Texas Tech football: Game balls for victory over Baylor

McPhearson continues his solid play

You could make the argument that senior corner Zech McPhearson has been the Texas Tech football team’s best player this year.  And the former Penn State transfer continued to come up with big plays against Baylor.

For the game, McPhearson came up with four tackles, an interception, and a pass defense.  And both his INT and his pass breakup were huge turning points.

At the time that McPhearson picked off Brewer in the third quarter, Tech looked lifeless and defeated, especially on offense.  But McPhearson set the offense up at the Baylor 36 after returning the INT 20 yard and that provided a spark as five plays later, RB Tahj Brooks would score Tech’s first TD from a yard out to cut the Bears’ lead down to 20-12.

McPhearson now leads the team with three picks after entering the year with none for his career.  He’s also recovered a fumble and a blocked FG, both of which he took back for touchdowns.  But his biggest play of the Baylor game had nothing to do with a takeaway, though it did get the ball back for the Red Raiders at a key junction.

With Baylor facing a 3rd-and-5 with just 2:24 to play, McPhearson undercut a pass from Brewer to Yusuf Terry, who was behind the defense and who may have scored had McPhearson not knocked the ball away.

McPhearson has been this team’s best defensive back.  He’s made 43 tackies, second-most in the secondary behind safety Eric Monroe’s 49, and he’s been credited with 5 pass defenses, two fewer than corner Demarcus Fields.

This is the type of player we hoped McPhearson would be when he transferred to Tech from Penn State prior to the 2019 season and now he’s become a true ball hawk.  And against Baylor, he did what he’s done for much of 2020 and showed up where the football was at opportune times.