Seth Doege, Junior Quarterback: Like all other Texas Tech quarterbacks in the modern era, Doege has been putting up big numbers all season for the Red Raiders. He is averaging almost 350 passing yards per game and has 22 touchdown passes this season to only six interceptions. He has five games this year without any picks, with only two games with less than three touchdown passes. His worst game of the season came last week against Iowa State, where he had season lows in completion percentage, yards, touchdowns, and attempts. In Texas Tech’s win over Oklahoma, he passed for 441 yards, four touchdowns and no interceptions. After maybe the worst game of his career, expect Doege to come out Red Raider-hot and try to get back on track where he had thrown for more than 400 yards in two-straight games. One thing to watch out for is the vertical pass from Doege, who has been throwing that pretty well and a little more commonly than previous Tech quarterbacks.
DeAndre Washington, Freshman Running Back: Eric Stephens was on pace to run for well over 1,300 yards this season before his season-ending knee injury against Texas A&M earlier this month. Since then, Washington has been one of the primary runners to take his place. He led the Red Raiders with 84 rushing yards in the upset over Oklahoma. Tuberville is trying a running game that is at least respectable at Texas Tech, and with Stephens gone, he will have to rely on someone else to get the job done or else the Texas defense will pin their ears back and go after Doege the whole game. If Washington is able to break off a few runs, that will Doegee more time to operate, which will give Tech a greater chance at pulling off yet another upset on the road this season.
Alex Torres, Junior Wide Receiver: You knew this was coming: You can’t do a preview on Tech without mentioning the quarterback and at least one receiver. Torres is the receiver chosen here, but as is always the case with the Red Raiders, any receiver could take off in any given game. Torres has two 100-yard receiving games and led the team in receiving in the win over Oklahoma. He is leading the Red Raiders in yards and is averaging more than 12 yards per catch. As has always been the case with Red Raider receivers, he will do most of his damage after catching quick passes and running in space. If he is having a good game and demands the attention of the defense, that opens the door for the rest of the Tech receivers to make plays in space, which is the most dangerous part of the Texas Tech passing game.
