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Miscellaneous
Something to Read. I haven’t had time to do a Read | Look | Devour recently, but I keep a pretty active list of things that I read and I may pass some of these on to you all on Friday: Bleacher Reports’ Mirin Fader, The Lamelo Show: a fascinating look of the Ball family in Lithuania and even if you don’t necessarily care for the Ball family, it’s a fascinating look at how this family is adjusting to playing overseas and this seems like a terrible situation . . . The Ringer’s Andrew Helms, The Man Who Brought You Christian Pulisic Has a Plan to Supercharge American Soccer: although the MLS has wanted to make inroads in U.S. Soccer, Roy Moore thinks that it’s important to get the young players to Europe as soon as possible . . .
Texas Tech Softball
The full preview as your Red Raiders host the eighth-annual Jeannine McHaney Memorial Classic this weekend at the Rock.
📰➡ https://t.co/2yJWmwvuHD #WreckEm pic.twitter.com/n69aVPf7OD
— Texas Tech Softball (@TexasTechSB) March 2, 2018
Texas Tech Track and Field
👀 These two #RedRaiders made another appearance on The Bowerman watch list! #WreckEm pic.twitter.com/gpUD6UwvCU
— TTU Track & Field/XC (@TTU_TF_XC) March 1, 2018
Lady Raider Basketball
PREVIEW | Lady Raiders Head to Big 12 Tournament This Weekend
— Lady Raider WBB (@LadyRaiderWBB) March 1, 2018
Texas Tech Basketball
1️⃣ more chance to see these 5️⃣ at home. Get there early on Saturday for the senior day presentation! #WreckEm #4To1 pic.twitter.com/fdeBYmEKvY
— Texas Tech Basketball (@TexasTechMBB) March 1, 2018
Dreamin’. Rivals’ Corey Evans writes about teams that are hurting and teams that are dreaming, with Texas Tech being one of those teams that they think are dreamin’:
The end of the month for the Red Raiders did not go as planned, losing their final four contests. However, the health of Keenan Evans remains at the forefront of Chris Beard’s mind, for if there is no Evans in Texas Tech’s lineup, their chances of causing havoc within the Big 12 Conference Tournament and ultimately, within the NCAA Tournament, is all but lost. Texas Tech, with a healthy Evans, boasts an alpha dog producer and a top-10 defense in college basketball.
Thanks to its more mature roster and defensive prowess, the Red Raiders could post their best March in recent memory. They are set to receive their highest NCAA Tournament bid since 1996 and could reach the second weekend of play for the first time since 2005. Add in the fact that Beard just landed his first top-50 recruit, Khavon Moore, on Monday, and the short and long-term futures of the program remain on stable footing.
Texas Tech Football
Every rep matters.
2⃣ days away from spring 🏈. #WreckEm pic.twitter.com/XPbNiKGCGj
— Texas Tech Football (@TexasTechFB) March 1, 2018
Defensive Line:
Good times #2018TTUDL #WreckEm pic.twitter.com/0OZYLmGYIh
— Terrance Jamison (@CoachJamison) March 2, 2018
Defensive Backs.
Blessed to spend everyday with these guys and @CoachJ4_TT . Learning Never Stops. #806D #TopShelf #CoffeeBean pic.twitter.com/PZQcFySDJo
— Brett Dewhurst (@_BrettDew) March 2, 2018
Houston Touchdown Club. Texas Tech head coach Kliff Kingsbury will be at a luncheon with the Houston Touchdown Club on May 2nd and you can check out the link for details on pricing and seating.
The Chiefs Love Mahomes. KC Star’s Terez Paylor writes about how the Kansas City coaches have gushed over Patrick Mahomes:
“He’s one of the best players I’ve ever seen,” Veach said. “But you don’t want to throw them out there too soon. You want them to be who there are, and not really process too much, and just play, right? So Coach had a vision, we brought him along slowly and we’re excited for him and for the future.”
Despite Veach’s “best he’s ever seen” comment, the Chiefs would like to tamp down expectations for Mahomes. He’s just 22, this will be his first year as a starter, and even great quarterbacks have struggled in the exact situation Mahomes is about to enter.
But that’s not keeping the Chiefs from banking their future on Mahomes, and literally planning around his talent.
The picks the Chiefs surrendered to Buffalo for Mahomes last year — two firsts and a third — deem that mandatory, but so does his ridiculous arm talent. The Chiefs hope Mahomes, when paired with an appropriate cast of speedy receivers, will force teams to consistently account for the deep ball, opening up the running game led by rookie Kareem Hunt.
“Pat’s skill set is maybe a little bit different than Alex’s, and maybe the players you surround him with maybe work more to his skill set,” Veach said. “Well look, Pat’s got a cannon, right? I think everybody wants fast receivers. But know you have a quarterback that really doesn’t have a limit in how far they can throw is a good thing.
“(Receivers) are highly coveted throughout the league, but I’m sure, yes, I’ll be in that market.”
Miscellaneous. Heartland College Sports’ Derek Duke has a spring preview of Texas Tech . . .