Texas Tech football: Now is the perfect time to give Jett Duffey a shot

Heading into a matchup with an FCS team and with its starting quarterback sidelined, now would be the perfect time for the Texas Tech football team to finally give QB Jett Duffey a shot.

It is often said that the most popular player on any football team is the backup quarterback. But it seems that the most popular player on the 2018 Texas Tech football team is third-string QB Jett Duffey.

Now, following an injury to starting QB McLane Carter, the Texas Tech offense is once again in flux and a huge section of the fan base has begun to clamber for the redshirt sophomore with freakish athleticism to finally get an opportunity to show what he can do.

But for some reason, Kliff Kingsbury seems hell-bent on keeping Duffey on the sidelines. Duffey got zero snaps in Saturday’s 47-27 loss to Ole Miss while true freshman Alan Bowman played the final three quarters of the game completing 29 of 49 passes for 273 yards and a touchdown.

While Bowman was impressive in his collegiate debut, his performance was not lights-out enough to seal the job moving forward. But against the Rebels, Kingsbury had a perfect opportunity to let his quarterback competition play out in a real game, an opportunity rarely afforded without significant consequences and he did not give Duffey any snaps.

Tech’s final two drives of the game came with the Red Raiders down 20 points and having no chance to come back. Why not give Duffey some run in a situation where he could have done nothing to hurt the team?

Another puzzling aspect of the decision not to play Duffey in Carter’s absence was that the game plan the coaches entered the game with seemed more tailored to Duffey’s style of play than Bowman’s. Tech opened the game trying to incorporate McLane Carter’s mobility into the offense by utilizing throw-backs, roll-outs and the zone read.

But once Alan Bowman entered, that scheme was scrapped as Tech went to an offense that was as simple and basic as one would expect a true freshman to be asked to execute in his first ever college game. As a result, Tech put up just ten points in Bowman’s first four drives as the offense looked understandably disjointed.

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When it became obvious that the offense was sputtering, Duffey could have potentially provided a spark and allowed Kingsbury to open the play book up to new elements that might have caught Ole Miss off guard. But while it may be reasonable to understand why Kingsbury didn’t want to play a third quarterback in one game Saturday, there is no reason not to give Duffey some meaningful snaps in week two.

Facing FCS member Lamar in the home opener figures to be little more than a glorified scrimmage. Even if middle linebacker Dakota Allen were asked to play quarterback, the Red Raiders would still crush the Cardinals.

Thus, if Kingsbury ever wanted to see what Duffey can do, it would be this week. It is almost guaranteed that Bowman will get the start, and that is fine as the freshman needs quality reps.

But it would be foolish for Kingsbury to keep Duffey sidelined again before a tough Houston team comes calling. Kingsbury needs to know exactly what he has in both quarterbacks ahead of what will be a critical showdown against a stout Cougar defense featuring all-American defensive tackle Ed Oliver in two weeks.

Plus, Duffey’s running ability seems to be a better fit for the 2018 offense which features the most mediocre group of receivers in the “Air Raid” era. Bowman will need to rely on his receivers to win one-on-one battles and when they don’t he lacks the ability to make something happen on his own.

A receiver corps similar to last year’s, full of proven upperclassmen, would have suited Bowman’s game better than a group still trying to figure out its roles and learn how to contribute as starters. But Duffey would give this offense another weapon to utilize should the passing game prove to be ineffective.

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Ultimately, the quarterback situation adds an element of intrigue to this year’s expected drubbing of another FCS sacrificial lamb. It is imperative that Kingsbury enters the Houston game (arguably the most critical non-conference game of his career) with a better idea of what he has in all of his quarterbacks and the only way to do that is to finally give Jett Duffey an opportunity this week.

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