Water The Tree: A Look Back At Texas Tech's Run To Omaha

The rise of Texas Tech baseball is all part of a grander story. As he reflects on his illustrious career, that's the perspective Eric Gutierrez proudly holds. For the now former Red Raider infielder, the very first chapter of Gutierrez's very own story remains fresh in his memory.

Before he even stepped foot on the Lubbock campus, it was a phone conversation that would quickly define the tone for his future career on the South Plains. At the time the newly appointed head coach Tim Tadlock was on a search for pieces to his puzzle. And the Mission, Texas, high school standout fit the mold.

"He told me right off the bat," Gutierrez recalls. "We are going to win. We are going to go to Omaha. When you hear that from a coach, and he believes it 100 percent, that's what you want. That's what players like playing for. Because he wants to win."

Even for Gutierrez, a quiet, humble, yet outwardly driven infielder, that passion resonated deeply. He gravitated towards the confident new Red Raider coach and joined his mission to transform the Tech program.

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That decision paid off. The transformation took just one year, and in 2014, during Gutierrez's sophomore campaign, the Red Raiders shook the foundation of Texas Tech baseball history.

They reached Omaha. Two years later, the squad reached the College World Series yet again. Suddenly, Texas Tech baseball rose from the Big 12 to become one of the premier baseball programs in the country while Gutierrez asserted himself as an All-American infielder and Big 12 Player of the Year.

It's been quite a journey.

"He always has a plan in mind," Gutierrez said.

Yet, to understand the legacy left by Eric Gutierrez and the entire Red Raider senior class of 2016, is to resonate with the story in its entirety.

"It's not about telling the story of Omaha," Gutierrez is quick to point out. "It's telling the process."

And that process commenced well before the Red Raiders reached the pinnacle of college baseball twice in three years. It consisted of a fundamental change in culture. As he stepped on campus in 2013, that nucleus formed quickly as Tadlock meticulously established the collective mindset of his new program.

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"Buying in," Gutierrez said. "Every guy in that locker room knew their role and how they would impact the game."

Gutierrez certainly bought in – and so did his teammates. As a freshman in 2013, he played in and started all 56 games en route to earning Collegiate Baseball Louisville Slugger All-America honors. Then, in 2014, he once again started all 66 games, going on to earn all-region honors as the Red Raiders won 44 games and clinched their first ever ticket to the College World Series.

"It changed quickly," Gutierrez said. "All it took was one time and knowing how to get there. It only takes one time. After that, everyone knew it was possible."

That's the very same sentiment fellow teammate and catcher Tyler Floyd shares. Floyd joined the Tech program prior to the 2014 season as a transfer from McLennan Community College outside of Waco.

As he stepped on campus, a similar sentiment was shared with the young catcher.

"When I first got to Tech," Floyd said. "Coach Tadlock said our goal was to get to Omaha."

He admits the goal seemed ambitious at the time. But quickly, after the Red Raiders took two of three games from No. 3 Indiana on Opening Weekend, he realized the direction Tadlock was navigating the program. By June, the Red Raiders were hosting a Super Regional in Lubbock, and with two victories over the College of Charleston Tech was headed to its first-ever appearance in the College World Series.

Floyd caught in 26 games during that historic 2014 season. He went on to start 46 games behind the plate in 2015, and as a senior in 2016 the Stephenville, Texas native guided Texas Tech back to the College World Series for the second time in three seasons.

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"We realized it takes the same thing it took two years ago to get back every year," Floyd said. "It was a different mentality this year."

Tech became one of only seven baseball programs in the nation to reach the College World Series twice in the last three seasons.

Not only did the Red Raiders return to Omaha, but they took yet another historic step forward in the process. After dropping the opening round game to TCU, the Red Raiders, facing elimination, went on to defeat No. 1 overall seed Florida 3-2 in dramatic fashion.

Tech fell to eventual College World Series Champion Coastal Carolina.

Yet the steps Gutierrez, Floyd and the Red Raiders took in 2016 were yet another seismic shift in the foundation of the Tech baseball program. The Red Raiders ended the year ranked No. 4 nationally, the highest ranking in program history.

The legacy of Gutierrez, Floyd and the entire senior class will certainly leave an indelible mark on the program as it reloads for yet another campaign in 2017. In total, the Red Raider senior class of 2016 won 149 games since 2013.

"We were the first ones to go to Omaha and we were the first ones to win a game in Omaha," Floyd said. "No one will ever be able to say that again."

Water The Tree: A Look Back At Texas Tech's Run To Omaha

Players Mentioned

Tyler Floyd

Eric Gutierrez

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