One more thing to Coach Leach...you should've kicked it.

The other two posts which I filed earlier this morning clearly show my realization that Tech needs to hold itself accountable for their loss to UH last night. However, upon giving it much thought, even if the viewing audience of last night's game are 50-50 split with the fact that Tech was denied a true touchdown or not...Coach Leach should have thought long and hard about letting Taylor Potts & company try for a QB sneak. After all, the night's showing of the Tech offense clearly showed their lack for scoring. Coach Leach should have instead sent in our kicking team for an extra 3 points. He was even quoted at saying as such. Had he done that then Tech would have been up by 8 points at that point instead of by just 5 which is what was left after the failed TD effort. A successful 3 point field goal for Tech would have still forced a UH touchdown and the same try at a two-point conversion which they failed at as we all saw. A Tech field goal try with success would have seen our Red Raiders leading 31 to 22 instead of just 28 to 22. Maybe it would have changed the momentum in Tech's favor. At worse, even if Houston had marched forward for the same 95 yards while using up over 5 + minutes late into the game and scored the same TD and even if the two-point conversion had worked for them this time around, it would have been a tied game...31 to 31. Overtime in college football is way better than that of the NFL. It would have given each team an equal shot at winning. Tech Nation might not be second guessing the Tech coaches & players today and playing "Monday Morning Quarterback". In the end, Coach Leach and his bull-headedness cost Tech the victory. Not since 2007 has Tech experienced back-to-back losses. I hope they do remember that fact and strive to win all games left on their 2009 schedule. After all, they are Red Raiders and they still carry much of last season's abilities with them this season -or better- to continue to be champs!

Overcoming adversity after admitting the truth...

I really & truly felt better as I finally came to grips about Tech's negative play-calling and their inability to follow through to make positive things happen. Things which would more likely ensure a victory rather than enact a total collapse of their football system. I needed to blame Texas Tech for their recent losses and stop trying to find reasons for why they have lost. Tech beat Tech during last week's game down in Austin and is the same mirrored image which beat Tech this week over in Houston. I feel better saying all of that and in being able to write it down. I am sure some Tech fans (friends & family) may strongly disagree with me and my admittance of it, but I had to do it so I could move forward and so that I could send Tech a message that the way they are playing is so NOT not acceptable. Maybe some Tech fans actually feel as I do and maybe by admitting what I just did will help them move forward and onward as well. I do NOT know. All I know is that I will always be a die-hard Tech fan and in times when things are going well, I will be more-ever-so-proud. But as all positive things sometimes have a negative side associated with them (the "ying/yang" theory), when Tech is going through rough times as they have and will probably have in the future, I will still be one of them and continue to stand tall, proud & loud right beside them. It is the times when they fail to show their true abilities and do not try as hard that I will hold them liable for any losses they may incur. A word to the wise (Tech), get it together and do it now. You are Red Raiders ("Pirates")...you are way better than what you are showing to the world as of last night's loss to UH. It is still early enough in the season to have another winning season as Tech has had since the Big 12 began. Long Live the Matadors!

Texas Tech fans ("natives") are getting restless

It is 5:25 AM - the Sunday morning following last night's (ESPN, late aired) game between former SWC rivals, Texas Tech Red Raiders and Houston Cougars. I am finding it rather difficult to sleep right now or to do anything constructive being that it is too early considering it is a Sunday - a day many ppl prefer to sleep in late. I made a big bowl of chili (con carne) for last night's game-viewing party with the regular guests in the house (thanks Hernandez familia & friends) so my first intention upon waking up so darned early this morning was to ensure that the small portion of leftovers was properly put away in the fridge. Just in case I was able to visit my Mom & Lucky later on today to deliver the cuisine of "next day better tasting, matured chili". No joking, the chili does indeed acquire a better taste and texture the next day. Anyway, apparently Sara had already done that for me earlier so I was left with nothing to do with my restless and heart-broken self except to logon to the Net to read stories, articles, blogs, feeds...anything regarding last night's disappointing loss of our Red Raiders at the hands of the Cougars. Something that might ease the huge, unexplainable let-down that this Tech fan of over 35 years is feeling. Sure I went to bed strongly protesting that late 4th quarter touchdown stance in which Taylor Potts clearly crossed the plain prior to the officials blowing of the whistle which should have given Tech 6 points and a chance to make it 7, but - NO - it was not to be. The officials said that Taylor's second efforts at crossing the goal line came after the whistle blew. Clearly not true, it was a touchdown prior to any whistle blowing; for certain a true TD that everyone who saw the replay could attest to in Tech's favor and would protest to against the fact that another Tech game was determined by rotten officiating. I awoke this A.M., like someone with nothing better to do in his/her life, because I really do have better, more important things to do -trust me, with the same negative feeling in the pit of my stomach with that game on my mind. I realized that I had fallen asleep with the tele on and it was tuned into one of the sports channels and the commentators were talking about NFL football. I was perturbed and I thought for a second, 'how can anyone talk about the NFL' (even if it is now Sunday - a day when the "big boys play") 'when Tech was denied yet another game last night due to rotten calls against them'? Yes, people, I was that shallow and yes, I was kidding myself and not wanting to admit to the truth which was plaguing me at the core of my belly. After I did the things that I wrote about earlier in this post, and after going through all the motions, I decided that if my negative feelings were to subside and if the 100 lb. weight in the pit of my stomach was to disappear, that I would just have to come to terms with last night's outcome. I would finally have to lay blame where it needed to be and those person's uniforms were not black and white with stripes on their shirts; the person's to blame were dawned with scarlet and black and had the double-T logo embedded on their polo shirts. I finally would have to be the bigger and better fan and quit acting like an arrogant Aggie fan and extend my congratulations to the true victor's of last night's game for their awesome performance. I really underestimated the Cougars and my dismissal of their football abilities was wrong, and this blogger should have given them credit for their talent to date this season, after all, they really have done an outstanding job in beating their opponents. I was so cavalier in my views of how Tech was better than UH because they are in the Big 12. I undershot Conference USA because they usually do not produce BCS contenders - no, sir, not like the Big 12. Boy, was I wrong. Maybe by my admitting all of this it will help me to relax and get a grip, per se, so that I may go forward as a Texas Tech fan and to hold the Red Raiders, not the officials accountable for their loss versus UH. Yes, I will always have a bad taste in my mouth for that touchdown that Tech was denied, but I will also remember that worse taste that plagued my mouth all night long and even now as I write this, which makes me question what the Tech coaches and players plan to do to correct the shortcomings of our Red Raiders. For the second week in a row the Tech defense has had to play longer & tougher than the offensive team. The defense cannot be expected to play as such if Taylor & company don't do the same. If the Tech offense continues to go onto the field acting out such bad plays thus creating a quick "3 in and 3 out" effort, then they need to re-think their offensive stance and throw out all current plays because they are not working. Coach Leach needs to go buy a real playbook instead of utilizing pieces of scrap paper to keep track of which offensive plays he has already called and such. My sister Josie said she wanted to buy Mike an official playbook and although it was funny last night and we all got a roaring laugh over it, my sister is not too far from the truth about Leach needing that playbook. He could at least look more "official" and more threatening to Tech opponents versus looking like the "mad scientist" which sport's pundits have dubbed him. A moniker which I now have really grown tired of especially when Mike's offensive play calling abilities have worn out their knack for throwing off the opposing defense and everyone knows what he is going to do at each and every down. A mad scientist would have a reason or a theory for why certain things did not work, and he would change his methods. Mike is not changing his methods (plays), and it is costing Tech some major victories thus far and we are only headed into the 5th game of the season with conference play just two weeks away. Our defense grew tired last night, obviously they had reason to get as fatigued as they did because they had to be out on the field longer than the Tech offense. Our Tech d-line could just not ward off the UH offense and their will to win. Tech's defensive line plain'ole became worn out and tired all the while their mental psyche & physical state could not keep up with the UH determination to win the game. I do give credit and kudos for our d-line for how hard they tried given that they had to spend way more time on the playing field than our Tech o-line did. It was not the fault of Tech's d-line or of the officials (who still get a sour lemon rating from this person) that our Tech o-line came up short and cost us the game. Again, I do give credit to UH for having such a good team, both on offense & defense, and for their will to win and show the world that they really are contenders and to remind everyone not to under-rate them as I incorrectly and prematurely did going into the game. I gave Tech too much credit and maybe my attitude was not so different from the attitude that our Red Raiders also carried with them right up until the game started. Clearly Tech was not ready for this game. Yes, they could've, should've done things different, but in the end, it is the offensive line's inability to score that worries this Red Raider fanatic. As I sit here writing this post, I think about Tech's upcoming schedule and it is going to be rough and all downhill if Coach Leach and the entire offensive coaching group and players don't come up with answers to the problems currently crippling our offense. We do have many games at home, but the opponents are going to be vicious. Next week Tech welcomes New Mexico into the "black-hole" in Lubbock, but we cannot underestimate them. Nope, going forward Tech and fans can no longer afford to undermine any opponent if our offense continues to wreak of rotten tomatoes. We need to pressure everyone associated with Texas Tech football and their logistics to improve and to get better prepared for all games coming up. Remember that we have to travel to places like Stillwater (OK St) and Lincoln (Nebraska). Two teams which annually give Tech a run for their money. Ok St is scheduled each season as part of the Big 12 south, and the Cornhuskers are only scheduled every 3 years as part of the Big 12 north, but this year finds Tech having to contend with both, and they have to do it on their playing field - deep in enemy territory of sorts. If Tech does not fix their playing issues, they will continue to succumb to their opponents and maybe even miss making a bowl game for the first time since Coach Leach became Tech's head coach. I remember late last season being upset at our athletic director, Gerald Myers, for not renegotiating Mike's contract quickly enough and for not trying harder to find the funds to pay Mike enough to stay with Tech. I am not so sure that Coach Leach was worth my worrying so much about his salary, his contract and his staying in Lubbock. I am not ready to write the guy off...not yet. But I do expect better things from Mike and I do expect more victories this season. Taylor Potts has some big shoes to fill indeed, but for him to meet or beat those expectations and overcome the Harrell shadows, he needs to be more ready to leave the pocket as needed. He needs to be more of a scrambler (ala Tarkenton) or he is going to get sacked so much more often and he will continue to create turn-overs. He sits in the pocket far too long and the opponents are savvy to the fact...the opponents are being given too much time to read Taylor's eyes and his intentions and are creating quick "in and outs" for Tech if not forcing Tech turn-overs. Yep, it will be interesting how Tech reacts to all of this. A game (vs UH) which left many Tech fans stunned last night mainly because Tech had no answers, a game which is just the beginning of a rough, long season for Tech and their fans if they don't return to the drawing table and draw up newer, better plays for the o-line and for the d-line. Or it can be the beginning of how Tech can rise up to the occasion and improve and finish out the season atop of the Big 12 south. It is not too late, but the clock is ticking. I expect answers from Tech's coaching staff as well as from the players. I still believe in Tech. I still am Raider Nation proud. I still wear scarlet & black as proudly as ever. However, I will not do so as readily if Tech continues down the path to self-destruction all the while appearing as if they aren't playing as hard as they can. I know Tech can play harder and better, they just have to re-group and leave the "pre-madonna" attitudes of Tech teams of the past in the past, and play like the Tech team they became last season. We cannot show the world that losing Harrell & Crabtree was to become our demise. Taylor Potts has the ability to be great or better than Graham. Leong & Lewis (and other WR's) have the knack to be better than Michael as well. Tech showed during last night's game that their running game is not dead. Batch & Britton showed up unlike last week vs. UT. The B's did an awesome job at running the ball and keeping it on the ground to give the d-line a much needed break. The downfall of Tech's d-line was Tech's awful passing game. Now, that is where you rise up to the challenge, Mr. Potts and the entire Tech offense..."Tag, you're it"...go with it, run with it and be champions because of it.

Tech vs Texas; lousy officiating thus lousy outcome

Note to the officials calling the game, when it came down to calls against Tech - "you lied"! Even Joe Wilson would have been all over your officiating butts tonight, guys, because your calls just plain'ole sucked. You guys made Austin stink like a sewer swamp. Texas did not beat Tech...you, the officials, and your bad calls beat Tech. Your lousy calls beat Tech down until the Red Raiders knew they could not beat Texas because you guys were not going to allow it; you came into tonight's game with your pockets already lined with that "Texas Gold". It was apparent that the officials had the beat-down ready against our Red Raiders. I am tired of the officiating always being lopsided and bad for opponents going into A-town to play versus the 'horns. I know, I know, most ppl would say that fans of a defeated team always call "bloody murder" against the officials when their respective team suffers a loss. That fans blame the officials rather than their team for the game loss. I can & will agree that Tech did incur many penalties against themselves, but not that damned many -c'mon!!! One such stupidly called penalty was against our Tech defensive player who clearly did not grab that UT player's face mask, he merely brushed it with his fingertips. You should have let it go, officials, but no - you called it and cost Tech 15 lousy yards. Another unjust penalty to pile onto the several unjust penalty yards you had already called against Tech and would continue to unfairly call until the end of the game.

As for the penalties that went ignored by you knuckleheaded officials against UT (and there were many), that was totally a huge mis-use of your power & authority. The most important & obvious penalty against UT that went ignored tonight by the officials was the "leading with the helmet" (or "helmet to helmet") by the UT defender against Tech's QB, Taylor Potts. It was a nasty, blatant, and classless play by the UT defender which the officials should have caught and called. I am just glad that Potts was okay following that ignored penalty. Even the ABC commentators saw it and stated that it was a penalty that needed to be called. That is was created for a specific reason (safety reasons, DUH!)and needed to be upheld, implemented, and called each and every time. Brent Musburger even added that officials needed to be more consistent in calling it. It was indeed a momentum changer. In this blogger's opinion, it surely cost Tech the game as the players finally realized that there was no way they were going to be able to beat UT because the officials were not going to allow it. No, sir, not tonight...not in Austin, and surely not Mack Brown's team. I hope the officials are happy...they should be ashamed. But that is very doubtful!!! I am not sure who has the officials more in their pockets, Mack or Bob Stoops.

Why Tech lost; Texas really didn't beat us.

Follow the Tech threads as fellow Red Raider fans agree with my assessment of this game. A game Tech could've and should've won if the powers that be (the officials) were fair, honest & impartial. Yes, again, I agree that Tech messed up many times, but it should not have been up to the officials to decide the outcome by calling so many wrong penalties against Tech then turn a blind eye to UT's bad and dirty plays. Lopsided indeed. Next year UT comes to our house, and we will NOT be beaten in "our house". Forward and upward Tech goes from this game in A-town.

Bob Stoops and co. better be ready as they come to our house later this season. Forget "boomer sooner", they will be "bummer sooner". Tech will remember last year and give you a good old fashioned Texas Tech beat-down. Gundy (the "I'm a man" idiot), you will also suffer the wrath of the Red Raiders. I don't care that Tech travels to Stillwater to play your cowpokes. The Houston Cougars proved last week (when OSU was ranked #5) that you can be beaten in your own house and Tech will clearly take advantage of that fact. To add, OSU had a somewhat difficult time in gettin a beat-down on Rice tonight, a team Tech outright beat and beat bad last week, and it further proves OSU's inability to win big. ANYWAY...

Tech plays UH next week, but I believe Tech wins handily. Esp still reeling from Saturday's upset by way of bad officiating in Austin.

Some of my predictions for the 2009 NCAA football season

Neither OU or UT will be in contention for a national championship this season. Plus, I no longer believe -nor can I support or favor- McCoy will win the Heisman. No hard feelings against Colt; I like the kid, but am not impressed by his play-making or rather his lack of play-making to date this season. He was better by this time last year. Can't even say he is playing at the same calibur he did during his sophomore year. But with that said, I neither support Tebow or Bradford for Heisman .

I do however believe that Texas Tech will prove to be a strong team at the end of this season and many sport's pundits will eat crow after saying Tech would not finish with as many wins as they had last year and that they would be lucky to finish 5th in the Big 12 South. I believe that Tech will finish tied for first (again) with UT after OU beats UT during their annual Red River Shootout and after Tech beats OU. Another tie - another mess, but this year's outcome will favor Tech.

Tech will certainly do what they fell short of last season and will prevail this season and be a highly ranked, feared, and respected team with more checkmarks in the win column. We will get a great bowl-bid (and win) and continue as the only team in the conference, since the Big 12 was enacted, to have more winning seasons. Many a bowl game under Mike Leach and that trend will continue. We will be in contention...