Texas Tech University Athletics
Red Raiders Prepare For No. 5 Longhorns
September 24, 2001 | Football
Sept. 24, 2001
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LAST WEEK FOR TEXAS TECH AND TEXAS
Texas Tech put 42 points on the board for the second-straight game as the Red Raiders knocked off North Texas 42-14 last Saturday at Texas Stadium in Irving. The Red Raiders are 2-0 on the season and enter Big 12 play as the nation's No. 10 scoring team. Texas moved to 3-0 this season with a 53-26 win over Houston on the road. The Longhorns are 5th in the nation in scoring.
THE TEXAS TECH-TEXAS SERIES
Texas Tech trails in the series 36-13, but has won two of the last four. The Red Raiders last won in Austin during the 1997 season.
TEXAS SCOUTING REPORT
Texas is 3-0 on the year entering Big 12 play against Texas Tech this weekend. The fifth-ranked Longhorns opened the season with wins over New Mexico State (41-7) and North Carolina (44-14), before knocking off Houston (53-26) on the road last Saturday. Texas is outscoring its opponents 46.0 to 15.7 points per game and is logging 419.7 yards of total offense per game. QB Chris Simms is averaging 220 yards in the air and has thrown five touchdown passes to lead the Longhorn offense. RB Ivan Williams leads the Texas ground attack with 242 yards in three games and three touchdowns. WR B.J. Johnson and WR Roy Williams each have 13 receptions on the season. Johnson is averaging 70.3 yards receiving per game, while Williams follows with 52.3. DB Ahmad Brooks leads the team with 26 tackles.
RED RAIDER NOTEBOOK
- Texas Tech's 42-14 win on the road against North Texas last Saturday marked the second time in the eight-game series that the Red Raiders have dismantled the Mean Green on a neutral field. In 1998, Tech won 30-0 in Irving. Tech had struggled at home against North Texas.
- RB Ricky Williams' nine-yard run at 9:06 in the first quarter against North Texas sent him over the 3,000-yard career mark. His 94 yards rushing gives him 3,084 yards for his career, and he is only the fourth player in Tech history to achieve the 3,000-yard plateau.
- FS Paul McClendon scored a touchdown off a fumble recovery for the second-straight game this season (also the second time in the last two seasons that Tech has returned a fumble for a touchdown in each of the first two games of the season). With his interception return for a touchdown in the third quarter, McClendon is tied with Williams as Tech's leading scorer on the season with 18 points.
- The last time that Tech's defense scored two touchdowns was in a 58-0 win over Oklahoma State last season.
- QB Kliff Kingsbury has thrown a passing touchdown in seven-consecutive regular season games, establishing a new Texas Tech record.
- TE Cole Roberts caught his first career touchdown pass on a four-yard strike from Kingsbury in the second quarter against UNT.
- DB Ryan Aycock has 47 rushing yards in his career, all on two fake punts. He advanced a fake punt 28 yards against UNT last Saturday and carried one for 19 yards last season against North Texas.
- TE Mickey Peters caught his second career touchdown, one in each game this season.
TWO OF NATION'S TOP SCORING AND PASSING OFFENSES SQUARE OFF SATURDAY
Texas Tech ranks second in the Big 12 with 42.0 points per game, trailing Texas' 46.0 points. The two teams also boast two of the Big 12's top three passing offenses. Tech leads the league and ranks seventh nationally with 325.0 yards per game. Texas is third in the league and 39th nationally with 245.3 yards. Tech QB Kliff Kingsbury leads the Big 12 in total offense (319.5) and passing yards per game (325.0). Kingsbury and Texas QB Chris Simms are the only two players in the Big 12 to have thrown five scoring strikes this season.
TEXAS TECH-UTEP CANCEL GAME, OPPONENT TO BE NAMED
Texas Tech and UTEP couldn't agree on a mutual date to reschedule the game, originally scheduled for Sept. 13. The game was originally postponed following the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks on New York City and Washington, D.C. No decision has been made on who will replace the Miners on the schedule, but the date most likely will be Nov. 24 in Lubbock.
WILLIAMS MAKES HISTORY IN WIN OVER NORTH TEXAS
RB Ricky Williams set a school record with 13 receptions against the Mean Green last Saturday. Needless to say, Williams also set the school record for receptions by a running back and established a personal-best 101 yards receiving. On the night, Williams amassed 195 yards of total offense with two rushing touchdowns.
TECH DEFENSIVE BACK TIED FOR SCORING LEAD
DB Paul McClendon returned two North Texas turnovers for touchdowns Saturday and has 18 points on the season to tie atop the Red Raider scoring list with Ricky Williams. McClendon scored on a 6-yard fumble return and a 50-yard interception return. In the season opener against New Mexico, he returned a fumble 54 yards for a touchdown. McClendon and Williams are tied for seventh in the Big 12 with 9.0 points per game.
McCLENDON NAMED BIG 12 DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK
For his heroics against North Texas, McClendon was named Southwestern Bell Big 12 Football Defensive Player of the Week. McClendon is the first Red Raiders to earn the award on the defensive side since Kevin Curtis during the 1999 season. Overall, four Tech players have received the defensive honor (Robert Johnson - 1996, Montae Reagor - 1997).
DEFENSE IMPRESSIVE ON THIRD-DOWN CONVERSIONS
Texas Tech's defense has limited the opposition on third-down conversions. In two games, Tech opponents are 6-of-31 (19%) on third down. The Red Raiders held New Mexico to 3-of-16 and North Texas to 3-of-15.
FOLLOWING McCLENDON'S LEAD
Texas Tech scored back-to-back touchdowns twice in its 42-14 win over North Texas. Following McClendon's fumble return, the Red Raiders scored on their next offensive possession, capping a 10-play, 67-yard drive with a Kingsbury to Cole Roberts 4-yard strike. Tech did it again in the third and fourth quarters. Following another McClendon defensive touchdown to close the third, Kingsbury hit Mickey Peters with a 5-yard pass to end a 10-play, 79-yard drive.
KINGSBURY STREAKS INTO RECORD BOOK
Junior QB Kliff Kingsbury set a school record against North Texas - he has thrown a touchdown pass in seven-consecutive regular-season games.
RICKY BECOMES FOURTH TO RUSH FOR 3,000 YARDS
Senior RB Ricky Williams third carry for nine yards propelled him over the 3,000-yard mark in career rushing at Texas Tech. Williams joins Byron Hanspard (4,219), James Gray (4,066) and Byron Morris (3,544) on the list.
BIG 12 RUNNING BACKS LED BY WILLIAMS
Led by senior Ricky Williams of Texas Tech as he continues his comeback from near-career-ending knee surgery in September, 1999, active Big 12 rushers are climbing the charts after some excellent early performances. Williams became the fifth rusher since the founding of the Big 12 to surpass 3,000 yards while Nebraska QB Eric Crouch continues to excel on the ground and in the air. He accounted for five touchdowns (three passing, two running) in NU's win over Rice and moved past Missouri QB Corby Jones (2,533 net rushing yards from 1995-98) for the most rushing yards ever by a Big 12 signal caller. ISU's Ennis Haywood used a 219-yard rushing day at Ohio to reach the 2,000-yard career mark. Kansas State's Josh Scobey is cruising in his first two 2001 outings with 43 carries for 277 yards and 11th place nationally at 138.5 yards per game. He needs five yards at OU Saturday to reach the 1,000 figure in his 16th regular-season clash.
PAIGE GETS FIRST COLLEGIATE START
Junior college transfer WR Anton Paige saw his first action as a Red Raiders as a member of the starting lineup against North Texas. Paige suffered a hamstring injury in the team's first scrimmage of the preseason Aug. 19 and has been limited since. He caught two passes for 13 yards against North Texas.
UNLIKELY PLAYER HAS TEAM'S LONGEST RUSH
Sophomore DB Ryan Aycock has the team's longest rush on the season. Aycock, playing the upback position on the punting team, took the snap from Eric Bartee on a fourth-and-10 punt in the first quarter. Aycock scampered 28 yards down the left sideline to the NT17. Tech eventually scored on a Kingsbury to Roberts pass.
TECH AMONG THE LEAGUE'S BEST
The Red Raiders rank high in several Big 12 statistical categories, including holding the top spot in passing offense at 325.0 yards per game, which also ranks seventh nationally. Tech also ranks second in scoring offense (42.0 ppg), second in pass defense (123.5 ypg), tied for first in point after kicking (10-of-10, 100%), third in fourth down conversions (3-of-5, 60%) and fourth in red zone offense (6-of-8, 75%).
TECH RANKS HIGH IN GRADUATION RATES SURVEY
The American Football Coaches Association recognized Texas Tech football as one of the nation's top 30 programs in graduating its student-athletes.
Texas Tech recognized a jump in graduation to 70 percent this past year after graduating 54 percent the previous year. Tech, Baylor and Nebraska were the only schools from the Big 12 recognized as having graduated 70 percent or higher.
Curtis Named to Thorpe Award "Watch List"
Senior strong safety Kevin Curtis was been named to the Thorpe Award "Watch List" for the 2001 season. The Thorpe Award is presented annually to the nation's top defensive back.
Curtis also has received several preseason honors, including being named a second-team All-American by Street & Smith's. He also is listed as one of the top 10 collegiate safeties entering the 2001 season by Lindy's College Football.
The 6-foot-3, 223-pound Lubbock native finished second on the team last season with 121 tackles and fourth in the Big 12 Conference. His 320 career tackles ranks ninth all-time at Tech, trailing former Tech All-American Gabe Rivera by one tackle.
Other players named to the list include Quentin Jammer (Texas), Roy Williams (Oklahoma), Pig Prather (Mississippi State) and Lito Sheppard (Florida).
Kingsbury Named to O'Brien Watch List
Junior quarterback Kliff Kingsbury was been named to the Davey O'Brien Foundation Watch List for the upcoming season. The award is presented annually to the nation's top college quarterback.
Joining Kingsbury on the list from the Big 12 is Eric Crouch (Nebraska), Mark Farris (Texas A&M) and Chris Simms (Texas).
The O'Brien Award is named in honor of the late Davey O'Brien, the All-American and Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback for Texas Christian University who led the Horned Frogs to the 1938 National Championship.
