Daily Toreador 041824

Simulation aims to increase firefighter response times

A firefighting simulation study at Texas Tech analyzes aspects of pre-response tactics and achieves a personal mission for the professor conducting the study. Department of Industrial, ManBy GRACE HAWKINS Staff Writer ufacturing & Systems Engineering assistant professor Changwon Son and industrial engineering doctoral student Armina Rahman Mim are conducting a study to analyze participants’ responses to an emergency situation. “I came to the U.S. to study more on safety and human cog-

Love aspires to leave impact

By ANDREW GOODRICH Staff Writer

In her four years at Texas Tech, she battled leadership changes, losing seasons, injury and a global pandemic.

After starting 147 career games and with only nine remaining in her senior season, third baseman Riley Love said she hopes to leave her mark by giving back to the program and community.

day and give their hopes and dreams of being here.”

She’s one of the best third basemen in the nation. The way she plays the game defensively is elite.

CRAIG SNIDER SOFTBALL HEAD COACH

“I hope I leave a legacy of just being a good teammate and being good to the girls on the team and giving back to the program,” Love said. “I think that I leave a legacy on the little girls in Lubbock who dream to be a college softball player one

Love had a fractured relationship with the sport until Craig Snider was hired as Tech’s ninth head coach (in the Big 12 era) in 2022. “He’s made me love softball again,” Love said. “I was in a spot where I didn’t want to play, and I didn’t want to be at Tech anymore. I think he just brought like that joy back in me of playing and having fun, being with all the girls and stuff like that.”

Snider said watching her develop has been a highlight of his career and her defensive prowess is one of a kind.

SEE SOFTBALL PG. 4

nition,” Son said. “Although I’m an engineering professor, my research tries to address locally and socially relevant problems.”

Participants are grouped into teams of three and take part in two 90-minute sessions with multiple missions. The study measures the teams’ trust and self-efficacy, but

also their response time, Son said.

In the first session, the team is briefed and given time to practice the simulator with easy scenarios.

In the final session, which is scheduled two days after the first, the teams do a more difficult scenario with multiple missions, according to its TechAnnounce page.

Son’s study was initially inspired by a 2013 explosion inside the fertilizer facility at West Fertilizer Company.

Twenty minutes after 911 was contacted, around 40 to 60 tons of fertilizer-grade ammonium nitrate exploded, according to the Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board (CSB).

“I have a specific problem I want to solve,” Son said. “In the explosion, the incident investigation found that the major causal factor behind the fatalities was the lack of situation awareness and communication among the volunteer firefighters.”

A CSB investigation uncovered that many safety precautions were neglected and the volunteer firefighters lacked pre-incident or response training.

“Firefighters who were responding to the fertilizer warehouse, if they were informed that the warehouse had this fertilizer, ammonium nitrate, and it can explode, I think it would have influenced their situational awareness and decision-making,” Son said.

In addition to the explosion, an accident within Son’s family shifted his view on workplace treatment, inspiring him to quit his job, return to school and speak about his policies, values and the lessons he learned.

Son moved from South Korea to Texas in 2014 and earned his master’s in safety engineering and his Ph.D. in industrial engineering from Texas A&M.

He said he saw similar suffering in Lubbock as he did in some South Korea working environments, and wanted to change that.

“... my mom, my sister, my brother and I started viewing other employees as if they were my father, my mother, my sister, my brother, my siblings, and myself,” Son said. “It changed my whole life.”

Sexual Assault Awareness Month was first nationally observed on 2001 . The intention behind the month is to increase prevention of and response to acts of sexual violence.

Denim Day: April 24, all day, campus-wide

Take Back the Night: 6 to 9 p.m. on April 24 Memorial Circle

EXHALE: 4 to 7 p.m. on April 25

Student Enrichment Center

School of Law receives funding for Veterans Legal Clinic

By CHRISTIAN JETER

Writer

Staff

Following a $1.6 million donation by the William A. Brookshire Foundation, the Texas Tech School of Law will establish its Veterans Legal Clinic, which will specialize in assisting former members of the military.

Clinics are programs within the School of Law that give students the opportunity to assist clients in real cases. There are nine other clinics under Tech’s law school, which are designed to help low-income residents of West Texas. The new Veterans Legal Clinic will specialize in

various areas that can affect servicemen and women, including retirement, increasing rank, criminal charges, disability claims, discharge upgrades, health concerns and education benefits.

Jack Nowlin, dean of the School of Law, and W. Frank Newton, professor of law, explained why the donation was received and what problem areas they’re looking to address.

“Lawyers are very expensive, but our clinic will be free for veterans,” Nowlin said. “And given that the Brookshire Foundation wanted to support veterans, they’re looking for areas and ways to support them, and

we have veterans in need and we would like another clinic to help those veterans.”

Serving as an opportunity for veterans as well as students, Nowlin said, the clinic will allow the opportunity to assist in the real-world problems of veterans.

“Clinics are great for our students. A law school clinic is a live-client clinic. So, there’s lots of simulations in law school. There are lots of things that simulate what it’s like to be in court, but these are real clients,” Nowlin said. “And students will actually go to court, and they will handle real legal issues under the supervision of

folks like Dwight McDonald. So there’s real cases, real clients.” Clinics under the School of Law are typically operated by 10 students and supervised by a practicing professor. Dwight McDonald, Tech graduate and now practicing attorney, is serving as a Clinic Fellow in the Family Law, Housing and Criminal Defense Clinics. “Our clinics are indigent based. We only represent poor people. But this was an op -

... we have veterans in need, and we would like another clinic to help those veterans.

JACK NOWLIN SCHOOL OF

portunity for us to expand our footprint and continue to help the community,” McDonald said. “We have a population here that’s underserved and not really being served at all – which is our veterans’ population. We do not have a veterans’ court in Lubbock.” McDonald said the process for former military to alleviate problems regarding their service

Scantrons pose an inconvenience for some students. Student Government Association attempts to make Scantrons more accessible.

Sophomore and freshman duo in Damion Bravo and TJ Pompey, respectivley, lead Texas Tech baseball’s offense. Professor Geoffrey Corn uses his experience in military law to teach future generations the nuances and ethical implications of the law.

MAKAYLA PEREZ/The Daily Toreador

The firefighter simulation team poses for a picture while throwing their Guns Up in the Industrial, Manufacturing & Systems Engineering Building March 6, 2024.

@GraceHawkinsDT

Testing sparks Scantron debates

By AUSTIN WOOD Staff Writer

bring it because if not, then you can’t take this exam.’”

According to the legislation, a survey which received 86 responses found that 95.3% of students polled agreed with the resolution.

As SGA legislation does not represent set-in-stone decisions made on behalf of the university, the changes recommended in SR 58.40 have yet to be enacted. However, Szustak said some concrete changes have been enacted more than a year later.

“It took about a year for this, like, to start getting implemented anywhere and there were a lot of compromises along the way,” Szustak said.

status is typically done through the U.S. Department of Veterans Administration or other state or federal bodies. These procedures are often costly and can potentially delay assistance for urgent issues such as disabilities or medical procedures.

“Veterans, unfortunately, after their service, a lot of times come back with issues. And those issues are only taken into consideration individually and only if the attorney that’s representing them makes that an issue,” McDonald said. “With the veterans clinic, we’ll be able to put those issues front and center and represent them because we have a criminal defense clinic.”

The clinic is intend -

ed to serve real clients within the greater West Texas area, not just Lubbock residents. For this reason, there is a heavy emphasis on locating an experienced and educated director.

“You got to hire somebody who comes in with a very deep experience based on the sensitivity of veterans and the issues that they’re confronting in the contemporary Veterans Administration environment,” said Geoffrey Corn, the George R. Killam Jr. Chair of Criminal Law and director of the Center for Military Law & Policy. “Being familiar with all of this and being familiar with the intricacies of how to get cases moving through the system is critical. And I think that it’s going to be a unique type of person that leads the clinic to do

it successfully because, as the dean says, you need someone who is not only deeply informed in the practice of veterans, benefits, law and appeals, but also who can teach students.”

Corn recounted the sense of relief and comfort the clinic could potentially bring to veterans that are still stuck in the process of getting their legal troubles settled.

“As a retired Army officer and a veteran who’s seen people struggle with many of these issues, I think it’s an incredible opportunity,” Corn said. “The students aren’t always going to win their cases, but as Dwight knows better than I do, you know that time when you get a letter in the mail from the Veterans Administration saying ‘We’re notifying your cli -

ent that his discharge has been upgraded to an honorable discharge’ or that his VA pension award has been upgraded from 30% to 70%. That’s a pretty meaningful phone call you have with your client to say, ‘I’ve got good news.’”

The hiring process for finding a suitable director for the clinic is expected to begin later this year, and the opening of the clinic is aimed for late 2025.

“Everything is happening because of the Brookshire Foundation’s generosity, and what we’re going to do is take that funding and make sure we do a maximum effort so that we get the very best results for the veterans in our community and our students,” Nowlin said.

Caitlin Smith, a second-year finance major from Shallowater.

On Dec. 1, 2022, the Student Senate passed Senate Resolution 58.40. Authored by Toby Szustak and Trinity Shipp, the bill recommended the university apply a Scantron fee to tuition based upon how many tests a student will take in a semester. As a result, students would have the Scantrons provided to them on the day of examinations, albeit not free-of-charge.

“When I first got here,” Szustak said, “one of the things that I always was annoyed by was getting to class, paying a couple of thousand in tuition to be taught a subject and then you get to the exam and it’s ‘Yeah, by the way, we’re going to make you bring the Scantron and you better

In collaboration with staff from the College of Arts & Sciences, Szustak said free Scantrons are now being handed out in the Office of Student Success in Holden Hall Room 131, from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

“It was with Arts & Sciences in particular,” Szustak said. “Because, I mean, a lot of people that have this issue usually stem from Arts & Sciences.”

Szustak also said he is working with University Housing to ensure every dorm hall front desk is equipped with Scantrons.

Students are able to purchase Scantrons from the University Bookstore, the third floor Technology Services Office and Raider Red Meats Café. Scantrons cost 25 cents each at these locations.

PABLO MENA/The Daily Toreador Following a $1.6 million donation from the William A. Brookshire Foundation, Texas Tech will establish the School of Law Veterans Clinic. The clinic will provide free legal assistance to veterans in need and is to tentatively scheduled to open in late 2025.

@AustinWoodDT

@CJeter_DT

Young hitters highlight Tech offense

By ADAM SIERRA SportS reporter

As Texas Tech baseball draws toward the conclusion of its 99th year of play, sophomore Damian Bravo and freshman TJ Pompey showcase the youth of a tenured program.

The pair of underclassmen climbed the ranks of Red Raider baseball in a short time with their abilities behind the plate and solidified their names in the weekly starting lineup.

While Pompey earned his stripes in year one as a freshman, Bravo’s first season was spent pursuing a rotational spot under head coach Tim Tadlock’s offense. The Haltom City native said getting to where he is today took trust in himself and the team surrounding him.

“I’ve just been trusting the process and just trusting my guys,” Bravo said. “I mean, I know that they got my back, and I got theirs. And just going out there

and competing everyday makes it just fun and makes the game easier.”

Bravo closed out his rookie year with a .133 batting average and seven runs. Since then, he has taken a leap in his production and leads his squad and the Big 12 conference with a batting average of .420 and 45 runs this season, according to Tech Athletics.

“Damian Bravo’s been a guy that since the day he got here, he’s worked hard and has prepared for the

opportunity that’s in front of him,” Tadlock said. “He’s played really good.”

Differing from Bravo’s freshman season of development, Pompey stepped foot on campus and has since never experienced a collegiate game from the bench. The young infielder eclipsed 30 career starts on April 10 and is continuing to improve, Tadlock said.

“First and foremost, you start with a pretty good skill set,” Tadlock said when describing Pompey. “You start with tools. You start with he’s got passion to play and a passion to prepare. Seems like he’s been doing it so far through the Fall and through the Spring. He’s been really consistent.”

Heading into college, Pompey had the opportunity to enter the MLB Draft, but chose to commit to Tech at the start of the ‘24 season. The Coppell native said he is confident his decision was the right path for his career and playing for the Red Raiders was always the plan.

“It feels amazing,” Pompey said. “I was going here no matter what. Even with the draft and just my name being out there, I was 100%

going here. I’m glad to be here”

The rookie has had an efficient first year following Bravo with a .346 batting average and has tallied a team high of 45 RBIs along with a pair of grand slams, according to Tech Athletics.

“He (Pompey) obviously has a little bit of power,” Tadlock said, following Pompey’s slam against Houston on April 6, “and when he moves on the right pitch he’s obviously evolving as a baseball player. When he does that, I mean he’s got a chance to be really good.”

The pair’s teammate,

junior Gavin Kash, said following a victory against Stephen F. Austin on March 26, that the Red Raiders’ young core is taking shape as Tech heads into its final stretch of the season.

“We have a lot of new guys, a lot of young guys playing for us,” Kash said. “I mean, the team’s young to begin with, but obviously I can go back to last year and talk on it, but it’s a new year, and I think this young group is really coming together and we’re just trying to get things rolling right now.”

PABLO MENA/ The Daily Toreador

Texas Tech utility player Damian Bravo (31) swings during the game against BYU at Dan Law Field at Rip Griffin Park March 23, 2024.

PABLO MENA/The Daily Toreador

Texas Tech freshman infielder TJ Pompey (5) tags out a Houston player at Dan Law Field at Rip Griffin Park April 7, 2024.

AdamSierraDT

“She’s one of the best third basemen in the nation,” Snider said. “The way she plays the game defensively is elite. It’s one of the better ones I’ve seen I think in my career. Her contributions offensively have been remarkable, just really see her settle in her at bats and know what she’s looking for. It’s been really fun to see.”

Love is posting the best season of her career statistically in every category,

TRACK AND FIELD

according to Tech Athletics. Through 39 games this season, she ranks fifth in RBIs with 43, tied-for-fifth in both home runs and doubles with 12 and 11, respectively, in the Big 12.

After missing 27 games last season due to an arm injury, Love said she leveled up her game this season from the different view of the dugout.

“I think a big part of it was me being on the different side of the ball,” Love said. “I was in the dugout instead of playing, and I think it gave me a new

perspective of the game and learning in practice from coach Snider and the coaches, and obviously, all the girls around me instead of me being on the field all the time, and I was able to see a different side of it really.”

After graduating from Tech with a degree in kinesiology at the end of the 2023-24 academic year, Love said she will attend Parker University in Dallas to become a chiropractor in hopes of working with other athletes.

AndrewG_DT

Omlin embraces challenges of decathlon

By CORY

Involving 10 separate events in the span of two days, the decathlon is a competition designed to push the limits of the human body and highlight an athlete’s diverse skill set. Events include the 100 meter, 400 meter, 1500 meter, 110 meter hurdles, high jump, pole vault, long jump, shot put, dis -

Omlin, a junior from Spokane, Washington, competes in the decathlon event for the Red Raiders and isn’t a stranger to the physical demands it brings.

“When I switched to the decathlon and had to put some pounds on, I had to learn to get tough because you just got to realize about the decathlon that it’s gonna hurt,” Omlin said. “You got 10

events over two days.

It’s rapid. You’re going through them. It’s grueling — like you’re running some of the hardest events in track in two days, and they’re very different.“

Omlin last competed in the decathlon on March 29-30 at the Bobcat Invitational hosted by Texas State University in San Marcos where he earned fifth place — a personal best — and the No. 10 position in Tech history in decathlon points with 6,777.

“Cole has worked his tail off ever since he’s been here. He’s very dedicated to it,” said head coach Wes Kittley. “... He’s got a lot on his plate. He’s got a lot of events to learn, a lot of events to perfect, and I’m real proud of him.”

The lifestyle and physical upkeep of a decathlete is one Omlin said he has learned to balance. Across a standard week of practice, he said he will

train with each group on specific days to ensure he stays fit for every event.

“On a Monday, it’s usually, I would show up and we’d have a harder tempo, so more of a distance running day and then pair that with shot put which is it for the day,” Omlin said. “Usually Tuesday, we’re gonna show up and do a jump and hard sprint workout and leave it at that. Wednesday is gonna be some throws and then kind of just repeat the rest of the week with what we need to get done before meets.”

Each day of the decathlon brings strengths and weaknesses for Omlin. However, the third-year decathlete said his best results come in the jump -

ing events hosted on day one. “High jump and long jump are usually the ones that I’m really into because that’s where I score a lot of points on other guys, and I have the ability there,” Omlin said.

Graduate student and teammate Devin Roberson competes in the discus event and competed with Omlin at the beginning of the outdoor season. Roberson said Omlin is not only a great athlete to compete alongside but a friend off the field. “Cole is a great teammate, and he’s a hard worker, but not only is he talented on the track he’s a great person off the track,” Roberson said. “We (the track and field team)

all hang out outside of track. We’re all good buddies, and I think having one of your boys as one of your teammates is that much better because you know there’s extra support.”

Surrounded by awardwinning coaches, Omlin said his success stems from the coaching staff and the winning mentality his coaches have instilled in him and his teammates.

Furthermore, Omlin said practicing alongside high-level athletes boosts his confidence.

“This is the best program in the country,” Omlin said. “... I practice with the best so I expect to be the best.”

MAKAYLA PEREZ/The Daily Toreador Junior Cole Omlin lands in the sand in the men’s long jump during the Corky Classic at the Sports Performance Center Jan. 20, 2024.

WHITMAN SportS reporter cus and javelin. Texas Tech’s Cole

MAKAYLA PEREZ/The Daily Toreador

Texas Tech senior Riley Love swings bat during the game between Tech and Kansas University at Rocky Johnson Field April 12, 2024.

Corn applies law experience to classroom

By CHRISTIAN JETER Staff Writer

From a quiet office with bookshelves brimming with history and law novels, professor Geoffrey Corn translates his experiences from practicing military law into his classrooms in the Texas Tech School of Law.

A significant portion of Corn’s 21 years in the military was spent as an intelligence officer before he chose to take up a higher role in law.

“My first assignment was in Panama when we still had military bases there,” Corn said. “And I was with infantry units as the intelligence staff officer, and I liked it, but I felt like I needed to do something else. And I knew the army had a program where they selected about 10 officers a year to go to law school full time as officers, and then you pay back with six years of service.

“I was turned down two years in a row for that, and in my last year of eligibility lightning struck, and I was one of about 10 or 15 officers from I think 2,000 applicants a year, and I was selected,” Corn said. “So the Army said, ‘We’re gonna send you to law school while you’re on active duty, and then you’ll come back in the Army as a JAG.’ That’s how I ended up in military law.”

A member of the Army Judge Advocate General’s (JAG) Corps is tasked with serving and representing the interests of U.S. Army soldiers. Corn chose to study military law as a JAG and saw many of the skills he already learned overlap.

happened to me because I love law school. “Actually, being an intelligence officer prepared me well for it because the kind of analytical approach to studying laws is very similar to how you learn how to think as an intelligence officer,” he said.

Corn has also served as an expert witness in many international military cases, such as the Military Commission in Guantanamo and the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia in the case of The Prosecutor v. Gotovina.

“They needed somebody to give opinions on whether or not the way his (Gotovina’s) forces conducted the operation complied with international law – the same issues you see being debated right now over Israel and Gaza,” Corn said as he pulled up an article on the subject on his computer. “And so, I reviewed all of the information on the operation and, based on my experience as a military lawyer, I was able to offer an opinion.”

Corn highlighted what it is like to be a military lawyer during times of peace and outside of conflict.

What is easily overlooked is that there are human beings involved here. ... And the law in the hands of the right people can do immense good. And in the hands of the wrong people can do immense harm.

“I knew it was an opportunity to go to law school that I didn’t have to pay for, and I would have a salary while I was in law school,” he said with a smile. “So, I figured I’d try it, and it turned out to be the best thing that ever

“If you’re not at war, and you’re an infantryman or an artilleryman or an attack aviation pilot, you’re training, you’re simulating what you would do. But as a military lawyer, you’re always doing the real thing,” he said. “You’re prosecuting. You’re defending. You’re doing legal aid. You’re giving legal advice to commanders. And I loved being a military lawyer.”

Corn expanded on what is expected of a lawyers, including the logistical side of a law career.

“You have to learn to be comfortable with uncertainty. You can never guarantee that you’re

right,” Corn said. “And that’s what we were doing in law school. We learned the law, which is the doctrine, then we were given a factual situation.”

Identifying the moral middle ground is crucial when utilizing the law to identify rules that cannot be broken in military operations, he said.

“The military is not a group of cyborgs. The military are young men and women like you guys who volunteer to do the most difficult and dirtiest work the nation can put on their shoulders,” Corn said. “We owe it to them to make sure that they have some moral clarity when they’re engaged in something that by definition is inherently immoral. And that’s what the rules of war do.

“So, commanders have a responsibility to make sure that their subordinates know that there are lines that cannot be crossed,” he said. “Because if they don’t preserve those lines, if they tolerate that type of ill-discipline, then it will haunt young men and women for the rest of their lives. So, there are a lot of reasons why this area of law matters.”

Glancing over several photos decorating his office walls, Corn said there

is a way the law is meant to be used based on who it is serving. “What is easily overlooked is that there are human beings involved here. There are victims. There are defendants. There are families that are impacted by the judicial system,” Corn said. “And the law in the hands of the right people can do immense good. And in the hands of the wrong people can do immense harm.”

Now serving as both the George R. Killam Jr. Chair of Criminal Law and director of the Center for Military Law & Policy, Corn said he translates many of his experiences

into the classroom. “I want my students to understand more than the rules they’re learning. I want them to understand that in any area of the law, there is the ideal of justice,” he said, “and then there’s the reality of what’s produced and what brings them as close together as possible. What gets us as close to the ideal from the reality is the quality of lawyering.”

rulings, he said the legal system must be handled with the utmost amount of care by students and future lawyers.

“I tell my students, you go home on Thanksgiving or Christmas after your first semester, and your mom and dad have paid for law school, and they say, ‘You’re a law student –what’s justice?’ They give me a blank, and no one can define it,” Corn said. “But what you’ll learn as a lawyer is that justice is defined one lawyer and one client at a time. That’s how justice is defined.”

On March 22, Corn was presented with an award recognizing his contributions in overturning the case of injustice against 110 soldiers in 1917. Similar to assisting in reversing those improper @CJeter_DT

NRHC preserves ranching history, evolution

west of Wall Street.”

fans. Steagall also has helped several students through the Red Steagall Endowed Scholarship. Campbell said the crown jewel of the donation is Steagall’s 30 years of syndicated radio, which includes interviews with other country artists that he conducted over those decades.

Campbell highlighted Steagall’s television show, “Red Steagall’s somewhere

“He goes and just highlights different aspects of Western history and culture,” Campbell said. Campbell said the exhibit will be a combination of displays and audio in hopes of telling Steagall’s life and ranching story. There is also a plan to build an institute in honor of Steagall.

“We are beyond blessed to be able to receive this collection,” Campbell said. “It is a launching pad for what we are calling the Red Steagall Institute for Traditional Western Arts.”

The NRHC, located next to the Museum of Texas

Tech, was founded in 1971 by then-Tech president Grover Murray. Campbell said Murray originally got the idea from an outdoor museum he saw in Norway. Campbell said the original plan for the center was for it to be much larger and to focus on different semiarid regions of the world. “There would have been an African section and a section about South America,” Campbell said, “but it was really the North American ranching piece of it that took off.”

Campbell said the center offers various programs and opportunities for students.

“We have a great event called Ranch Day,” Campbell said. “It’s a community outreach event where four- to five-thousand folks come in.”

Ranch Day will be hosted Saturday and will give people an opportunity to learn about the different aspects of ranching. Attendees will have the chance to meet livestock, learn to brand and ear tag and participate in several other ranchingbased activities.

The center contains a 19-acre historical park that goes through the evolution of ranch life from the late 1700s through the mid-

1900s. Within the Park are 42 life-size bronze outdoor art pieces and a 44,000-squarefoot museum with seven galleries featuring permanent and temporary exhibits of art, photography and artifacts, according to the NRHC website.

The center partners with several student groups at Tech, Campbell said, ranging from meat science majors to history majors.

Campbell said he hopes the center can continue to tell the story of the history and heritage of ranching at Tech. @PeterPierucciDT

The DT Crossword: On the Contrary

56. Assumption

57. Catchphrase for Captain Underpants

60. Drink

62. King Kong or Donkey Kong

Adversity influences quarterback success

Andrew Goodrich is a sophomore journalism major from Irving.

Drafting a quarterback is an imperfect science.

All the factors that go into scouting one: game tape, size, interviews and every investigation into their character never guarantees success.

With six potential quarterbacks to go in the first round of the upcoming NFL Draft, fans of prospective teams have hopes of finding their next franchise signal caller.

However, the NFL has shown there is a common theme amongst the top quarterbacks, with stories of overcoming roadblocks that contributed to their success.

The NFL is the opposite of college football. Out of high school, the top players get to pick the best schools. When turning professional, the best players go to the least successful franchises of the previous season. This is where facing adversity as a quarterback plays a huge role.

Having five-star teammates with seven seconds to stand in the pocket and receivers with five yards of separation doesn’t prepare you for the NFL. Players such as Johnny Manziel, Justin Fields and Dwayne Haskins play at programs with elite skill positions players, and then come into the league on bad teams and look unprepared.

As it pertains to this year’s draft, the theme of adversity is present.

Caleb Williams has had to overcome a subpar offensive line and threw to no elite receiver except Jordan Addison.

Outside of Devontez Walker, Drake Maye did not have an NFL-caliber receiver and North Carolina’s defense allowed almost 30 points per game.

Before transferring to LSU, Jayden Daniels played at Arizona State with a lack of NFL-caliber talent.

Oregon’s Bo Nix had to transfer as the offensive scheme at Auburn no longer supported him.

Washington’s Michael Penix Jr. has suffered four season-ending injuries.

The only exception:

Central character in “Paradise Lost” 50. Polygon parts 52. Act like 48-across 54. Jerry’s frenemy

DT Crosswords, now five days a week: Online mini crosswords will be uploaded to dailytoreador.com/ puzzles every weekday.

Several of the starting quarterbacks in the league such as Josh Allen, Lamar Jackson, Dak Prescott, Kirk Cousins and Brock Purdy, have faced adversity. Whether it be playing at a small school, falling in the draft, criticized for their lack of athleticism or having to transfer, those experiences prepared them for success.

Michigan’s JJ McCarthy has been behind one of the best offensive lines in the nation for two years and the nation’s top scoring defense allowing 10.40 points per game.

Needless to say, these 2024 prospects will be put to the test when their number is called, and we will see who can continue to roll with the punches.

@AndrewG_DT

@NathanKenisonDT

BEST FOOD & DRINKS IN LUBBOCK

Best Steak

1st: Texas Roadhouse

2nd (Tie): Las Brisas and Triple J Chophouse

3rd: LongHorn Steakhouse

Best Barbecue

1st: Rudy’s Country Store and Bar-B-Q

2nd: Evie Mae’s

3rd: J&M BBQ

Best Hamburger

1st: Blue Sky Texas

2nd: Twisted Root

3rd: Spanky’s

Best Pizza

1st: Capital Pizza

2nd: One Guy from Italy

3rd: Woody’s Brick Oven Pizza

Best Mexican Food

1st: Taqueria Jalisco

2nd: Torchy’s Taco

3rd (Tie): Albarran’s Mexican Bar and Grill & Chimy’sw

Best Italian Food

1st: Orlando’s Italian Restaurant

2nd: Italian Garden

3rd: One Guy from Italy

Best Asian Food

1st: Hayashi Japanese Steakhouse

2nd: Pho District 1

3rd: P.F. Chang’s

Best Margarita

1st: Chimy’s Cerveceria

2nd (Tie): Chuy’s Tex Mex and Fuzzy’s Taco Shop

3rd: Caprock Café

Best Place for a Cold Beer

1st: Bier Haus

2nd: Two Docs Brewing Co.

3rd: Caprock Café

Best Happy Hour

1st: Sonic

2nd: Chimy’s

3rd: HTeaO – Lubbock

Best Fast Food

1st: Chick-fil-A

2nd: Raising Cane’s Chicken Fingers

3rd: Whataburger

Best Late Night Restaurant

1st: Raising Cane’s Chicken Fingers

2nd: Whataburger

3rd (Tie): Taco Bell and McDonald’s

Favorite Restaurant

1st: Chuy’s Tex-Mex

2nd: Dirk’s Signature Chicken & Bar

3rd: Hawaii Poke & Ramen

Friendliest Service

1st: Chick-fil-A

2nd: H-E-B

3rd: 7 Brew Coffee

Best Breakfast Restaurant

1st: Lubbock’s Breakfast House

2nd (Tie): The Farmhouse

and Toasted Yolk Cafe

3rd: The Pancake House

Best Coffee Shop

1st: 7 Brew Coffee

2nd (Tie): J&B Coffee and Dutch Bros.

3rd: Starbucks

Best Sweets

1st: J’s Creamery

2nd: Insomnia Cookies

3rd: Holly Hop Ice Cream Shoppe

Best Ice Tea

1st: HTeaO

2nd: Raising Cane’s

3rd: Tea 2 Go

BEST PLACES IN LUBBOCK

Best Supermarket

1st: H-E-B

2nd: United Supermarkets/Market Street

3rd: Walmart

Best Place to buy Flowers

1st: H-E-B

2nd: United Supermarkets/Market Street

3rd: House of Flowers

Best Beauty Salon

1st: Hello Gorgeous

2nd: Studio J Salon

3rd: Bloomington Salon

Best Car Repair

1st: Scott’s Complete Car Care

2nd (Tie): Christian Brothers Automotive

and Nick’s Automotive

3rd: Crash Collision

Best Car Wash

1st: Mighty Wash

2nd: Take 5 Car Wash

3rd: Mister Car Wash

Best Liquor Store

1st: Spec’s

2nd: Ravi’s Liquor

3rd (Tie): Pinkie’s and Ollie’s

Best Sporting Goods Store

1st: Academy Sports

2nd: Cabela’s

3rd: Cardinal’s Sport Center

Best Department Store

1st: Dillard’s

2nd: Marshalls & HomeGoods

3rd: Ross

Best Women’s Clothing Store

1st: Lululemon

2nd: T.C. Elli’s

3rd (Tie): Piper and Chrome

Best Men’s Clothing Store

1st: Dillard’s

2nd: H&M

3rd (Tie): American Eagle and Academy

Best Breakfast Burrito

1st: Raider Burrito

2nd: Torchy’s Tacos

3rd: Rosa’s Café & Tortilla Factory

Best Chicken Fried Steak

1st: Caprock Cafe

2nd: Cast Iron Grill

3rd: Dirk’s Signature Chicken & Bar

Best Chips & Salsa

1st: Torchy’s Tacos

2nd: Chuy’s Tex-Mex

3rd: Taqueria Jalisco

Best Donuts

1st: Rise ‘n Shine

2nd: Krispy Kreme

3rd: Shipley’s Do-Nuts

Best French Fries

1st: Wingstop

2nd: Chick-fil-A

3rd: Five Guys

Best Onion Rings

1st: Blue Sky Texas

2nd: Spanky’s 3rd: Sonic

Best Chicken

1st: Raising Cane’s Chicken Fingers

2nd: Chick-fil-A 3rd: Dirk’s Signature Chicken & Bar

Best Value Meal

1st: McDonald’s

2nd: Taco Bell

3rd (Tie): Rosa’s Café and Wendy’s

Best Wings

1st: Wingstop

2nd: Buffalo Wild Wings

3rd: Wing Daddy

Best Queso

1st: Torchy’s Tacos

2nd: Chuy’s Tex-Mex

3rd (Tie): Fuzzy’s Taco Shop and Rosa’s

Best Women’s Shoe Store

1st: DSW

2nd: Dillard’s

3rd (Tie): Lady Foot Locker and New Balance

Best Men’s Shoe Store

1st: Finish Line

2nd: Academy

3rd: Dillard’s

Best Western Wear

1st: Cavender’s Western Wear

2nd: Boot Barn

3rd: Dollar Western Wear

Best Jewelry Store

1st: James Avery

2nd: J. Keith’s Jewelry

3rd (Tie): Robert Lance Jewelers

and Paramount Jewelers

BEST PLACES IN LUBBOCK (cont.)

Best Place to Buy Tech Gear

1st: Red Raider Outfitter

2nd: Texas Tech Campus Bookstore

3rd: Cardinal’s Sport Center

Best Place for Oil Change/Inspection

1st: Take 5 Oil Change

2nd: Jiffy Lube

3rd: Rapid Oil Change

Best Place to Study

1st: Texas Tech Library

2nd: Texas Tech Student Union

Building

3rd: J&B Coffee

Best Patio

1st: Bier Haus

2nd (Tie): Little Woodrow’s and Caprock Cafe

3rd: Chimy’s Cerveceria

BEST ON CAMPUS

Best Residence Hall

1st: Talkington

2nd (Tie): Chitwood/Weymouth and Stangel/Murdough

3rd: Murray Hall

Best Place to Eat on Campus

1st: Chick-fil-A @ the SUB

2nd: The Market @ Stangel/Murdough

3rd: The Commons

Best Texas Tech Tradition

1st: Tortillas

2nd: Carol of Lights

3rd: Masked Rider

Best Date Spot

1st: Stars & Stripes Drive-in

2nd: Funky Door Bistro & Wine Bar

3rd: Fresh American

Best Place to Work

1st: TTU College of Media & Communication

2nd: H-E-B

3rd: The Daily Toreador

Best Night Club

1st: Logie’s on Overton

2nd: The Roof

3rd: Rodeo 4

Best Bar

1st: Logie’s on Overton

2nd: Bier Haus Lubbock

3rd: Chimy’s Cerveceria

Best Texas Tech Men’s Sport

1st: Basketball

2nd: Football

3rd: Baseball

Best Texas Tech Women’s Sport

1st: Soccer

2nd: Basketball

3rd: Track & Field

Best Non-Greek Student Organization

1st: Goin’ Band from Raiderland

2nd: The Daily Toreador

3rd: Hispanic Student Society

Best Texas Tech Landmark

1st: Memorial Circle

2nd: Texas Tech Seal

3rd: Will Rogers & Soapsuds

Best Off Campus Housing

1st: Capstone Cottages

2nd: The Carlton House

3rd: 21 Hundred at Overton

Best Church

1st: St. Elizabeth’s Catholic Church

2nd: Redeemer Church

3rd: Indiana Avenue Baptist Church

Best Bank

1st: Wells Fargo

2nd: Chase Bank

3rd: Texas Tech Credit Union

Best Health Club

1st: Texas Tech Recreation Center

2nd: Cycle Bar

3rd: TruFit Athletics

Best Sports Bar

1st: Logie’s on Overton

2nd (Tie): Walk-On’s Sports Bistreaux and Buffalo Wild Wings

Best Greek Sorority/Fraternity

1st: Kappa Kapp Gamma

2nd: Zeta Tau Alpha

3rd (Tie): Delta Gamma and Chi Omega

Most Helpful Tech Department

1st: Hospitality Services

2nd: College of Media & Communication

3rd: IT Help Central

Best Head Coach

1st: Joey McGuire - Football

2nd: Grant McCasland - Basketball

3rd: Tim Tadlock – Baseball