Behind Enemy Lines: Q&A with Will McKay, Texas Tech beat writer

There’s no question about it.

The upcoming Texas Tech game is Arkansas’ most important game of the season. With an incredibly tough schedule, a win against the Red Raiders in Lubbock would certainly keep, if not improve, the Razorbacks’ bowl chances.

Texas Tech has gotten off to a slow start this season, but are still 2-0 and looking to make run themselves in the Big 12. We had a chance to speak with Texas Tech beat writer Will McKay of RedRaiderSports.com and he provided some insight into the Hogs’ looming opponent.

Drew Laing: The story so far has been Texas Tech’s struggles in the first two games with wins by seven points over Central Arkansas and only four points over UTEP. What’s been going wrong for the Red Raiders?

Will McKay: For the offense, it’s been a matter of inconsistency and penalties. In the Central Arkansas game, Davis Webb came out and was really trying to force some things that he normally wouldn’t and was a bit too amped up. That led to a few early interceptions and essentially 17 points for UCA. They definitely settled in after that, though, and the he had a big day with over 400 yards and 4 TDs. In the UTEP game, however, the offense was very hot and cold. It’s been a matter of trying to be perfect and do too much.

Instead of taking what the defense has been giving him in the passing game, Webb has been trying to force things and make the big play, which he fully understands now and believes he’ll have fixed this weekend.

The offense has looked very, very good when it’s on, however, and there are quite a few home run hitters at both receiver and running back.

On defense, many players said they didn’t go into the UCA game with the right mentality, and the Bears punched them in the mouth a bit, to be honest. The players and coaches were both embarrassed by their performance, and while it might not show up in the stat book, they did play quite a bit better against UTEP. They were in position and made more stops, but a few big mistakes kept the Miners in the game. They were also missing the top two nose guards, Jackson Richards and Rika Levi, and that played into it as well.

Really, the biggest thing about the defense is there are just so many new players getting into the rhythm of things from both the high school and JUCO ranks. They’re still breaking in to playing FBS football, and it’s just taking some time. They’ll obviously have to play much better this weekend against the Razorbacks to slow down their rushing attack.

Laing: Talk about the progression of sophomore two-year starting quarterback Davis Webb from last year to this year. What areas has he improved the most in?

McKay: I think the biggest thing for Webb is that he knows he’s the guy at quarterback now. He rotated in and out with Baker Mayfield last season, and once he won the starting job for the Holiday Bowl, he never looked back. In the offseason, his growth as a leader and the alpha male of the offense has been the most impressive thing to see. He’s clearly the man in charge, and all the players, including the older veteran players such as Y slot receiver Bradley Marquez and H slot receiver Jakeem Grant, all have his respect and trust.

On the field, he’s put on roughly 25 or 30 pounds since the end of last season, and he’s really physically matured. His arm is very, very strong now, and he can make some impressive throws with quite a bit of velocity. Other than that, his command of the offense has improved by leaps and bounds as well. He wants to be the best quarterback in both the Big 12 and the country, and anything less than that is unacceptable in his mind.

Laing: True freshman Justin Stockton looks like an emerging star. Was this something the coaching staff expected so soon?

McKay: Stockton came out of Cibolo Steele high school in San Antonio here in Texas, and it’s one of the most highly regarded high school programs in the state right now. He also averaged over 12 yards a carry last season as a senior. As far as what the coaching staff expected, I think they believed he was going to come in and definitely play immediately, but I don’t know if they expected him to blow up like he has so far. He’s the fastest player in pads on the entire team, and his extra gear out of the backfield is something that Tech hasn’t had in a long, long time. His vision with the ball and ability to make a cut and go is also extremely impressive.

While he’s still the backup to junior DeAndre Washington right now, the staff is hoping to continue to give him more touches and see where things go from here. He’s an explosive player, and he can take it to the house on any play, as he did against UTEP.

As another side note, it’s also worth saying that this looks like the best rushing attack that Tech has had in a long time. The Tech O-line has been run blocking very well, and the stable of running backs have looked very impressive so far this season.

Laing: One area that doesn’t get touched on much with Texas Tech is the defense. Who are the defensive stars or the guys who can really make an impact on that side of the football that fans will need to keep an eye on?

McKay: There are definitely a few players to watch out for. Senior inside linebacker Sam Eguavoen is the veteran leader of the unit, and he’s started essentially since he was a freshman. Another linebacker is outside bandit backer Pete Robertson, who plays the edge rusher role in Tech’s 3-4 defense. He’s extremely athletic and disruptive, and many believe he’s poised for a breakout season.

Another player that may emerge into a star is junior defensive end Branden Jackson. He gained quite a bit of weight in the offseason, and he very likely could be the best defensive lineman for the Red Raiders this season. Other than that, there are several young players and JUCO transfer that the coaching staff really likes. Nose tackle Rika Levi weighs roughly 350 pounds, and he’s just a paperweight in the middle. Much is expected out of him once he adjusts, but he missed last week with a knee injury suffered early in the UCA game. We’ll see if he gets to play this weekend.

The Red Raiders boast a very young secondary, but there does seem to be some talent there. True sophomore Justis Nelson emerged late last season and had his redshirt taken off, and he was impressive late in the year and is the number one corner for Tech. Opposite him, Tevin Madison has competed well and made some plays in pass coverage as a true freshman. J.J. Gaines is the free safety, and he has potential to be an elite ballhawk in the secondary if he continues to come on.

Laing: Arkansas’ offensive line and running backs are a load to deal with. How do you see Texas Tech attacking that part of the Arkansas offense?

McKay: That’s the big question, isn’t it? Tech has played two run heavy teams in UCA and UTEP to start the year, and they’ve tweaked a few things to combat it through the first two games. They loaded up the box with eight or nine players at times against UTEP, and it was hit or miss for most of the contest. The real test for Tech will be in the run game around the perimeter and in the flats. That’s where they’ve had the most trouble with the run so far, and we’ll see if Tech’s linebackers and safeties can wrap up better and get multiple players to the ball carrier in order to stop any after contact yardage.

Laing: What’s your prediction for Saturday? It seems like it should be a close game.

McKay: I think there’s been a lot of buzz around this game around Lubbock for Texas Tech fans since anticipation for the year started building in the offseason, and it should be a very rowdy and raucous crowd at Jones AT&T Stadium on Saturday afternoon. I also believe that the Red Raider offense will find consistency and come out of the gates hot, so it very well could end up being a shoot out of a game. I think it really comes down to two things: Can Tech slow down Arkansas’ rushing game, and can Arkansas’ secondary slow down the Tech passing game?

I think it will be somewhere in-between for both teams, and I predict a 41-31 win for Texas Tech at home.

Laing: And of course, the most important question…is Kliff Kingsbury really THAT cool?

McKay: WELL OF COURSE!!!! But in all seriousness, Coach Kingsbury’s portrayal by the media is probably overplayed quite a bit, and he just runs with it and has fun with it. In my opinion, he’s one of the hardest working coaches that I’ve ever been around, and he really has a good feel for today’s college football player, and it obviously helps that he could essentially be some of their older brothers because of the small age gap. He gets his guys, and he wants them to have a lot of fun while playing football for he and his staff.

Don’t get me wrong though, he’s a cool cat, and he and the rest of his staff are energetic, fiery guys that are gracious with the opportunity to coach at Tech, especially since four of them played at Tech in the last 10 to 12 years.

As always, a huge thank you to Will McKay for participating! You can follow him on Twitter: @Will_R_Mckay

Drew Laing

Drew Laing will be providing analysis and insight on Florida, Georgia, Missouri and South Carolina.