Four things to know about TCU football’s next opponent, the Texas Tech Red Raiders
After pulling off an upset on the road against Utah, a rivalry game with Texas Tech is up next for a Horned Frogs team that should be playing with confidence.
It’s too early to say if TCU has completely turned the corner with the 13-7 win in Salt Lake City, but the Red Raiders should prove to be a good test of how much progress TCU has made over the last few weeks.
Last season Texas Tech bullied a young Josh Hoover and TCU in Lubbock, 35-28, in a game that wasn’t as close as the final score indicated. The Horned Frogs will be aiming for payback and to also potentially deliver a knockout blow to the Red Raiders’ hopes of making it to the Big 12 championship game.
Texas Tech will aim to avoid a second straight loss to a rival and keep pace with the other teams at the top of the standings.
Here’s four things to know about the Red Raiders:
QB stability
The Red Raiders weren’t able to catch a break the last two seasons with quarterback health as the position was a revolving door. That changed this season. Behren Morton has maintained the job all season and has quietly put together a quality year so far.
Morton is fourth in the Big 12 in passing yards with 1,926. His 17 touchdown passes are the second most in the league behind only Shedeur Sanders at Colorado. Morton has done a good job of protecting the ball with just three interceptions on the season while completing close to 64% of his passes.
Morton had one of his best games last season facing TCU when he threw for 282 yards and two touchdowns with no turnovers while posting a quarterback rating of 76.9. Morton is a much better quarterback than the one TCU faced in Utah and will truly test the secondary.
Another star running back
TCU continues to draw the short stick when it comes to facing the best running backs in the Big 12. This time the Horned Frogs will try to slow down Tahj Brooks, a throwback workhorse running back that currently leads the league in rushing attempts per game with almost 25 per game.
While players like Devin Neal and R.J Harvey were home run threats, Brooks is more of a running back that wears defenses down as the game goes on. TCU had over a dozen missed tackles last season in Lubbock trying to bring him down. On the season Brooks has 804 rushing yards, eight touchdowns and averages 5.4 yards per carry.
He’s rushed for over 100 yards in every game he’s played including 172 yards in a win over Cincinnati. Last season he rumbled for 146 yards on 31 carries to lead Tech to a win over the Horned Frogs. TCU can expect Brooks to get a steady dose of carries and it will be another test to see if the run defense has really improved or if TCU was able to just take advantage of a limited quarterback last week against Utah.
Deep receiver room
The Red Raiders have a plethora of options at wide receiver from experienced veterans to exciting young players with vast potential. Washington State transfer Josh Kelly leads the team with 590 yards and three touchdowns. He’s an underrated name, but if you watched him play last season with now Miami quarterback Cam Ward, then you know Kelly is capable of making highlight plays at any moment.
Tech has two more receivers with at least 300 yards as Caleb Douglas has 419 yards and four touchdowns while Coy Eakin has 339 yards and a team-high five touchdowns. If TCU tries to take away any of them, it could open up the door for five-star freshman Micah Hudson. Hudson is the highest ranked recruit to sign with the Red Raiders in the internet era and he’s had flashes, but a limited role with 123 yards on the season.
Tight end Jalin Conyers is another name to know after transferring in from Arizona State. Conyers and Hudson’s numbers won’t jump off the page, but they can’t be ignored.
Shootout incoming?
With all of its weapons, it might be a safe bet to assume the Red Raiders will put up some points, but the Horned Frogs should have every opportunity to match them. Texas Tech currently has one of the worst defenses in the country as opponents are averaging 36.1 points per game, which ranks No. 125 in the country.
The Red Raiders have allowed the second most yards and the second most yards per play in the Big 12. Tech’s secondary has been picked apart with over 2,100 yards allowed in just seven games. The rushing defense is also in the bottom five of the league. Abilene Christian scored 51 points, Baylor scored 59 and Cincinnati scored 41. Texas Tech had a 2-1 record in those games, so it’s clear the Red Raiders are comfortable in a shootout, but this still presents an opportunity for TCU’s uneven offense to have their best outing of the year.
