Texas Tech football: Tahj Brooks, Defense power Red Raiders past Baylor

Tahj Brooks puts Texas Tech on his shoulders again

Some running backs seem to get better the more carries they get.  As defenses wear down, physical running backs usually feast and that’s what Tahj Brooks did against Baylor.

He set career-highs in carries (31) and yards (170) while also finding the endzone for what would be the knockout punch, an 18-yard TD run that put his team ahead 32-14 in the middle of the 4th quarter.  Though he nearly reached the 100-yard mark in the first half, it was his second-half effort that was eye-opening.

Even with Baylor repeatedly stacking the box to try to slow him down, Brooks was nearly unstoppable after halftime.

With the offense having stalled out since going up 14-0 early in the second quarter, Tech turned to Brooks to reassert its dominance in the third quarter and he delivered.  On the drive that put the Red Raiders up 24-3, he carried the ball six times for 28 yards as part of a 13-play drive that ended with TE Baylor Cupp’s second TD catch of the night.

Then, on Tech’s next drive, one that came after Baylor scored its only TD of the night to make the game mildly intriguing, Brooks again was a workhorse.  On the nine-play possession, Brooks rushed four times for 39 yards including his impressive TD run that saw him break multiple tackles on his way to the endzone for a 32-11 lead.

Brooks now has topped the 100-yard mark in four games in a row and he’s without question the best player on the offense.  It was a bit surprising that Tech didn’t bring Cam’Ron Valdez into the game late to give Brooks a rest but maybe that isn’t necessary.

While he likely can’t keep giving Tech over 25 carries per game for the rest of the year, he does seem to be getting better the more he carries the ball and that was the case on Saturday night as he simply wore down the Bears as the game progressed.