Texas Tech football: Areas of concern remain even after WVU win

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(Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images) /

Even the worst offense in the Big 12 torched the Tech secondary

If there was a team that the Texas Tech secondary should have been able to handle, it would have been West Virginia. Entering the game averaging only 223 yards through the air and ranking last in the Big 12 in passing efficiency, the Mountaineers were far from a lethal offensive team.

However, Tech was burned to the tune of 498 yards and two touchdowns through the air. Think about this, when was the last time that we’ve seen a QB who threw for 355 yards get pulled in a game as WVU starter Austin Kendall did? What’s concerning is that even a QB who was not deemed fit to complete the game he started, one who played half the contest with a taped thumb on his throwing hand, still managed to put up 355 yards and 8.3 yards per completion against the Tech secondary.

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WVU’s Sam James became just the latest wide receiver to carve up the Red Raider pass defense. He grabbed 14 passes for 222 yards, 35.7% of his season total thus far.

It’s not that James is particularly good. Aside from his 155-yard outing against N.C. State, he’s had no other game with more than the 66 yards he managed against Texas.

Soon to face star receivers like TCU’s Jalen Reagor and Texas’ Collin Johnson and Devin Duvernay, this secondary remains a dumpster fire outside of Douglas Coleman, who picked off his NCAA-leading 8th pass of the year in Morgantown.

"“We’re thin back there,” Wells said Saturday. “I just commend those guys because they got coached hard the last ten days and they responded. Again, there’s more work to do there.”"

Even the ultimate coach speak from Wells can’t hide the fact that his secondary is a disaster. Safety Adrian Frye continues to look lost in coverage as he repeatedly makes the wrong read or takes a poor path to the ball. Freshmen Dadrion Taylor and Alex Hogan aren’t ready for Big 12 snaps but they have to play because of this program’s lack of depth while the veterans on the team like Zech McPhearson and Damarcus Fields are proving to be merely average at best.

The good news is that the next two opponents, TCU and Kansas State, rank 9th and 10th in the Big 12 in passing offense but West Virginia proved that even sub-par passing teams are able to exploit Tech’s biggest weakness. Will that prevent the Red Raiders from reaching six wins? It is very possible.

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