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LUBBOCK, Texas -- From the big numbers the offense continues
to pile up to the shrinking ones allowed by the defense, the Texas
Tech Red Raiders have some good reasons to be optimistic about this
season. And if they need anything else to get excited about, they can
pop in the tape from the last game they played, a 45-31 throttling
of No. 4 California in the Holiday Bowl. That victory capped an 8-4 season and earned Tech the 18th spot
in the final poll, its highest finish since 1976. Perhaps more
important was the exposure and respect that came from beating a Cal
team trying to prove a point about being left out from the BCS. "We've got a long ways to go, but it's exciting that we've got
some folks interested in us," coach Mike Leach said. "I feel like
we're getting better, we've improved." Any new admirers will see what folks in West Texas have been
watching ever since Leach arrived in 2000 -- a wide-open,
unrelenting passing attack that tries to pile up yards and points. Tech quarterbacks have led the nation in passing five straight
years. The past two seasons, it was done by fifth-year seniors who
were first-time starters. Although Leach has yet to formally name this year's QB,
fifth-year senior Cody Hodges could make it three straight years
that a starter watched from the sidelines for four seasons. Hodges
said he expects to be the one who takes the snaps in the season
opener Sept. 10 against Florida International. Hodges has certainly put in his time. A four-year starter at Hereford, where he threw for 6,500 yards
and 70 touchdowns and ran for 30 more, Hodges was the new kid on
the squad when Kliff Kingsbury was finishing his great run leading
the Tech offense. Then he saw B.J. Symons take over in 2003 and put up remarkable
numbers -- 52 touchdowns and an NCAA single-season record 5,833
yards passing, and witnessed Sonny Cumbie lead the nation in
passing last year with 32 TDs and 4,742 yards. "I've had the opportunity to sit back and watch three great
quarterbacks and kind of soak up different aspects of their
games," Hodges said. "Then maybe I can add my own dimension and
do something special around here." Leach will pick between Hodges and Graham Harrell, a redshirt
freshman from Ennis who broke his ankle in an off-field incident in
the final week of spring practice. Harrell holds the state's high
school passing records with career marks of 12,532 yards and 167
touchdowns. Whoever is the quarterback, he will have bigger receivers than
in the past, including Jarrett Hicks, who led the conference in
yards per game (98 yards) and caught 13 TD passes last season. "I think we've got quite a bit of talent," Leach said. "We're
not lacking experience, but we're shy on it, I think." Tech's defense, long known to wear down in games and during a
season, improved considerably last year. The biggest improvement
was against the pass, shaving 75 yards per game off their previous
average to hit 15th in the nation. With players going into their
third season under the same scheme, Leach expects more improvement. "We got better and better as the year went," Leach said. "So
now we're a junior defense with a lot of guys that have played
quite a few snaps." So if the offense keeps humming along the defense continues to
improve, Tech could do better than last year, when it went 5-3 in
the conference, tying for third in the South division. "You constantly try to improve, constantly try to tighten the
slack," Leach said. "It's not usually about improving a bunch of
big things. It's just trying to be sharper at as many little things
as you can."
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