I took time to watch the Tech-Houston game in order to assess the performance of both teams. I also reviewed the message boards for both teams to hear what their own fans had to say. Hear are the observations and insight I've come away with:
1. Tech's offense looked very good. However, the Houston defense was very weak. Poor tackling and missed assignments everywhere. Their fans were appalled by how they looked, given they had the best defensive lineman (Ed Oliver) in the nation. Even the Tech fans were surprised how bad the Cougar defensed looked. Apparently, there was little or no defensive depth on the Cougar team, which led to fatigue and big plays by the Raiders. When Oliver came out for a breather, Tech faced little or no pressure on their quarterback.
2. The Tech defense was nothing to write home about either. They were missing their best defensive back, but everybody has injuries. Their depth on defense is suspect. Their fans are surprised how poorly they have played so far, given the optimism they had prior to the season. The 77-0 victory against Lamar has skewed their stats tremendously. Take that game off the books, and Tech's defense would be in the bottom 5 in the country. Lamar is considerably worse than South Alabama, and even Missouri State on defense. Their national ranking reflects that, as well.
3. Tech is still haunted by their special teams play. They have had shaky ST's for years, and their fans have not seen improvement.
4. Tech's QB is playing well, particularly for a true freshman. I don't see how he could be doing that well so early, given he was not highly rated even in Texas. I suspect he's better than expected, but the jury is out on how he will respond when having to face a much better defense on the road.
Summary
1. If we play a good game, with 1-2 turnovers, we will win the game by at least 2-3 touchdowns. Our offenses are comparable, but we are far better defensively and in Special Teams. Plus, we're playing at home, which is worth 7 points. Tech is putting a lot of pressure on a true freshman QB, in his first conference game. Any normal person would be nervous about that scenario. If Bowman plays a great game, they have a chance to win if we don't take care of the ball. If he's able to pull that off, then he deserves all the credit, and more power to him.
2. Our defensive depth is perhaps as good or better than it has been in years. We're two deep along the front 7, and our young dbs are getting better with experience. They will be tested, like they were against Boise State. The Bronco receivers made some unbelievable receptions, and two of those accounted for touchdowns, and the other was on a 4th down play with two minutes to go in the game. Rypien also proved why he's regarded as one of the top 5 QBs in the country. Most qbs would have collapsed given the number of times he was sacked and hit. But, he hung in there, and made some excellent throws while under heavy pressure.
3. The Tech and Cougar fans are both down on their team's defenses. That scenario led to the results we saw from them last week. Over 1100 yards in offense, and over 100 points scored. Unless I'm a complete idiot, I don't see Tech having the kind of success on offense they had against Houston. In addition, Ole Miss beat them fairly soundly, and the Rebels were absolutely destroyed by Alabama by halftime. We are not Alabama, but we're far better than Houston and Ole Miss.
1. Tech's offense looked very good. However, the Houston defense was very weak. Poor tackling and missed assignments everywhere. Their fans were appalled by how they looked, given they had the best defensive lineman (Ed Oliver) in the nation. Even the Tech fans were surprised how bad the Cougar defensed looked. Apparently, there was little or no defensive depth on the Cougar team, which led to fatigue and big plays by the Raiders. When Oliver came out for a breather, Tech faced little or no pressure on their quarterback.
2. The Tech defense was nothing to write home about either. They were missing their best defensive back, but everybody has injuries. Their depth on defense is suspect. Their fans are surprised how poorly they have played so far, given the optimism they had prior to the season. The 77-0 victory against Lamar has skewed their stats tremendously. Take that game off the books, and Tech's defense would be in the bottom 5 in the country. Lamar is considerably worse than South Alabama, and even Missouri State on defense. Their national ranking reflects that, as well.
3. Tech is still haunted by their special teams play. They have had shaky ST's for years, and their fans have not seen improvement.
4. Tech's QB is playing well, particularly for a true freshman. I don't see how he could be doing that well so early, given he was not highly rated even in Texas. I suspect he's better than expected, but the jury is out on how he will respond when having to face a much better defense on the road.
Summary
1. If we play a good game, with 1-2 turnovers, we will win the game by at least 2-3 touchdowns. Our offenses are comparable, but we are far better defensively and in Special Teams. Plus, we're playing at home, which is worth 7 points. Tech is putting a lot of pressure on a true freshman QB, in his first conference game. Any normal person would be nervous about that scenario. If Bowman plays a great game, they have a chance to win if we don't take care of the ball. If he's able to pull that off, then he deserves all the credit, and more power to him.
2. Our defensive depth is perhaps as good or better than it has been in years. We're two deep along the front 7, and our young dbs are getting better with experience. They will be tested, like they were against Boise State. The Bronco receivers made some unbelievable receptions, and two of those accounted for touchdowns, and the other was on a 4th down play with two minutes to go in the game. Rypien also proved why he's regarded as one of the top 5 QBs in the country. Most qbs would have collapsed given the number of times he was sacked and hit. But, he hung in there, and made some excellent throws while under heavy pressure.
3. The Tech and Cougar fans are both down on their team's defenses. That scenario led to the results we saw from them last week. Over 1100 yards in offense, and over 100 points scored. Unless I'm a complete idiot, I don't see Tech having the kind of success on offense they had against Houston. In addition, Ole Miss beat them fairly soundly, and the Rebels were absolutely destroyed by Alabama by halftime. We are not Alabama, but we're far better than Houston and Ole Miss.
