role against Kansas, only to replace him at halftime with Potts. And now, it appears that Karam may be the quarterback that everyone thinks can take this team to the next step or should even garner consideration to start this year. I'm not going to be so quick to bypass Doege. Again, Leach has a stellar track record for identifying quarterback talent. There's a reason why Leach gave Doege a scholarship after being injured his entire senior year. I'd also tend to believe that time, repetition and experience play a huge role in how well a player will perform on the field. Right now, Doege has had more of all of those items than Karam and until we hear something definitively, that Karam has officially passed Doege, then I think Doege starts the spring as the second backup.

Jacob Karam: I absolutely love Karam, and I think he has a bright future as a quarterback for this team, but don't get your hopes up to see Karam take meaningful snaps in 2010. As mentioned above, Karam only has one year of collegiate training and I think high expectations are a good thing, but it's going to take time. As far as those that have this thought that Karam can step into the backup role this year, what do we know about Karam other than the traveled with the team and Leach loved his leadership ability? I'm hopeful that Karam can be that dual threat quarterback that can add a different dimension to this team, but I'm also of the opinion that Karam's window of opportunity really starts in 2011 when I think he'll have the opportunity to make his mark.

Scotty Young: I think that Young's commitment was a culmination of the time and effort it took to make the Texas Tech offense so prolific and the expansion of the spread game to the high school level. Despite playing in a spread offense in high school, Young was labeled as the best quarterback coming out of the state of Texas last year. And this isn't one of those situations where Young is going to be saddled with the thought that he's a weak-armed quarterback who can only succeed in the spread offense. Young is also one of the best high school pitchers in the state of Texas and has the opportunity of being drafted in April's MLB draft. Young is probably a better prospect at quarterback than Graham Harrell was and that's saying quite a bit.