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RED RAIDER
sports.com
RedRaiderSports.com is a publication of TRI Productions Volume 24 Issue 2 Managing Editor Aaron Dickens
Cover Photo TTU Athletics
Photographers Norvelle Kennedy Justin Rex
Michael Strong TTU Athletics
Writers Matt Clare
Marie Jones
Randy Rosetta
Terry Greenberg Al Pickett
Red Raider Sports (USPS 0013-768) is published bimonthly in February, April, June, August, October and December. Annual Red Raider Club membership dues of $500 or higher include a one-year subscription to Red Raider Sports Magazine. Red Raider Sports is a publication of TRI Productions, P.O. Box 53604, Lubbock, TX 79453. Periodicals postage is paid in Lubbock, Texas. Address all editorial-related correspondence to Red Raider Sports, P.O. Box 53604, Lubbock, TX 79453. Red Raider Sports is not an official publication of Texas Tech University. Postmaster: Send address changes to Red Raider Sports, P.O. Box 53604, Lubbock, TX 79453. For subscription inquiries contact the Red Raider Club at 806.742.1196. Give old and new addresses and enclose latest mailing address label when writing about your subscription. Š2018 TRI Productions. All Rights Reserved.
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Red Raider Club
Update
The fall is an exciting time for Texas Tech Athletics! With huge success on and off the
field, we are thankful for our student-athletes and generous supporters.
August 31st marked the end of the 2018 fiscal year. We are so grateful for the contri-
butions from our loyal Red Raider Club members who contributed more than $18.8 million to the annual fund. This philanthropic support provides critical resources for over 415 student-athletes. Annually, the Red Raider Club provides more than 25 percent of Texas Tech Athletics overall revenue. These funds are generated through annual seat contributions, premium-seating contributions and the Red Raider Club Excellence Fund.
The Victory Circle, Red Raider Club’s leadership annual giving program, is comprised
of donors who contribute annual gifts of $10 thousand and above. During the 2018 membership year, 418 Victory Circle members contributed more than $10 million in support of our Fearless Champions.
The Campaign for Fearless Champions continues to move forward as we finalize
funding for The Dustin R. Womble Basketball Center. This is an exciting project that will change the future of Texas Tech Basketball. The $29 million facility will significantly enhance recruitment of players and coaches, and will help us continue to gain national recognition and momentum. We look forward to breaking ground in January.
Executing our bold vision to enhance facilities, The Campaign for Fearless Cham-
pions continues to make headway as we embark on the South End Zone Project and Football Training Facility renovation as well as finalize plans for a new student-athlete dining hall. We appreciate your feedback from the south end zone project survey. The possibilities are exciting and we look forward to building another first-class facility that will
Andrea Tirey Senior Associate Athletic Director — Development — 806.834.3270 andrea.tirey@ttu.edu
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enhance game day experiences.
Thank you for believing in our student-athletes and for supporting Texas Tech Athlet-
ics! Please do not hesitate to contact our office at 806.742.1196 if you have any questions or if there is anything we can ever do. Guns Up!
Andrea
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Boosters may not communicate with recruits or their families on behalf of Texas Tech by phone, in-person or in writing (includes social media).
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Free or discounted items or services may not be provided to student-athletes or recruits unless the benefit is available to the public or all Texas Tech students.
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Boosters may not provide academic assistance of any kind to a student-athlete or recruit (e.g., test prep, SAT/ACT fees, academic expenses, tutoring, editing/completing coursework, etc.).
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Student-athletes, recruits or their coaches, family or friends may not be invited to your suite or club seats as this constitutes special seating.
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Game tickets, apparel, equipment or awards may not be traded for or purchased from student-athletes, and items autographed by current student-athletes may not be sold.
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A student-athlete’s name, picture or appearance may not be used in a commercial advertisement, business promotion or product endorsement.
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Student-athletes may be employed provided they are paid the going rate for work actually performed.
Help us PROTECT OUR FEARLESS CHAMPIONS (806)742-3355 RedRaiderSports.com @RedRaiderRules
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b y MA R I E J O N E S
Successful cross country runners require stamina, endurance and long-term goals. Bret Leigh Nance, a junior distance runner at Texas Tech, applies these qualifications to her life on and off the track. Bret’s goals have always been larger than her home town of Blanco, Texas, located in
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the hill country. In school, Bret discovered that she could run the mile and run it faster than many of the boys. Running sparked the athletic competitor in her, and in the fifth grade she set the goal that she was going to attend a Division I university to run track. Accomplishing this goal would take hard work on the track and in the classroom. Bret’s success on the track was undeniable. She was a cross country state qualifier for three consecutive years, 2015 state champion in the 1600m and named to the AllArea and Super cross country teams in 2014. Her academic success was just as impressive. Bret graduated fifth in her class at Blanco High School and was a member of the National Honor Society. Raised in a small town with a passion for agriculture, she was active in the Future Farmers of America (FFA) and competed in speaking events at the state and national levels.
Bret’s hard work and determination to reach her goals were instilled by her parents. They told her that education was the priority and that “it will guide you the rest of your life.” She honed her time management and study skills in high school but wondered how those would translate to her new life as a student athlete at a large university. Bret saw this as a challenge and set another goal. “On the first day of class, I make it a point to meet my professors to break the ice.” Her goal to meet and partner with her professors was important, especially when traveling for cross country. “I want my professors to know that I am passionate about my degree and will work hard in their class even when I’m on the road.” Understanding her drive to succeed, the professors work with her on assignments and deadlines. The biggest challenge in Bret’s transition to life at Texas Tech was learning the technology required for her classes. Blanco High School did not have some of the technology resources that she would need at Tech. “I had never had an email account until I started at Tech,” Bret admitted. It was a bit overwhelming for her at first, but with the athletic travel schedule she knew that technology would keep her on track with her classes. She said, “I’ve always been good with time management, but I hadn’t had to do it on the road.” Technology has been key to her academic success and her perfect 4.0 GPA. Bret’s academic goal is to complete her Agriculture Communications degree and attend law school. She wants to make the most of this opportunity, saying, “I have four years to do as much as I can for my future.” Of course, she has one more long-term goal: to be the future Texas Agriculture Commissioner. Considering her success so far, Bret Leigh Nance just might do it.
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b y T E R RY G R E E N B E R G
Red Raider Club Effect Providing academic resources for student athletes is a significant part of the daily operation of the Texas Tech Red Raider Club. And you’re helping.
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When you buy season seats or premium seats for a Texas Tech team or make donations to the Red Raider Excellence Fund you are supporting: student athletes in 17 sports played across campus in numerous ways, including academic support playing a big role in the record GPA, and scholarships helping those athletes focus on their sport and academics. And it’s support impacting the student athletes long after they’ve graduated.
“It’s not about supporting kids for four years – it’s more like 40,” said Jonathan Botros, senior associate athletic director and chief financial officer. “This is an inflection point in their lives,” said Botros of their time in Lubbock. “Many of them want to go pro, but that’s not going to happen for the vast majority of them.” What they learn at Texas Tech will help them be Fearless Champions whatever path they take, he said, “With the life skills Chris Beard has taught our basketball players they have a better chance for a successful quality of life,” said Botros, as one example. Defensive lineman Eli Howard appreciates the resources he has and knows it’s driven by generous donors. “Their ongoing dedication and investment in us is making a difference,” he said. You’re buying much more than a seat to watch a game. “The Red Raider Club annual fund is a critical piece for Texas Tech Athletics” said Tirey, which makes up about a quarter of the Athletic Department’s $87 million budget. The $22 million provides all academic support, the J.T. & Margaret Talkington Leadership Academy, strength and conditioning, nutrition, sports medicine, medical costs and more than $7 million in scholarships. “When donors make gifts to the annual fund they are impacting student athletes’ lives,” said Tirey. A big part of that is education. “Kirby has pushed making sure students’ well being is addressed,” said Suzanne Dickenson, director of academic services, referring to Director of Athletics Kirby Hocutt. 12
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ANNUAL FUND PILLARS 1 2 3
Annual Seat Contributions Premium Seating Contributions Red Raider Club Excellence Fund
Eli Howard - Currently Working on His Master’s Degree Howard is already working on his master’s degree while chasing Red Raider opponents who are holding a football. He graduated with a degree in business management with a 3.4 GPA. Howard graduated from San Angelo Central High School with 12 hours of college credit before going to North Texas State. He transferred to Texas Tech and had to sit out for a year. At 21, he sees things differently than other sophomores. “It’s kind of like being a rookie and veteran. I know the importance of academics and the discipline that comes with that,” he said. Howard hopes to play in the NFL, but knows he can’t expect that will be his future. “Everyone dreams of playing in the
NFL, but you have to be real with yourself, you can be one play away from having football taken away. You need a degree,” he said. “A lot of NFL players need to know about budgeting,” said Howard, explaining why he chose personal finance. He’s also interested in real estate because of an uncle in San Angelo. His favorite classes as an undergrad were business law and organizational behavior. “I enjoyed the concept of law, case studies, how courts and appeals work,” he said, along with ethical and moral applications for businesses and corporations. Law school? “I thought of going to law school, but the coaches and I realized that was too
much of a workload,” said Howard, who is taking 15-plus hours this semester and has taken more in the past. “I’ll possibly consider law school – it depends what God has in store for me,” he said. In organizational behavior, Howard learned about incentives, self interest and how to get everyone to go forward, adding it’s applicable to a football team. “That class makes you change your perspective,” he said. His favorite master’s class so far is risk and insurance management. And he takes some teasing by teammates about his academic accomplishments. “They say, ‘you’ll be here so long you’ll be a doctor by the time you leave,’” he said. RedRaiderSports.com
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Katy Keenan - Support She’s Received Has Changed Her Career Path When the lanky senior came to Texas Tech to play volleyball, she wanted to do modeling and majored in retail management with a minor in Restaurant, Hotel and Institutional Management. But the more she watched how Athletics helped student athletes succeed, Keenan changed her mind about a career path. She wants to go to grad school for sports management. “As my time is ending with sports I can’t see my life without sports,” said the senior middle blocker from Argyle High School near Denton. “I don’t want to coach, but I want to be around college athletes. People have had impact on me and I want to do that for other students,” she said. She’s passionate about leadership development after going through the Talkington 14
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Leadership Academy and been a teaching assistant, she said. “It’s something cool Texas Tech does that other schools don’t,” Keenan said. She appreciates Suzanne Dickenson, director of academic services. “She was my academic advisor for a year and checked up on me, asked how I’m doing, made me feel important and that they care. I see the small impact they can make in my life and I’m just someone passing through. It makes me want to go into sports administration. I want to have that kind of impact and reach kids they way they’ve reached me,” said Keenan. Her scholarship is valued. “Receiving a full scholarship takes the burden off myself and my whole family,” she said. Without a scholarship the “path would be more challenging. The generosity of Red
Raider Club allows me to have less worries about how to pay for college and give more to volleyball and academics.” The senior has a 3.45 GPA and said she’d be happy with a 3.0 if she had to have a job in addition to her class load and the hours needed to compete at the NCAA Division I level. Part of the reason Keenan came to Texas Tech was her older brother played football for the Red Raiders, so it was already on her radar. “The coaching staff made a connection with me and made me feel at home, the program needed me and I knew I would play a role,” she said. Keenan also liked that Lubbock had a small town feeling, like where she grew up. It was also far enough away, but close enough her parents could come see her play.
The 3.2 GPA for athletics starts with recruiting good student athletes, said Greg Glaus, senior associate athletic director for academics and eligibility. Once they get to campus, Texas Tech supports them in numerous ways:
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academic advising
• tutoring
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diagnostic testing in many areas
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the iPad initiative
Texas Tech has increased its Academic Services budget by 50 percent since the 2014-15 school year, said Glaus. “We want to help make (each of) them a better person,” said Glaus. It’s all housed in the Marsha Sharp Center for Student Athletes (pictured, right), just south of the Frazier Alumni Pavilion. “We want students to think the Marsha Sharp Center is their home and safe place,” said Dickenson, who’s from Jamaica and ran track at Texas Tech. “It helps to have support from Kirby – our fearless leader. Kirby wants our students to get the necessary help to be successful as a whole,” said Dickenson. “Coaches tell students they’re students first and they have to take care of academics before they can compete,” she said. Keenan is happy with their help. “With the Marsha Sharp Center you can get tutor like that with one form. I have friends who are not student athletes and they have to pay out of their own pocket or figure it out on their own. They also give me access to students who have taken the class and other resources,” she said. “I have a high school teammate at a smaller school who doesn’t have that support.” The university also has to show the NCAA and Big 12 Conference that student athletes are making progress toward their degrees. Universities are held accountable for an Academic Performance Rate, or APR –
making sure the school is keeping a student athlete eligible, in addition to retaining and graduating them. Some students need no help – others need a lot of help not only in keeping up grades, but being responsible. Part of Dickenson’s job is to pester them. “I’m deadly – I get what I want,” said Dickenson while flashing a big smile. She told the story of speaking to the track team and one of Texas Tech’s stars was doing something distracting. Dickenson glared at him. “Man, I know I’m in trouble because I got the look,” Dickenson said the athlete said. She told the story of an at-risk athlete who was barely staying eligible to play. “I give them just enough information to scare them. I could tell a change in the last month of school. He went from passing one class to passing three or four. He had a great spring and his athletics were even more super because he had less stress. I’m really looking forward to him graduating next May or August and watching him walk across that stage,” said Dickenson.
Another former student was a challenge. “She didn’t understand how to talk to people, what to say and how she treated her mom. She was stuck in her ways,” she said. Dickenson heard from her “out of the blue” one day and she told her former advisor everything Dickenson was trying to tell her in the past now made sense – because she was now an athletic advisor at a university. “You can touch someone even if they don’t like you in the beginning. I don’t give up on a student who wants to give up,” she said. Glaus added: “She’s able to work miracles.” “We have thousands of feel-good stories. We love the students and we can do all of this because of donations from people who believe in our academic mission,” he said. The university will also pay for former student athletes to complete their degree if they are within 30 hours of graduating. “That’s important to Kirby and other administrators,” said Glaus, who was also a student athlete, playing baseball at Wright State in Ohio.
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Eli Howard said iPads given to each student athlete “gives you no excuses to succeed on and off the field.” The program started as a dream, said Jennifer Brashear, senior associate athletic director for compliance and strategic initiatives. “We were thinking about a laptop for student athletes,” she said, but coaches started asking about iPads because recruits were specifically asking if they were offered. So many students come to school with an iPhone, so Athletics started talking to Apple. Apple invited a group from Texas Tech to their headquarters in California for a one-day Apple in Athletics event. They heard people from Ohio State and Penn State talking about a program for all athletes. Eventually, iPads were selected as the best device for student athletes – they could use them on a bus, plane and didn’t have to find time in a computer lab. “Student athletes are up before 6, they have training, class, practice, study hall, tutoring, eating, homework, studying. If they have a free 30 minutes in between some of that, they can get work done because it’s with them,” said Brashear. She’s seen football players submit class papers while on road trips. But Athletics also learned it must train student athletes on how to use them. “We learned Ohio State bought more than 700 iPads and didn’t teach the students how to use them,” said Brashear, so they were not used. 16
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But iPads for each student athlete was not going to be cheap. “In 2017, the NCAA had some money to distribute back to the membership and did a one-time distribution,” said Brashear, and Texas Tech received more than $700,000. “They were very specific on what we could use it for – academics, career or life skills and we had to submit a plan on how we would use the money,” she said. The university spent $595,000 to lease to buy the iPads over three years. “That bought us time to build it into our budget or get support from the Red Raider Club,” said Brashear. “We do show donors who are traveling with us how the student athletes are using the iPads.” Athletics loaded 25 apps onto the iPads, some to help with academics, time management, player development and sports performance. Notability is Howard’s favorite academic app. “You can take notes, record lectures while looking up the syllabus or notes from the day before,” he said. Glaus said his team trains student athletes on how to use the app and others. “We show them they can take notes by typing, by using the Apple Pencil, can record, take photos of slides, import PowerPoint and make notes on it. There are multiple ways to get organized,” he said. The NCAA has legislated athletic departments notify student athletes of anything they must attend and if anything changes, they must
give 24-hour notice. Teamworks is another app giving athletes, coaches and staff team schedules and more. Practice hours are limited to 20 hours a week, said Brashear, and Teamworks allows Athletics to monitor that time. Students send Academic Services the syllabus for each class, they scan it in the device so they can help the student athlete stay on top of assignments during weekly meetings, he said. Keenan said volleyball travels a lot during the beginning of the fall semester. “In preparing for a road trip your mindset is volleyball and what to pack,” she said, but the Academic Services staff helps her remember to communicate with teachers, stay up on classwork before leaving, schedule make-up tests. “The whole staff makes us stay on top of that and holds us accountable,” she said. Brashear added: “A student athlete cannot say they didn’t know.” She used to hand out papers to student athletes on policies – now documents such as student athlete expectations, handbook, discipline policy and more are all on the iPad. Howard’s favorite app is PlayerLync. “It allows us to watch film and send notes to our coach and draw on it if we have questions. I’m really big on watching film right after a game,” said Howard, even on the airplane flight home, where he can go back and forth with a coach on their devices even if they can’t get up and move around the cabin. After Texas Tech’s win over Houston, How
Doing More with Less
ard said he asked Terence Jamison, defensive line coach, about a play where he chased down the Cougar quarterback. “The tackle didn’t stay on me long and I wanted to know did he mean not to stay on me or did a poor job of executing?” he said. Howard wanted to know if he should have stayed with the offensive lineman or pursued the quarterback, so he knew better what to do in future games. For volleyball, Keenan said coaches send reports and a page on schemes and how to defend them shortly after the game instead of waiting to get back to a hotel and get copies off the hotel’s printer – if it’s working. “Having more time with scouting reports for my position group as defensive blockers helps us understand the game plan better,” she said. Both Howard and Keenan said friends who are not athletes are jealous of their 12.9-inch iPads, which were custom-made for Texas Tech. “Some give us a hard time because we have so many resources. But they also complain about having to wake up for an 8 a.m. class when we’ve been up longer than that. I’m up at 5:45 every day,” said Howard. Keenan added: So many of my friends in my major see me pull it out and ask to see it and they’re jealous and want one of their own.” Students were surveyed and 74 percent said their grades were better because of their iPad and 82 percent said they used it every day. “Every aspect of our lives has been upgraded due to the iPads,” said Keenan.
Botros is driven by one thought as he manages the Athletics Department’s $87 millionplus budget: “Our guiding principle each day is to focus on our student athletes’ experience,” he said. “I encourage our entire department when spending to ask if it’s the right thing for our student athletes, would you be comfortable with seeing this expense on the front page of the newspaper and is it what 99 percent of our donors would want us to be doing,” he said. Revenues from the Red Raider Club for the budget year that began Sept. 1 are more than $22 million – not including major gifts the amount is $19.3 million for scholarships and other student athlete support outlined earlier in this story. “I wish our supporters could spend a day with one of our student athletes and see the effort they put in and how their money is able to support what they are doing at Texas Tech,” he said. And it makes a difference for recruiting. “Coach Kingsbury says if we can get a kid to Lubbock, we’ve got a better shot of getting the kid to go here,” said Botros. “We don’t have the biggest budget, but we’re going to do more with it than anybody else. We’re fifth or sixth in the Big 12 in terms of budget. But when you look at what we do with nutrition and sports medicine I feel like we’re elite,” Botros said. At the NCAA Track & Field Championships earlier this year, the Red Raiders were supported by two full-time registered athletic train-
ers, two student trainers, a full-time chiropractor and a lead academic advisor. Botros was at the meet in Oregon and from what he saw, no other school had that kind of support. “That’s a tremendous feeling,” he said, adding Texas Tech’s $87.6 million budget is dwarfed by the University of Texas’ $217 million – the largest in the country. “Doing more with less gets me fired up,” he said. “We have four full-time registered dietitians, second in the conference to Texas, but I feel we do nutrition as well as anybody,” he said. Botros grew up in Lubbock, went to Texas Tech as a student and returned to his alma mater after spending some time in banking. He was a budget analyst in the president’s office before taking his current job. “This doesn’t run as a traditional business. Football and men’s basketball are the only profitable sports. It’s exciting to see how we subsidize the other sports and create a great experience for our student athletes in 17 total sports,” he said. He said the volleyball team was going on a tour to Italy and it was not in the budget. “So we’re working with the Red Raider Club on how to fund that. It’s a pretty great feeling,” he said. Tirey echoed by stating, “it is a really special feeling knowing that every dollar raised through our annual fund and major gifts are truly impacting student-athletes’ lives every single day.”
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Making Sure
Emerson Solano is
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How different is high school volleyball compared to college volleyball? Just ask Texas Tech’s Emerson Solano. “It is a lot different,” responds Solano, a 5-foot-7 sophomore from Amarillo. She came to Tech after leading Amarillo High to the 2016 Class 5A state championship as an outside hitter, but Solano has moved from the front line, where she finished her senior year with 559 kills and a .385 hitting percentage, to playing the libero, the defensive specialist who plays exclusively on the back row. “Everyone is huge,” she said of the college game. “I am 5-7, which is pretty average. But last spring, I was the shortest player on the team. Now, we have two girls who are shorter than me. The speed of the (college) game is insane, too. Everyone is good, so you can’t underestimate any team.”
So Solano has gone from jumping at the net to making digs on the back row. “I’m the first-touch girl,” she says of her new role. “When they serve to us, my job is to get a good pass so we can get a hard hit. I need to make sure we can get a decent hit and make sure the ball doesn’t hit the floor.” She has made the transition nicely and now leads the team in digs, averaging 4.18 per set. “I am focusing on things that I didn’t worry about in high school,” explains Solano, who says her goal is to be more consistent. “Now, if
I make a bad pass, it costs us a point. In high school, if I made a bad pass, I could make up for it by getting a kill.” Solano admits she expected to eventually become the Lady Raiders’ libero, but the move happened quicker than she expected. “I played the right back last year (as a freshman),” she states, “so I was still hitting. But we had some players transfer, and I moved to the libero last spring.” “In the spring, something changed with her, and she finally decided she was going to be herself and not hold back,” Texas Tech coach Tony Graystone said. “Once she did that, her game just exploded and she carried that on into this season. There has been no turning back from that. We knew how talented she was, and we knew what she was capable of.” Solano appeared in 29 matches and made five starts as a freshman, finishing fifth on the team in digs and service aces. She played a major role in Tech’s run to the finals of the National Invitational Volleyball Championship, posting a season-high 14 digs in the Red Raiders’ semifinal win at TCU. She got the 2018 season off to a great start, recording a career-high 25 digs against Texas-Rio Grande Valley and being named the most valuable player of the UTRGV Tournament. “That was great, but now I want to get 30 digs in a match,” she laughs. One thing that Solano brings to the Texas Tech volleyball program is winning experience. She spent four years on the varsity at Amarillo High, where the Lady Sandies won a 4A state championship her freshman year, finished third in Class 6A her sophomore season and then won a 5A state title during her final season. Thanks in part to Solano’s efforts on the back row, the Lady Raiders jumped out to a 4-0 start in Big 12 play and Solano has her sights set on qualifying for the NCAA Tournament. Of course, reaching postseason play is something she’s used to, regardless of whether she is attacking at the net or digging those hard shots on the back row. RedRaiderSports.com
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Jayne Lydiatt was thrilled to score her first goal as a Red Raider in Texas Tech’s 11th women’s soccer game of the season, a 3-0 victory over Iowa State on Sept. 23. “It was awesome to finally get it,” said Lydiatt, “and to get our first win in the Big 12. We did a good job of keeping the ball alive. It bounced to me. I cleaned it up and got a touch.” She put a shot on goal in the Lady Raiders’ season-opening win over New Mexico and assisted on game-winning goals against San Diego State and Abilene Christian, but the goal against Iowa State was her first. She corralled the loose ball just outside the sixfoot box and snuck it past the Cyclones’ goalkeeper to give Tech the early 1-0 lead. Lydiatt transferred to Texas Tech last spring after spending her first two collegiate seasons at the University of Oregon. “I wasn’t happy with the soccer at Oregon,” she explained, “so I decided to transfer. I knew (former Texas Tech associate head coach) Neil Payne, who had been my club coach. He thought Texas Tech would be a good fit for me. When I made my visit here and met the girls on the team, I fell in love with it right away.” Lydiatt was a three-time all-state selection at Pine Creek High School in Colorado Springs, Colo. She honed her soccer skills, however, playing for Club Real Colorado in
Denver, which Lydiatt described as the state’s dominant soccer club program. She was also the all-conference freshman of the year in basketball in high school. Lydiatt became a starter immediately as a freshman at Oregon and started 15 games for the Ducks a year ago. She has impressed her new Texas Tech teammates and coaches with her physical condition, as well as her leadership. “It helps that I train in the altitude in Colorado,” she said, laughing. “It helps to be in good shape, especially at my position. It is a great base. I feel more of a leader, too, because my position demands it.” "Jayne was someone we wanted badly when she came out of high school and we're thrilled we get her for her junior and senior years,” Lady Raider coach Tom Stone said last spring when announcing her mid-year transfer to Texas Tech. “Lydiatt is super skillful, super fit and has been a winner at all levels. Few clubs in the country prepare players for college as well at Real Colorado. Coach Lorne's players are sophisticated and battle tested, so we expect Jayne to contribute immediately this season." Lydiatt, who is the starting center midfielder for the Lady Raiders, plays an important role on both offense and defense. “From my position, I can see most of the attack, so I organize the offense,” she offers.
“My job is to figure out what type of defense our opponent sets up and how to play off it.” Asked for a highlight of her first season at Texas Tech, Lydiatt, who is a human sciences major and hopes to go to dental school after graduation, said every game and every trip is a new highlight for her. “Every weekend in a new highlight, a new experience,” she said. “We had a great win over Pepperdine and a big win on the road at San Diego State. Our first Big 12 win (against Iowa State) was a highlight, too.” Lydiatt is confident that there are more highlights and more wins – and more goals – to come in her first season at Texas Tech.
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United States Postal Service Statement of Ownership, Management and Circulation (required by 39 USC 3685). 1. Publication title, Red Raider Sports. 2. Publication number, 0013-768. 3. Filing date, October, 2018. 4. Issue frequency, printed bi-monthly in August/September, October/November, December/January, February/March, April/May, and June/July. 5. Number of issues published annually 6. 6. Annual subscription price $20.00. 7. Complete mailing address of known office publication, PO Box 53604, Lubbock, Texas 79453. Contact person: Rheda Moseley, Telephone 512-799-9122. 8. Complete mailing address of headquarters or general business office of publisher, PO Box 53604, Lubbock, Texas 79453. 9. Full names and complete mailing addresses of publisher, editor and managing editor: Publisher: TRI Productions, PO Box 53604, Lubbock, Texas 79453; Editor: Chris Level, PO Box 53604, Lubbock, Texas 79453; Managing Editor: Aaron Dickens, PO Box 53604, Lubbock, Texas 79453. 10. Owner: TRI Productions, PO Box 53604, Lubbock, Texas 79453. 13. Publication title, Red Raider Sports. 14. Issue date for circulation data below August 2015. 15. Extent and nature of circulation (average no. copies each issue during preceding 12 months actual/no. copies of single issue published nearest to filing date): a. Total print run 2771/2650. b1. Paid/requested outside mail subscriptions (advertiser’s proof and exchange copies included): 1575/1495; b2. Paid in county subscriptions (advertiser’s proof and exchange copies included): 1157/1122; b3. Sales through dealers and carriers, vendors and all non-USPS paid distribution: 0/0; b4. Other Classes Mailed Through the USPS: 3344/2973; d1. Free distribution by mail (outside county): 0/0; d2. Free distribution by mail (inside county): 0/0; d3. Free distribution by mail (other USPS classes): 0/0; d4. Free or Nominal Rate distribution Outside the Mail: 0/0; e. Total Free distribution outside the mail, 0/0; f. Total distribution, 2731/2617; g. Copies not Distributed 40/33; h. Total, 2771/2650; i. Percent paid and or requested circulation, 100%/100%. 16. Publication of statement of ownership will be printed in the October/November issue of this publication. 17. Signature of owner; Rheda K. Moseley, Date 10-01-18.
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As the National Anthem ended, fireworks lit the sky and four Navy F/A-18E Super Hornets from Strike Fighter Squadron One Four Three executed a thrilling flyover before the start of the Texas Tech / Kansas game. The formation was led by pilot and 2004 Texas Tech graduate, Lieutenant Commander Brandon Kyle Jones, aka Mooch. The squadron is based in Virginia Beach, Virginia and is currently assigned to deploy with the USS Abraham Lincoln.
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a glass
HALF FULL
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Sports at the highest level have always been decided by a cut-anddried, bottom-line proposition. The final score is the most important statistic, trumping all the numbers that add up to reach that particular important conclusion. Along the way, though, there are trends that can provide some glimmer of hope, even if the final score doesn’t turn out in a team’s favor. There was some of that when Texas Tech dropped a 42-34 decision against West Virginia, especially on the heels of a happier outcome the week before at Oklahoma State. The good news element made the loss to the Mountaineers sting a little more for the Red Raiders, despite a promising trend that has developed over the first two Big 12 Conference games of the 2018 campaign. Tech split the first two league games, with strong second halves a promising common thread in a 41-17 road win at Oklahoma State and the setback against WVU. At the heart of those confidence-building second-half efforts is a defense that suffocated two high-powered opposing offenses for the final 30 minutes. That’s the glass half full part.
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The half-empty glass: both OSU and WVU ran up and down the field in the first half, especially the first quarter, before the Raiders’ defense buckled down. “We’ve got to start faster and end the game with a win,” Tech senior safety Jah’Shawn Johnson said matter-of-factly. Indeed, the Cowboys churned to a 17-14 lead before the Raiders put the clamps on, and West Virginia peppered Texas Tech’s veteran D with four first-quarter touchdowns on the way to a 35-10 halftime cushion. Big plays were part of the recipe in both games, particularly the Mountaineers, who hung up three pass plays of 38 or more yards in their initial first-quarter assault. Tech also struggled to get both foes off the field in the early going: OSU converted three third downs in five tries on the way to the lead and WVU stacked up 13 first downs in the first quarter, 20 by halftime. As problematic as those opening salvos have been, the Raiders’ defensive staff and players on the field have shown a knack for adjusting. In the win in Stillwater, the Cowboys managed only 81 second-half yards and didn’t dent the scoreboard over the final 40:41 of game time. West Virginia scuffled with only 107 yards after halftime and never produced a point on offense. A huge key in both performances was affecting the quarterback much more. OSU quarterback Taylor Cornelius was 4-for-14 for 29 yards, while Mountaineer gunslinger Will Grier was 6-for-12 for 92 yards and got sacked twice. Reducing big plays was also vital. Justice Hill’s 37-yard gallop was OSU’s only play of 20-plus yards in the final two and a half quarters, and the Raiders turned off the spigot on WVU’s chunk plays as well – only two Grier completions for 20-plus in the second half. “We knew we were capable of playing good defense,” Johnson said. “We had a lot of guys come back, a lot of experience. The first three weeks weren't acceptable for us, so we knew it was time to step up.” Now the next step is avoid falling into a hole where the defensive shut-down efforts are a necessity instead of a luxury. Even with the impressive second-half turnarounds, Tech is allowing 447.6 yards and 31 points a game, last and next-to-last in the Big 12. Perhaps more worryingly, turnovers haven’t been as prevalent in the first half when offenses are hunting for rhythm and for whatever
is going to work. Last season the Raiders led the Big 12 with 29 takeaways, but last week they couldn’t redirect momentum with any turnovers. They have seven takeaways in five games and four of those came against Lamar in a 77-0 thrashing. Generating more turnovers is a key. “We’re right there,” Johnson said. “There are some balls that are coming out late, guys are bobbling a few of them. They will come and it will be pretty contagious when it comes. They'll just start rolling in. We'll keep doing our turnovers drills on Wednesdays right before practice starts, and we'll just keep punching and stripping at it on Saturdays as well.” The possibilities are tantalizing. If Tech can blend its knack for stripping ball carriers and picking passes off from last
season with a veteran unit that has shown two weeks in a row how effective it can be when adjustments are made, that side of the ball has a chance to reach the high expectations placed on the defense before the season began. Buckling down in the first half has to be part of the improvement, though, before the Raiders can expect large-scale improvement. “You can't allow them just to go up and down the field like that, uncontested throws and people running wide open and not getting any takeaways, and we know that,” Kingsbury said. “We want to get the ball out more, and I think it will come. These guys are doing the right thing, they're working at it, but it hasn't come in bunches like it did last year.”
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SILVER Sometimes maybe the best-laid plans are actually the ones where a definitive, concrete resolution really never materializes at all. Or to put it another way, perhaps Texas Tech coach Kliff Kingsbury grappling with a quarterback decision leading into the 2018 season has wound up being a blessing in disguise. That may qualify as silver-lining outlook, but with the current status of the Red Raiders’ quarterback position, there is some validity to both statements. Seven games into the season, all three signal-callers who vied for the starting job in spring ball and all summer had started a game and the net result is an offense that keeps producing despite occasional hiccups. Junior McLane Carter got the nod in the season opener vs. Ole Miss in Houston but suffered a high ankle sprain and is still not back to 100%. Freshman Alan Bowman took over for Carter and was blossoming into a star with four starts and the customary video-game passing numbers a litany of Tech quarterbacks have hung up since 2000. But his emergence hit a detour when West Virginia defenders Ezekiel Rose ad Keith Washington sandwiched him and caused a collapsed lung that sent him to the hospital for most of a week. Enter QB3, sophomore Jett Duffey, into the heat of a Big 12 Conference game against a rolling Mountaineers’ team that was up 35-10 and looking unstoppable. The results of Duffey’s longest and most meaningful stint of his career had plenty of good – he helped engineer a rally that pulled the Raiders within 35-27 – but a damper at the end when a poor pass yielded a WVU pick-six that sealed a 42-27 triumph. Since that game, Duffey started a road game at TCU and helped guide Tech to a gritty 17-14 victory. Bowman was back at the wheel against Kansas and didn’t appear to have missed a beat, throwing for 408 yards and three touchdowns in a 48-16 romp.
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LININGS playbook So where does the Texas Tech quarterback position stand now? Might be easy to say Kingsbury and Kevin Johns are back at square one, but the outlook sure seems to be more optimistic if that is the case. With Bowman healthy again and Duffey more seasoned against Big 12 defenses, there is be a different-looking menu for the Raiders’ brain trust to consider. Bowman has removed any doubt that can effectively run the Air Raid offense and has, in all likelihood, solidified his role as the starter when he is 100% healthy, perhaps for years to come. Any questions of his readiness evaporated with a 605yard outburst against Houston followed by 397 yards in a 41-17 road victory at Oklahoma State. “We’ll see how this thing goes, but his level of maturity thus far as a true freshman, I don't know if I've seen one handle it like this so far,” Kingsbury said. “He's handled things very maturely from practice-wise to his preparation to on Saturdays. That's what I've been impressed with. There are things we can do better, but just the mindset, the preparation and the focus each day for a young guy has been impressive.” Besides the gaudy numbers Bowman has produced (2,088 yards on 174-of-245 passing with 14 touchdowns and four interceptions), he has flashed some tenacity and mettle uncommon for most freshmen. Kingsbury is quick to point out he wasn’t ready to start as a freshman during his decorated Tech career. Maybe that has helped shape his coaching philosophy, which includes being as tough as possible on young QBs to get them as ready between the ears as they will be physically. With Bowman, that section of the learning curve hasn’t created much of a slowdown. “He’s gotten a lot from me since he got here in the spring, and we’re hard on those freshmen at that position,” Kingsbury said. “He handles it well. He doesn’t blink, doesn't hesitate. The next throw, he’s going to come back and cut it loose, and
that’s what you want. That’s the one quality that you can't teach in people is if you make a mistake, can you go back out there and cut it loose, and he does that. “Hopefully that continues. If he will put in the work, continue to approach it the right way, he has some natural ability that we can work with.” Same is true of Duffey and Carter, though their skill sets are decidedly different from Bowman. Carter is the most seasoned of the trio, with a year as a starter under his belt at Tyler Junior College. He is more of a mobile threat than Bowman who, because he has been in Kingsbury’s system an extra year, entered the season with a better grasp of when to make certain throws and when to avoid taking chances. Of the three, Carter has lost some ground. His only action since the opener was a brief appearance at TCU and his mobility was not good because of the ankle woes. Then there is the mercurial Duffey. Arguably the most talented dual-threat quarterback Tech has recruited in Kingsbury’s tenure, the 6-foot-1 sophomore was named the Class 5A Texas state player of the year as a senior at Mansfield Lake Ridge after he racked up 4,444 total yards of offense and 48 total touchdowns – 2,756 passing (29 TDs) and 1,688 yards on the ground (19 TDs). In his emergency relief performance vs. West Virginia, Duffey flashed both attributes with 86 yards rushing and a touchdown, with 172 yards passing. Two interceptions, including the one WVU’s Keith Washington raced 51 yards the other direction with to seal the victory, marred his performance. Against the Horned Frogs’ defense – generally considered among the best in the conference – Duffey’s duality was a valuable tool. He passed for 190 yards and connected on a pair of long pass plays to Antoine Wesley and Ja’Deion High. Just as importantly, he ran for 83 yards, anchored by a
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38-yard touchdown scamper in the fourth quarter that put the Raiders on top 17-14. There was plenty to like from Duffey’s ride as the primary quarterback, as well as ample room for improvement. “He competed hard; he came in and fought,” Kingsbury said after the WVU loss. “He'd like to have a couple throws back, obviously, but he's a great competitor, and he fought hard for his teammates.” The performance at TCU was a step forward, especially considering Duffey got a brief hook in the second half before Carter’s ankle sent him back to the bench. “We hit them on a couple of plays where the stars aligned and we got lucky,” Kingsbury said. “I was really proud of Jett. It’s such a hard situation to come into. First start ever and we decide we are going to switch things up at halftime, then to be put back in, dig deep, be mentally tough enough to handle that, and find a way to win. I can't say enough about his mental toughness.” Adjusting to when Duffey is at the controls requires some conceptual re-tooling – more read option, more quarterback runs – but Kingsbury left no doubt that he wants the speedy sophomore to embrace thinking pass first in the Air Raid. “We've got to hang in there and make some other plays through their design,” Kingsbury said. Practice peps figure to be plentiful for Duffey with Bowman still working back into form and Carter’s recuperation ongoing. By necessity, that could re-open the quarterback derby for playing time when all three quarterbacks are ready to go. Kingsbury preached all spring and in preseason camp that he had confidence in each of them, and that doesn’t seem to have changed. “I've felt comfortable with all three guys from fall camp on,” Kingsbury said. “I’ve got to get back and see where everybody’s health is at and then go from there. We’ll get some good practices in and make a good decision.”
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NOTEBOOK RECRUITING
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Bulk of Texas Tech’s 2019 Class in Place as Fall Begins Kliff Kingsbury and his staff currently have 17 total commitments for the 2019 recruiting class, good for the No. 42 overall class in the nation per Rivals.com. The latest addition to the class is Pearland four-star defensive end Gilbert Ibeneme (pictured, right). The 6-foot-3, 255-pound prospect chose the Red Raiders over offers from Texas A&M, Oklahoma, Arkansas and several other Power Five programs.
Texas Tech Lining Up Help on the Offensive Line
The coaches have one commitment along the offensive line - albeit a really good one in Trevor Roberson (pictured, left/top) - for the 2019 recruiting class, and Texas Tech hopes to add more before the early signing period begins in December. In September, the program offered Sugarland Dulles offensive tackle Isaiah Hookfin (pictured, left/bottom) and he was in attendance for Texas Tech’s game against Ole Miss in Houston. The 6-foot-5, 273-pound prospect is now planning a visit to the South Plains this season and could be a prospect to watch as a potential addition to the 2019 class moving forward.
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Running Back Target Back on the Market
First-year running backs coach Clay McGuire (pictured, right) is a familiar name to most Texas Tech fans, and the former Red Raider standout is back on the South Plains as a member of Kliff Kingsbury’s staff. One of his first offers as a member of the program’s staff was to Booker T. Washington running back Thomas Grayson, who originally committed to Nebraska earlier this spring. Grayson recently announced that his recruitment is back open and that he is no longer committed to the Huskers. The 5-foot-11, 190-pound back immediately heard from McGuire and is now planning to visit the South Plains for a game this season.
From the Hardwood
Chris Beard (pictured, far left) and his staff have been hosting some major targets on recruiting visits over the past month, including several four-star prospects that list the Red Raiders among their top schools going into the fall. The program got a big boost on Oct. 1 with the addition of four-star junior college standout Khalid Thomas (pictured, near, left), who chose Texas Tech over offers from Arizona, Baylor, Oregon and several others. He is considered to be one of the top junior college basketball prospects in the 2019 class.
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