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Texas Tech football: Players that benefitted from the abbreviated spring

By Matthew Conner

LUBBOCK, TEXAS - SEPTEMBER 07: Defensive end Eli Howard V #53 of Texas Tech signals during "The Matador Song" after the college football game between the Texas Tech Red Raiders and the UTEP Miners at Jones AT&T Stadium on September 07, 2019 in Lubbock, Texas. (Poto by John E. Moore III/Getty Images)
LUBBOCK, TEXAS - SEPTEMBER 07: Defensive end Eli Howard V #53 of Texas Tech signals during "The Matador Song" after the college football game between the Texas Tech Red Raiders and the UTEP Miners at Jones AT&T Stadium on September 07, 2019 in Lubbock, Texas. (Poto by John E. Moore III/Getty Images) /
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Quarterback Alan Bowman #10 of the Texas Tech Red Raiders. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)
Quarterback Alan Bowman #10 of the Texas Tech Red Raiders. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images) /

Alan Bowman

In some ways, QB Alan Bowman needed the spring to work off some rust after missing most of the last two years with serious injuries.  But in another way, he might have benefited more than any player from the lack of a full spring practice session.

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Had there been 15 spring workouts, Bowman would have had to win a true QB battle against redshirt freshman Maverick McIvor, who is also working his way back from injury, a broken foot that cost him all of last year.  But now, there’s almost no way that Tech will start anyone but Bowman in the season opener unless something unforeseen happens, such as an injury, which is possible given Bowman’s history.

The truth is that the last version of Bowman we saw was unimpressive.  He completed just 54% of his passes while tossing two picks against Arizona in a 28-14 loss that also saw him suffer a separated shoulder injury that ended his season.

We saw nothing from Bowman last year to make us believe that he shouldn’t have to earn the starting job again this offseason.  Especially given that by the time McIvor broke his foot, he had already climbed to No. 2 on the depth chart despite being on campus just a matter of weeks.

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It’s still entirely likely that Bowman would have been the starter this year had there been a full spring.  After all, he’s the only QB on the roster who has thrown a pass at the collegiate level.  However, the fact that he didn’t have to win a QB competition only served to solidify his place as the starter to begin the year.

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