Texas Tech Football: Why the defense will improve this season

Texas Tech has never had a problem on offense, but defensively, it’s been a different story. However, there are several key areas that spell improvements for the Red Raiders this season–if they can learn how to play on the same team again.

Texas Tech Football is in a situation this season that’s all too familiar. On one hand, it’s coming off a season that boasted one of the most powerful offenses in the country, and a Top 10 NFL Draft pick in Patrick Mahomes. On the other hand, it failed to become Bowl eligible, and had a defense that finished last in NCAA Division 1 Football rankings.

The most irritating things about Texas Tech Football, are that it’s consistent and predictable, and unfortunately, it’s given opponents a leg up on Game Day. They know to expect an offensive assault, however, with a porous defense, opponents also know that if they can take advantage of the defense and create a shootout situation, they’ll likely win.

That’s simply unacceptable.

Defensive coordinator David Gibbs was lured away from Houston for his defenses ability to create turnovers. So far, Tech hasn’t had the returns they wanted in that department, and only had eight turnovers last season.

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Gibbs is heading into his third season with Texas Tech Football, so players from his signing classes are finally coming into maturity, and now is the time for them to show what they’re made of. Coaching turnovers at a specific position creates a litany of problems, and Tech’s defensive coordinator changes in the Kingsbury Era have been especially problematic.

Assembling a cohesive defensive unit can be a challenge with that level of coaching turnover, and for a number of reasons. Recruits don’t see dedication to cultural, and schematic commitment, and that can create issues for years. That’s what Tech’s been facing, but with facilities upgrades, and consistency at the DC position, any reasons for failure this season are just excuses that will be addressed as early as December.

Urgency and consistency must be the motivating forces behind the defensive unit this season, and if this offseason is any indicator on the direction the program is headed, I think Tech will be in good shape. And if the players respect their coaches and the hard work they’ve put in, they’ll find ways to complete, and compete.

When linebacker Dakota Allen was dismissed from the football team last summer, it was a substantial loss to the defensive line. He was not only an emerging leading tackler for the Red Raiders, he also had the talent necessary to earn a leadership role in the locker room. Adversity is nothing if players can’t use their past to affect change, so hopefully now that he’s back, Allen is able to use his story to drive home the urgency to play with everything on the line.

If anyone is wondering, the staff still hasn’t restored the Double-Ts, and I think the intrinsic reason behind this, is that for too long, the offense and defense have played like they’re not even on the same team. Both units haven’t looked in sync since the days of Mike Leach, and if you’re lacking synergy, it’s easy for players to check out. By making them earn the right to wear something Tech players have taken for granted for far too long, they’re learning what it means to play with pride again, and more importantly, they’re learning how to play like a team again.

Eventually teams get tired of losing, and the body language and energy emanating from both the coaches and players right now indicates they’re ready for battle.

With head coach Kliff Kingsbury taking on the CEO role this offseason, he’s been encouraging the defense to challenge the offense. When the defense has a big play, seeing Kingsbury lose his mind in excitement is that spark fans have been wanting to see for years, and I think that could be a huge difference-maker this upcoming season.

Even if scoring takes a hit, if Tech’s defense can create stops, they’ll be able to pump the breaks on the shootout tempo, and control the game by design. Tech fans have a lot of reasons to be excited about this upcoming season, and if the players come out with the enthusiasm we’re anticipating, it could be the start of something special in Lubbock.

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