Notebook: Murphy Out for Year. LAJ’s Don Williams reports that right guard Justin Murphy is out for the year and was preparing to have knee surgery. Also of note is that Mike Smith paired Breiden Fehoko alongside Demetrious Alston against Iowa State.

https://instagram.com/p/8wGPIkGL5z/

Beaty & Kingsbury. LAJ’s Krista Pirtle writes about the friendship and rivalry of Texas Tech head coach Kliff Kingsbury and Kansas head coach David Beaty:

“He’s a humble, hardworking, blue collar, 4:30 in the morning working out, I mean every single day, grinding,” Beaty said. “If I learned anything from him, it’s really that I thought I worked hard. This dude works. … I mean, he’s such a good-looking dude that’s kind of something people talk about all the time. But man, if you knew this guy, I don’t know if I know five humans better than Kliff Kingsbury.”

Unsung Hero. ESPN’s Brandon Chatmon writes that RB Justin Stockton was one of the underrated heros from Saturday’s action:

Texas Tech RB Justin Stockton: The Red Raiders sophomore had seven carries for 101 yards and one touchdown in Texas Tech’s 66-31 win over Iowa State. His 54-yard touchdown run in the third quarter helped stifle the Cyclones’ momentum after they scored 10 straight points to cut Tech’s lead to 38-24 in the middle of the third quarter. Stockton is a good complement to DeAndre Washington in the Red Raider backfield.

Polling. This is always a good site to take a look at, which is the College Poll Tracker and it does exactly what it says it does, which is track the AP voters who vote for each team. I’ve linked the Texas Tech page as Texas Tech received 10 points in this week’s poll.

Afternoon Kick for Oklahoma.

#Big12FB: Times & TV information for week eight/October 24 games. pic.twitter.com/RxopTB1G0X

— Big 12 Conference (@Big12Conference) October 12, 2015

Willis to Continue to Start at QB. Via CJ Online’s Jesse Newell, freshman Kansas QB Ryan Willis is set to get his second start against Texas Tech:

“He didn’t play great, but I tell you what, for his first start, he did some really nice things,” Beaty said during Monday’s Big 12 teleconference. “I think for the most part, his team really rallied around him, and they have confidence in him.”

Willis was best early, as he led KU on a 74-yard touchdown drive during the Jayhawks’ first possession. The final play was a 36-yard strike down the left sideline to Steven Sims.

“Ryan throws a nice deep ball. That’s probably one of his biggest strengths,” Beaty said. “He’s got a really strong arm, but he does have nice touch.”

Ability to Extend Plays. LAJ’s Nicholas Talbot writes that QB Patrick Mahomes’ ability to extend plays is helping an already terrific Texas Tech offense:

“The biggest thing is, ‘Don’t go through lapses where you have success doing it all by yourself on one play,’” Kingsbury said, “and the next play you say, ‘Oh, I’m going to do it again.’ Go through your reads, stay within the structure of your offense, and if it’s not there, then we get to that point. We’re still walking that fine line.”

Despite scrambling often, Mahomes has not forced too many passes this season.

The sophomore quarterback has been intercepted five times, including twice on third-and-long where the pass served for little more than a de facto punt.

“I’m getting more and more used to it up there (in the press box),” Morris said. “You keep thinking he’s going to run out of luck one of these times and throw an interception, but he never seems to do it.”

Also, make sure and check out Land Grant Gauntlet’s weekly quarterback rankings. He’s just a sophomore.

Notebook: Plan for Gaines. LAJ’s Don Williams has his notebook from Monday’s press conference, including the fact that J.J. Gaines could probably still play both safety or cornerback, although he’s expected to stay at safety for the time being. As mentioned yesterday:

• WR Devin Lauderdale will return against Kansas and there still is not a decision on WR Dylan Cantrell.
• WR Donta Thompson is switching to inside receiver and OC Eric Morris said that they hope to make Thompson a smaller Jace Amaro.
• Also discussed yesterday is the idea that Dakota Allen and D’Vonta Hinton are young and make mistakes, but they each do have a bright future.

Miscellaneous. LGG has their weekly Big 12 power rankings, as does SAEN’s Tim Griffin . . . DMN’s Tommy Magelssen has five things you need to know about Kansas . . .