Tech will have a 1,000-yard receiver
Getting to 1,000 yards in a ten-game season is going to be tough for any receiver or RB. But with the return of Alan Bowman and in the second-year of OC David Yost’s system, the Red Raiders will have a 1,000-yard receiver this fall.
That’s going be tough as it will require one receiver to average 100 yards per game. Last year, the Red Raiders had only eight such performances all year from the entire receiving corps.
The most likely candidate is redshirt sophomore Erik Ezukanma, who led Tech with 665 yards a season ago. That’s an average of 55.4 per game meaning he will essentially have to double his weekly output.
But many are expecting the Fort Worth native to have a breakout season and if he does, a 1,000-yard effort wouldn’t be out of the question. At 6-foot-3, 220-pounds, he’s got the size to bully defensive backs, and last year he showed that he has the speed to blow by them as well. So if it all comes together for the former 4-star signee, he could threaten to be one of the top receivers in the Big 12.
It’s hard to imagine senior WR T.J. Vasher topping 1,000 yards this year being as he’s never threatened that mark in his career but he too has the physical tools and the talent to be a dominant receiver. Still, his lack of dependability both on and off the field are worrisome so no one is betting on 1,000 yards from him.
Likewise, it is tough to envision any of the inside receivers getting to 1,000 yards simply because the trio of Dalton Rigdon, KeSean Carter, and McLane Mannix will split the snaps this year. While that trip could easily surpass a thousand yards combined, it’s tough to see one getting enough targets to get there individually.
So if a Red Raider is going to get to this plateau, Ezukanma seems to be the best bet. It’s a rather ambitious goal given the abbreviated season but these are supposed to be “bold” predictions so let’s count on a huge year from the player known in the football building as “E-Z”.