I let a day go by after the game, trying to think of the nice way to put it, but it is time to rip the band aid off this season.
The Red Raiders aren’t that good. Yes, they seem to be good against Little Sisters of the Poor and Miscellaneous State but when it comes to any school from any Power 5 conference, they just aren’t that good. They are young, undisciplined and have a quarterback who just isn’t Kingsbury, Harrell, Joe Barnes or any of the other leaders that have taken the Red Raiders to greatness.
The bowl game versus Arizona State was an aberration. The team had a month to study and prepare for a match up. They had a week to prepare for Arkansas, knowing that the Arkansas QB wasn’t good either, but the Razorbacks run game was amazing. In the end, mental mistakes the team made compounded again into a frustrating day for the Red Raiders. Where was the jumping around, the energy from last year?
We all love the Red Raiders, it is when they play below all of our expectations when our feelings are worn on our sleeves. Because we love this team, we’ve been there in cold, wet, snow, dust storm games. We’ve cheered for them when they were coached by Spike, Mike, Idiot and Kliff. We just want to see improvements otherwise the $95 ticket prices for games like Saturday will be laughed at in the future.
To become a champion, you have to cheer, play, coach and have an organization that is dedicated to winning.
The fans showed up, for as long as they could. When the game got ugly, they left. They left to go talk about things that mattered, not mentioning the embarrassment on the field. “We got dressed up for THAT?” I heard from a fan after the final gun fired.
The team looked lost, on assignments, on routes, everything. It could have been 63-14 without a couple of lucky bounces.
Kliff is young and will have to mature and season more for the fans to look past “Hollywood”.
As long as Texas Tech Football is a beauty pageant for some fans, coached “Hollywood” style, played at a second tier level with swagger rather than substance and have an organization WILLING to let traditions go, this team won’t EVER be a National Champion.
It is a matter of attitude and the Red Raiders have the future working for them. They have an incredible facility, great recruits and a good coach, they need some seasoning, experience and LUCK to win.
Good Luck Red Raiders!