Texas Tech University Athletics
Tuberville: 'What a Day'
September 18, 2011 | Football
September 17, 2011
by Britton Drown
Texas Tech Athletics Communications
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M.--A crowd donned in red Texas Tech t-shirts stood just a few feet above Tommy Tuberville as he stood against a cement wall outside the Red Raider locker room Saturday evening.
With camera-phones ready, they leaned against a railing overlooking the huddle of media members to try and get a better glimpse of what the second-year head coach had to say moments after his team picked up their second convincing win of the season.
Even after the marathon of a game, which took just under five hours to complete, Tuberville was upbeat and energetic as he talked about his team's 59-13 victory over New Mexico.
"It's pretty unusual for an offense to be on like that," he said fighting back a grin. "What a day."
It was quite a unique day. The game saw two weather delays scattered throughout the first and second half totaling 95 minutes in all. But neither the persistent lightning nor the sudden rain could slow down a rejuvenated Texas Tech offense--one that clearly benefited from the preceding bye week.
 | "It's pretty unusual for an offense to be on like that. What a day." - Tommy Tuberville |
The Red Raiders have now outscored their opponents 109-23 in the first two games of the season.
"It was a fun day for the offense," Tuberville said. "I'm proud of Seth."
The previous record was held by former Texas Tech quarterback Kliff Kingsbury who went 49-of-59 against Texas A&M in 2002 at Kyle Field in College Station.
"It's a tribute to the entire offense," Doege said. "There were balls that probably should have been incompletions that receivers caught and the offensive line played very well. Those guys did a great job."
Junior receiver Darrin Moore, who set a school record for receiving yards in a season opener with 221 in the Red Raiders' win over Texas State on Sept. 3, finished Saturday's game with 118 yards on nine catches and three touchdowns--almost all of which came in the first half.
Doege said his confidence in his receivers has only grown throughout the first three weeks of the season.
"You grow in confidence and you feel like you are in a rhythm," Doege said. "Everybody is moving around and everybody is relaxed and everybody is just playing and doing their job. We need to keep improving on it and keep doing it throughout the season."
The Tech offense, which struggled to get started in their season-opener, took no time to warm up on Saturday. On just the fifth play of the game, Seth Doege connected with Moore over the middle for a 56-yard touchdown strike.
The Red Raiders proceeded to jump out to a 28-0 lead as Doege connected on each of his first 15 pass attempts. The 15 consecutive completions tied an all-time school record set by Taylor Potts who connected on his first 15 pass attempts last season against Baylor.
"When you are as proficient as we were on offense today, it makes it a lot easier on everybody," Tuberville said.
Meanwhile, the defense caused three New Mexico turnovers, including a key interception in the first quarter by freshman linebacker Blake Dees.
The Red Raiders have now caused seven turnovers in their first two games.
"That is what you have got to do," Tuberville said. "Especially on the road. We got an early lead and then got the ball back to our offense which was playing very well."
It's clear that Tuberville and his squad took advantage of their early bye week heading into Saturday's game. Now the squad turns its attention to 10 consecutive games looming on the remainder of their schedule. The first of those comes on Saturday evening when the Red Raiders host Nevada at Jones AT&T Stadium. Kickoff is set for 6:00 pm
But nights like Saturday certainly give this team confidence heading into the stretch.
"We got much better," Tuberville said. "But we have a lot of work to do."
