Texas Tech Football: How Has Kingsbury Done Following Bye Weeks?

The Texas Tech football team is currently in the midst of an early-season bye week. Thus, it is a natural time to look at how the Red Raiders have fared coming off the extra week under Kliff Kingsbury.

There will be no football this week for the Texas Tech Red Raiders as an unusually early week two bye has arrived. Though the timing of this year’s bye week is far from ideal, the team must utilize it to prepare for two pivotal non-conference games against Arizona State and Houston.

For a team relying on as many young and new players as is Texas Tech, the extra coaching and instruction this week could pay immediate dividends. That notion causes one to wonder how the Texas Tech head coach has fared in previous games in which he has had an extra week to prepare.

Kingsbury has had five bye weeks during his time in Lubbock and the results have been mixed.

In his initial season at the helm, 2013, Kingsbury led his team to a 3-0 start prior to a bye week. Coming off a nationally televised Thursday night 20-10 victory over rival TCU, Tech entered the bye week feeling great.

Following the week off, Texas Tech finished non-conference play with a thorough beating of Texas State. Davis Webb passed for 310 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions against the Bobcats in the 33-7 win.

Eleven players caught at least one pass with receivers Eric Ward and Bradley Marquez finding the end zone. But while the first bye week of 2013 yielded a victory, the season’s second off week did not have the same effect.

On Thanksgiving night 2013, Texas Tech traveled to Austin after a week off. Unfortunately, the Longhorns dominated Texas Tech to the tune of 41-16.

On that night, it did not appear like Tech had made the most of its extra week of preparation. The Red Raiders managed just 396 yards of total offense and were led in rushing by punter Ryan Erxleben who scored a touchdown on a 51-yard fake punt. It was just the latest in a string of forgettable trips to the state capital for Texas Tech.

The loss extended a five-game losing streak for a team that started the season 7-0. It was a disappointing end to a regular season that saw Kingsbury take his team into the top-10 just a month prior.

In 2015, Kingsbury’s struggles following bye weeks continued. The first bye of the season was fraught with drama following the sudden departure of defensive coordinator Matt Wallerstdet.

Just days after Texas Tech was embarrassed at home by Arkansas 49-28, Wallerstedt and Texas Tech parted ways for reasons that were not specified but were not believed to be football related.

Mike Smith was promoted to defensive coordinator and had two weeks to prepare for a road game at Oklahoma State. Against the Cowboys, Tech was unable to pull out a victory in a game that was there for the taking.

More from Wreck'Em Red

The Cowboys pulled away late for a 45-35 victory. The game is most notable because it was the debut of quarterback Patrick Mahomes who entered in relief of injured starter Davis Webb. Mahomes went 2-5 for 20 yards a touchdown and a pick and looked quite flustered in his first Big 12 action.

Later in the season, with Texas Tech sitting on just three wins, it hosted Oklahoma two weeks after falling to Texas at home. Despite leading at halftime, Kingsbury’s squad could not hold off the Sooners.

OU rushed for 384 yards and five touchdowns en route to a 42-30 win. Mahomes was solid in his second career start though. After being knocked out of the Texas game, he went 27-50 for 393 yards, four touchdowns and no interceptions in his first full game as a starter.

Fortunately for Kingsbury, his luck following bye weeks would change in 2015. On Thanksgiving night, the Red Raiders won in Austin for the first time in almost two decades 48-45.

On the night that Jakeem Grant would become the program’s all-time leading receiver it was a handoff to the diminutive speedster that changed the game. With Tech up three late in the game, Tech ran a trick play that saw the ball handed to a crouching Grant who hid behind the offensive line while the defense followed Mahomes’ fake. 40 yards later, Grant was in the end zone and Tech was on its way to a huge win.

Last season, Kingsbury racked up another conference win after the open week. Tech beat Kansas 55-19 on a Thursday night to open Big 12 play.

Though the game was a blowout, it was not without drama. Mahomes left the game in the third quarter with a shoulder injury suffered after a long scramble.

Nic Shimonek took over and was fantastic. He went 15-21 for 271 yards and four touchdowns in relief as he gave fans a preview of what was to come in 2017.

Overall, Kingsbury has gone 3-2 in games following a bye week. He has won the games he was expected to win and lost to teams that were favorites.

That makes predicting the outcome of next week’s game difficult. Texas Tech faces an Arizona State team that won last year’s matchup 68-55 in Tempe and returns most of its key players.

Next: FR Kicker Michael Ewton Pressed Into Action

However, analysts see this game as a toss-up. It is a contest that could go a long ways in determining the fate of the 2017 Red Raiders and Kliff Kingsbury himself. It will be a great measuring stick for this young team and will reveal quite a bit about how well Kingsbury and his staff have prepared the Red Raiders during the extra week.

Home/Texas Tech Football