Grading Texas Tech vs Rice

Quaterback(s): A

It’s hard to find any fault with how Taylor Potts played. Potts finished 36 of 57 for 456 yards and seven TD passes. Should have seen more points in the first half and the failed QB sneak on fourth and goal was the only mistake of the game.

Potts played a near-flawless game and even the back up Steven Sheffield came in without missing a beat going 4 of 6 for 52 yards and a TD pass.

Running Backs: B-

This unit has still not got it going. Only 52 yards were gained on the ground on 14 attempts, which is still off last year’s average by 48 yards. However, there were positives. Baron Batch did have 48 yards receiving and Eric Stephens pulled in his only catch for a 34 yard TD on a quick screen pass.

This group isn’t getting the ball enough, only 28 carries through the first two games, but it should have more success with the speed and toughness we all heard about coming out of Fall practices. More is expected, but to be fair this group needs the ball more to have a chance to meet those expectations.

Wide Receivers: A-

There were a couple of first half drops, but that was about all the fault you can find for this unit. Lyle Leong and Tramain Swindall had 240 yards and five TDs combined and Austin Zouzalik and Edward Britton threw in another 86 yards and two TDs.

The only thing that went wrong for the unit was possibly losing the go-to WR, Detron Lewis, for an extended amount of time. Lewis pulled up with an apparent hamstring injury in the second quarter and did not return to the game.

Offensive Line: B-

Different personnel were used for the game and it seemed to give Potts the confidence he needed to stay in the pocket and make the tough throws. Lonnie Edwards was slotted to left guard moving Brandon Carter back to the position he played last year, right guard.

All other positions stayed the same, but Terry McDaniel did get a lot of playing time at left tackle in the second half. The line didn’t give up any sacks, but did have three holds and three false starts before the first unit was pulled in the fourth quarter.

The run game failed to impress only averaging 3.7 yards per carry and although the screen game seemed to click on Saturday, one is left wondering how well this team is in the trenches.

Offense: A

Even only putting up 14 points in the first half it was hard to say the offense played poorly. They were driving and consistently moving the chains on the Owls defense, the Air Raid just failed to produce the other 10 points that was available to them.

Knock off the mistakes, which is what they did in the second half, and it would be 24–3 going into halftime. The second half there were no mistakes and the Raiders scored a TD on six straight possessions.

Defensive Line: A+

Although they lost Rajon Henley early in the game due to an ankle injury, the Raider d-line created constant pressure which resulted in six sacks. Daniel Howard, Brandon Sharpe and Colby Whitlock all had one sack. They were also able to create a fumble, which was recovered by defensive end Sharpe, and keep Rice to a 1.7 yard rush average for the game.

Linebackers: B+

Marlon Williams created a lot of havoc for the defense on Saturday night. Williams finished the game with an interception, a sack and five tackles. Bront Bird also had a great game getting eight tackles, two pass break ups and a quarter back pressure. Although the interception was nice, the unit also allowed a lot of five yard out passes for the Owl receivers all game long. Speed will continue to hinder this group all season long.

Secondary: A

Giving up 197 passing yards certainly does not warrant an A grading, but Rice also had to throw the ball 41 times to accomplish that total. The secondary had 4 pass break ups and kept the Owls offense to only 4.8 yard pass average. Jamar Wall should have had an early interception, but did keep his receiver, Toren Dixon, to nine yards receiving for the game.

Defense: A

There was constant pressure on the Rice QBs all game long, which allowed the defense to set the tempo for the game. The defense created two turnovers, eight pass break ups and only gave up one touchdown late in the fourth quarter.

Although the secondary gave up nearly 200 passing yards, none of them came on big plays. A couple of silly penalties allowed Rice to have successful drives, but never mounted a serious challenge to Tech.

Special Teams: C

A missed field goal from Matt Williams in the second quarter and a missed extra point in the fourth were the biggest mistakes made by the unit. There was a phantom personal foul called on Alexander Torres that negated a 63 yard kickoff return from Eric Stephens. Although no reason was given and the flag was thrown late and it took points off the board for the Raiders.