Texas Tech football: Takeaways from this season’s first depth chart

LUBBOCK, TEXAS – NOVEMBER 14: Kicker Jonathan Garibay #46 of the Texas Tech Red Raiders lines up for a field goal during the first half of the college football game against the Baylor Bears at Jones AT&T Stadium on November 14, 2020 in Lubbock, Texas. (Photo by John E. Moore III/Getty Images)

Garibay wins the placekicking job

One of the most under-discussed position battles in fall camp has been the placekicking battle. But that’s one spot that can make or break any close game.

As for this week, it appears that Jonathan Garibay will get the first shot at trying to nail down this important position. Hopefully, he continues to perform as well as he did to end last year.

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Taking over as Tech’s primary kicker midway through last season, he hit 8 of 11 kicks (72.7%). That included the last-second game-winner against Baylor.

Meanwhile, Trey Wolff entered 2020 entrenched as the placekicker after a stellar 2019 that saw him go 20-22 overall. In fact, he was so good two seasons ago that he was on the preseason Lou Groza Award watchlist for the nation’s best kicker.

But he was disastrous to begin last year making just 1 of 5 FG attempts. It got so bad, that Matt Wells began taking the game off of Wolff’s foot by going for it on 4th down when other coaches may have kicked. In fact, Wolff went all the way until November 7th before making Tech’s first FG of the year, a desperation kick at the end of the first half against TCU.

This year, the Red Raiders need better from whichever player Wells entrusts with this pivotal role. That’s because all too often, games are won or lost on the toe of a kicker and Tech can ill afford incompetence at that spot.