Red Raiders Face Texas In Top-10 Showdown
October 17, 2005 | Football
Oct. 17, 2005
No. 10/8 Texas Tech (6-0;3-0) vs. No. 2/2 Texas (6-0; 3-0)Saturday, October 22, 2005 - 2:30 p.m. (ABC)
Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium - Austin, Texas
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RED RAIDERS TRAVEL TO TEXAS IN BATTLE OF UNBEATENS
Texas Tech (6-0, 3-0 Big 12) travels to Austin this weekend to face Texas (6-0, 3-0) in a battle of two of the nation's seven unbeaten teams. The game is the first conference tilt of the season against a Big 12 South Division member. Kickoff is set for 2:30 p.m. CT at Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium and the game will be televised on ABC.
TECH ENTERS TOP TEN
For the first time since the start of the 1977 season, the Red Raiders are ranked among the nation's top ten teams. Tech enters this week ranked eighth in the USA Today Coaches Poll and 10th in the Associated Press Poll. The ranking is the highest for a Red Raider team since Sept. 12, 1977, when Tech was eighth in the Associated Press Poll. Tech reached its peak for that season the following week, when the Red Raiders were seventh. The highest ranking in Texas Tech history occurred during the 1976 season, when Tech held the No. 5 position for three-straight weeks in the AP poll. The Red Raiders began the 2005 season ranked 21st in both polls and have steadily climbed throughout the season. Tech's consistency in the polls this year reflects the first time in head coach Mike Leach's six seasons that the Red Raiders have been ranked every week of the season.
TECH COMPLETES TRIFECTA AGAINST THE NORTH
The Red Raiders' completed its sweep of the Big 12 North Division with Saturday's 59-20 win over Kansas State in Lubbock. The Red Raiders knocked off Nebraska (34-31) and Kansas (30-17) during the previous two weeks. This year marked the first time since the 2002 season that Tech faced each of the three North Division members on consecutive weekends. Iowa State, Missouri and Colorado were on Tech's schedule in a three-week span three seasons ago.
RED RAIDER FOOTBALL IN 81st SEASON
The 2005 season marks the 81st year of Texas Tech Football on the South Plains. Over that span, the program has 471 wins, 375 losses and 32 ties.
TECH START BEST SINCE 1998
Texas Tech's 6-0 record to open the 2005 season is the best since the team opened the 1998 season with the same record. The school record for consecutive games without a loss to open a season is eight when the Red Raiders were 8-0 during the 1976 season, including moving to 6-0 with a win over Texas. That team finished 10-2 and is the last team to win 10 games.
LEACH IN SIXTH SEASON
Aside from Spike Dykes' 13 seasons (1987-99), the last Texas Tech coach to spend more than six seasons in Lubbock was JT King, who was at the helm of the program from 1961-69. Leach has seen continual improvement in each of his first five years, highlighted by last season's 45-31 win over California in the Pacific Life Holiday Bowl. Leach has posted a 45-25 record and 24-19 record in Big 12 play, including last season's 5-3 league record and Big 12 third-place finish, the highest finish for Tech in the league standings. He is the first coach in school history to lead each of his first five teams to bowl games and also to win three-straight post-season games. His Tech teams have combined for over 151 team and individual records. Additionally, the Red Raider offense has led the nation in passing the past three years and total offense the last two.
BIG 12 LEADERS
Texas Tech leads the Big 12 in eight statistical categories and is tied for the lead in another. Tech tops the charts in scoring offense (53.7), pass offense (472.3), total offense (572.8), turnover margin (+1.3), pass efficiency (168.2), first downs (184), fourth-down conversions (100.0) and redzone offense (94.9%). The Red Raiders are tied for the lead in PAT kicking (100%). Individually, QB Cody Hodges leads the league in passing (410.2), pass efficiency (172.1) and total offense (410.8). IR Robert Johnson tops the receptions per game chart (6.3), while RB Taurean Henderson leads in scoring (14.0). PK Alex Trlica is the league's second-leading scorer with 10.7 points per game and leads the league's kickers with 64 points this season. Defensively, FS Dwayne Slay is the leader in forced fumbles with six and needs two to break the Big 12 record.
NCAA LEADERS
Texas Tech leads the country in passing offense and scoring and is second in total offense. The Red Raiders also rank among the top 10 turnover margin (8) and pass efficiency (3). Hodges leads the country in total offense.
OFF TO A HOT START
The Red Raiders have out-scored opponents 184-37 in the first half this season, including a 73-3 advantage in the first quarter. The three points for the opposition came last week against Kansas State. Tech has scored 111 points in the second quarter, 72 in the third and 66 in the fourth.
REDZONE OFFENSE AMONG NATION'S BEST
The Texas Tech offense has made 39 trips into the opponent's redzone this season and has come away with scores 37 times. The two misses have come during the last two weeks on interceptions. Of the 37 scores, Tech has 31 touchdowns, including 16 on the ground, and six field goals this season in the redzone. The Red Raiders redzone offense is the nation's best.
RAIDER RECEIVERS COMBINE FOR NCAA RECORD
The Texas Tech receiving corp earned another NCAA record on Saturday but this time as a group. Four different receivers finished Saturday's game against Kansas State with 100-plus yards receiving and that will go down as a first in the NCAA record books. The Red Raiders got 255 yards (school and Big 12 record) from Joel Filani, 118 from Taurean Henderson, 107 from Robert Johnson and 105 from Jarrett Hicks.
SECOND HALF AWAKENING
In its previous two conference games heading into last Saturday's date with Kansas State, the Red Raiders struggled with ball movement and scoring in the second half, after producing productive first halves. Against Kansas and Nebraska, Tech averaged 167.0 yards of total offense in the second half and managed 10 points against KU (20 in first half) and 13 in the win over the Huskers (21 in first half). In the 59-20 win over the Wildcats, the Red Raider offense exploded out of halftime with 399 total offense yards and 42 points, including 28 in the third quarter. Tech put 17 points on the board before halftime.
TECH'S DEFENSE BEST IN YEARS
The Tech offense has company in the top 20 this year. The Red Raider defense has played a major role in the team's success this season and is ranked 18th nationally in total defense. The unit is allowing only 4.3 yards per play, 301.8 yards per game, has forced 17 turnovers and is limiting Tech opponents to 16.5 points per game, which ranks 13th nationally. The defense also has allowed only 11 touchdowns this season. The last time a Tech defense held its opponents to fewer yards per game was in 1998, while the last time the team limited its opponents to less than 17.0 points per game was in 1979.
RED RAIDERS PLAYING A MEAN GAME OF KEEP AWAY
Texas Tech has done such a good job of bullying its opponents into turnovers this season that the Red Raiders lead the league in turnover margin at +1.3 per game. The Red Raiders have recovered 12 opponents fumbles this season, while forcing 14 overall. Additionally, the pass defense has stepped up and has picked five passes on the year. In last Saturday's win against Kansas State, the Red Raiders forced key turnovers in the 59-20 win. Tech picked a pass and fell on two KSU fumbles, both forced by FS Dwayne Slay. LB Sylvester Brinkley and SS Vincent Meeks lead the team with two interceptions apiece. Slay leads the Big 12 Conference with six forced fumbles.
SCORING STREAK
Texas Tech is in the middle of a 98-game scoring streak, the second-longest in school history, and fourth among Big 12 schools. The run began with a 16-13 win over Texas A&M on Oct. 25, 1997, a week after dropping a 29-0 decision to second-ranked Nebraska. During its current run, the Red Raiders have scored 10+ in all but four games.
Longest Scoring Streaks in School History
106 games - Began 10/17/87 with 59-7 win over Rice in Lubbock; ended 12/29/96 with a 27-0 loss to Iowa in the Alamo Bowl
98 games - Began 10/25/97 with 16-13 win over Texas A&M in Lubbock (current streak)
THIRD-DOWN RATE BETTER IN LAST GAME
Texas Tech head coach Mike Leach noted one glaring problem on the final stat sheet following the Nebraska game - Tech's 1-of-10 performance on third down. The Red Raiders rectified the situation against Kansas State, converting 9-of-16 attempts. On the season, the Red Raiders rank fifth in the Big 12 with a 41.8 percent rate.
WIN AT MEMORIAL STADIUM LEAVES TWO
With its win at Nebraska, Texas Tech has now posted victories on the home field of each Big 12 school, save two - Colorado and Missouri. The Red Raiders will get their chance next season at Colorado and Missouri the following year.
AN EXTRA PLAY IS THERE IF WE NEED IT
When Texas Tech does get a wild hair and go for it on fourth down, odds are in its favor to be successful. The Red Raiders are tied with three other teams nationally with a perfect 100 percent success rate on fourth-down attempts. Penn State leads the group with six attempts, while Tech and LSU have gone for it five times. Kansas State was successful on its only attempts.
HENDERSON SETS NCAA RECEIVING MARK
RB Taurean Henderson broke the NCAA record for career receptions by a running back with his first catch against Kansas State. He bested the previous mark of 262, set by Long Beach State's Mark Templeton during the 1984-87 seasons. Henderson needed four receptions against Nebraska to break Wes Welker's school record for receptions (259 from 2000-03) and wasted little time setting the new mark. He had his fourth reception before the end of the first quarter to set the new standard. He has 272 receptions in his career.
HODGES NAMED BIG 12 PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Senior quarterback Cody Hodges was named the Big 12 Player of the Week following his outstanding performance against Kansas State. Hodges turned in the fourth-best passing performance in NCAA history on Saturday as he threw for 643 yards and five touchdowns against the then 11th-ranked defense in the nation. Hodges is the second Tech player to earn the weekly honor from the Big 12 in as many weeks as Joel Filani earned the same honor after a stellar game at Nebraska.
TECH BACK TIES ANOTHER RECORD
Henderson wasn't finished with the record books when he set the NCAA receptions record for a running back last Saturday. The senior running back also tied a school record with five touchdowns (three rushing and two receiving) in Tech's 59-20 win over Kansas State. The multi-touchdown game was the fourth of the season for Henderson and the third in which he has scored at least three. His five touchdowns tie him with Billy Taylor (vs. TCU, 1977), James Gray (vs. Rice, 1989) and Byron Hanspard (vs. SMU, 1995).
HENDERSON'S SCORING PACE PUTS OTHER RECORDS IN JEOPARDY
As the nation's active leader in career touchdowns, Henderson is on pace to break the Tech single-season mark in touchdowns and points. He currently has 14 touchdowns on the season and 84 points. If he continues his current pace, Henderson will finish the regular season with 154 points and 26 touchdowns. The record for single-season points and touchdowns is 134 and 22, respectively, set by Byron Morris in 1993.
TRLICA ADDS SCORING PUNCH
During the first three games of the season, sophomore PK Alex Trlica ran through his usual routine of kicking extra points - several times. The Red Raiders scored 28 touchdowns in the non-conference season and Trlica effortlessly booted extra point after extra point. In the last three games, Trlica was given seven opportunities to kick field goals and he accepted the challenge. The Lou Groza Star of the Week from Oct. 4 connected on his only attempt against Kansas State, a 26-yarder for Tech's first score of the game. Trlica's three field goals against Kansas three weeks ago was the most in a game since the 2001 season.
SENIOR LINEBACKER STEPPING FORWARD
Senior LB John Saldi closed his freshman season with Defensive MVP honors at the 2002 Tangerine Bowl and gave Red Raider fans a glimpse of what to expect from him in the future. Saldi continues to fulfill the promise shown that night and has emerged this season as one of the team top run stoppers. He leads the team with six and a half tackles for loss from his outside linebacker slot. He also has a sack to his credit and has been effective against the pass with a team-leading three passes broken up. Saldi also as 18 tackles, two quarterback hurries, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery. In the last two games, Saldi has nine tackles and five tackles for loss, after posting nine total tackles in the first four games.
SLAY PACKS A PUNCH
An internal radar for the ball and a knack for applying punishing hits are how senior FS Dwayne Slay has become the team leader in tackles and conference leader in forced fumbles. Slay leads the team with 47 tackles and paced the Red Raiders with 10 stops against Nebraska. The biggest hits of the Kansas State game came courtesy of Slay and resulted in two fumbles, which the Red Raiders later converted into touchdowns. Slay's bruising tackles have given him a Big 12 leading six forced fumbles this season. Slay is one of five team captains.
JOHNSON HOLDING ON TO RECEPTIONS LEAD
Seven Red Raider receivers already have 10 or more receptions on the season, led by junior IR Robert Johnson's 38 catches. The quarterback-turned-receiver has been a consistent target for QB Cody Hodges and has three scoring receptions and is averaging 94.3 yards per game. WR Joel Filani follows with 37 catches, while RB Taurean Henderson has 36. WR Jarrett Hicks also has more than 30 receptions with 31.
IT'S CONTAGIOUS
Sixteen players have caught a pass this season, including seven who have at least 10 receptions and four with 30 or more. IR Robert Johnson leads the team with 38 receptions, while WR Joel Filani follows with 37.
HICKS SETS SCORING RECEPTIONS RECORD
Junior WR Jarrett Hicks turned in one of the best single seasons in Tech history for a receiver a year ago when he hauled in a school record 13 touchdown receptions and 1,177 yards. Against Kansas State on Saturday, Hicks added another record to his belt when he caught his 23rd career scoring reception. With his lone touchdown catch of the game, he broke the two-year old mark of 22, set by Mickey Peters (2000-03).
HODGES TURNS IN FOURTH-BEST PERFORMANCE
QB Cody Hodges' outing against Kansas State was one for the record books and the senior signal caller bombarded the Wildcats with 643 passing yards and five touchdowns en route to a 59-20 Tech win. The yardage is the second-most in Tech history and the fourth-best single game in NCAA Division I history. It is the sixth-best performance in NCAA history regardless of division.
