Texas Tech University Athletics
Harrell, Woods Shine In Season Opener
September 02, 2006 | Football
Sept. 2, 2006
By Trey Shipman, Texas Tech Media Relations
As No. 25 Texas Tech (1-0) entered its season-opening contest against Southern Methodist, it prepared to do so without two of its biggest contributors to the nation's top-rated offense in 2005. Having lost All-Big 12 performers quarterback Cody Hodges and running back Taurean Henderson to graduation, the shoes to fill in the Raider's backfield were gaping. Luckily for Tech, they found a pair of sophomores with big feet.
Graham Harrell and Shannon Woods made their debuts in a starting role in the Raiders' 35-3 defeat of SMU on a rainy evening Saturday at AT&T Jones Stadium. The duo wasted no time in asserting themselves as important cogs in coach Mike Leach's offensive machine.
Harrell showed he fits the mold of outstanding Tech quarterbacks of the past by completing 34-of-49 pass attempts for 342 yards and five touchdowns, including a 45-yard touchdown strike to Danny Amendola with 2:21 remaining in the third quarter.
Senior receiver Robert Johnson had no problem getting on the same page with his new general as he set the Tech single-game record for receptions with 15.
"Graham looked good tonight; he did a real good job," Johnson said. "He's a Tom Brady: he's a calm guy, he's cool."
Leach, who has made a habit of producing dominant quarterbacks, seemed pleased with the performance of his latest prodigy.
"I thought it was pretty good; I thought he had pretty good composure in there," Leach said. "He needs to maintain his tempo at times because there are others following him. As the starting quarterback, there needs to be the recognition that given the fact that you're a lot of the talk in the huddle, there's some attention on you where you can raise the level of tempo."
As impressive as Harrell was, he wasn't alone in tormenting the Mustang defense. Woods provided a spark for the Raider Air Attack all evening en route to collecting 104 yards on 15 carries. The sophomore showed he also possesses the versatility that has come to be expected out of Tech running backs by hooking up with Harrell on six receptions for 32 yards.
"I've been waiting for a chance to play and I just tried to play hard for my teammates and for everyone else," Woods said. "I try to set high expectations for myself every night. I'm striving to get a hundred yards every game; that's just how I play."
With all the majority of its receivers returning from 2005, standout performances from the revamped Raider backfield allows Leach and the rest of the Tech coaching staff to breathe a little easier.
"They played early and for starting significantly for a first time they did some good stuff; we'll see what they do from there," Leach said. "Some of the older guys think they have it figured out and they better keep that perspective. Some of the young guys that have had some initial success need to keep that perspective if we're going to be any good."
