RED RAIDERS NOT LOOKING PAST RICE

In less than a week, Texas Tech football players will be gearing up for a much-anticipated rematch with Texas.

The Red Raiders and the Longhorns will have the spotlight to themselves as the only Big 12 Conference game on Sept. 19. Plus, there are the ABC executives who will televise the game nationally, hoping for anything close to last November’s thrilling finish at Jones AT&T Stadium in a game Tech won 39-33.

The Red Raiders’ approach? The Texas game can wait until after the Rice game this weekend.
“I don’t really think anybody’s focusing on Texas right now,’’ Tech guard Brandon Carter said. “We have a game this week. Rice has a good team and, really, we go out there every day like it’s the biggest game of the year.

“We practice hard, and we don’t take any reps for granted. I think the whole team sees it like that. The coaching staff does a good job of making sure we don’t look past anybody.’’

This week, it could be more of a challenge than usual. Tech (1-0) is a 27-point favorite to beat Rice (0-1) in Saturday’s 6 p.m. home game.
Look ahead?
“If they’re that stupid, we’ve got a lot of problems,’’ Tech coach Mike Leach said. “We’re only playing Rice this week.’’

Tech and UT originally were scheduled for Nov. 7, but agreed to the move for a marquee nationally televised game.

The Tech-Texas game 10 days from now in Austin will be the earliest Big 12 game for Tech since 1996, the year the league formed. In that inaugural season, the Red Raiders played Kansas State on Aug. 31 and Oklahoma State on Sept. 7.

Since Leach took over as head coach in 2000, Tech has had either three or four non-conference games before the Big 12 schedule, with one exception. In 2001, the Raiders played a week-three game on Sept. 29 in Austin, losing to Texas 42-7.

“We’re not thinking about week three right now,’’ quarterback Taylor Potts said. “We’re thinking about the Rice game. Right now, I’m thinking about what we’re going to do to be able to beat Rice and be real good this week. We’ve got to have a great week of execution this week in practice. I think we all know that, and I think that’ll happen this week.’’

Texas opened with a 59-20 home rout of Louisiana-Monroe last week and plays Saturday at Wyoming.

Texas is a 331/2-point pick to beat Wyoming, but there might be a little more of a hook to keep the Longhorns interested in their game than there is for the Red Raiders to stay focused on Rice. At their weekly news conference, Texas players said they were excited to visit a place they’d never been and play in a cooler climate.

There’s also a strategic angle — new Wyoming head coach Dave Christensen was offensive coordinator the last eight years at Missouri under Gary Pinkel, so he has a familiarity with the Longhorns.

Leach, meanwhile, has to convince his players that Rice still poses a threat despite the loss of the record-setting quarterback-receiver combo of Chase Clement to Jarett Dillard and the departure of versatile tight end James Casey. The Owls were 10-3 last season.

“They also coached and manufactured those guys to some (extent),’’ Leach said, “so there’s nothing to say they can’t do it again.’’


Story courtesy of Don Williams at www.redraiders.com