Wreck'Em Red
Fansided

Looking Back At Kliff Kingsbury’s Biggest Mistakes

By Matthew Conner

AUSTIN, TX - NOVEMBER 24: Head coach Kliff Kingsbury of the Texas Tech Red Raiders surveys the field as the team arrives before the game against the Texas Longhorns at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium on November 24, 2017 in Austin, Texas. (Photo by Tim Warner/Getty Images)
AUSTIN, TX - NOVEMBER 24: Head coach Kliff Kingsbury of the Texas Tech Red Raiders surveys the field as the team arrives before the game against the Texas Longhorns at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium on November 24, 2017 in Austin, Texas. (Photo by Tim Warner/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
1 of 6
Next
(Photo by John Weast/Getty Images)
(Photo by John Weast/Getty Images) /

Here’s a look at some of his most costly mistakes and how they have helped to put Kliff Kingsbury on the hot seat in 2018.

Fans and college football experts alike have been critical of Kliff Kingsbury for the mistakes he has made while learning how to be a Big 12 coach and to be fair, there have been quite a few. Kingsbury is on the hot seat for the second-consecutive season.  After just five years as head coach, Texas Tech’s favorite son now finds himself coaching for his job.

Fortunately for Kingsbury, he has the full support of his boss.  Athletic director Kirby Hocutt has shown more loyalty to his head football coach than almost any other AD would show a coach with a 30-33 overall record and a 16-29 mark in conference games.

That loyalty is likely built on as much self-preservation as it is faith in the 38-year-old head coach eventually figuring out how to be successful at one of the most challenging Power-5 jobs.  Kingsbury was Hocutt’s marquee hire and the massive contract extension given to Kingsbury after just one season remains Hocutt’s boldest and most scrutinized move as Texas Tech AD.

It would behoove Hocutt for Kingsbury to work out.  Make no mistake, Hocutt’s most important task is to ensure the success of the Texas Tech football program.  In giving the reigns of his university’s most important money-making machine to a 33-year-old with only two years experience as a college coordinator and five years coaching experience at any level, he gambled not only the future of the Red Raider football program but also his own reputation on an unproven commodity.

And thus far, the returns have been underwhelming to say the least.  Kingsbury has won only two games against ranked opponents with both coming in his first season (2013) and he is yet to post a winning record in Big 12 play.

Kingsbury has another chance to right the ship in 2018 thanks to a reprieve Hocutt gave him after he knocked off Texas in the final regular season game of 2017.  But his precarious situation is of his own making.  Over the past five years, he has made some critical mistakes that left messes that he is still trying to recover from.  Here is a look at the biggest mistakes Kingsbury has made at Texas Tech.

Home/Texas Tech Football