Texas Tech’s tempo presents tough challenge for Mountaineers

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — West Virginia’s defense faces one of its toughest challenges this season Saturday afternoon when the Mountaineers try to slow Texas Tech in the fourth Big 12 game for both teams.

Adding to the challenge for a defense that’s had difficulty slowing the opposing offense in each of its first three league games is the tempo at which the Red Raiders operate at.

With 522 offensive plays, Texas Tech enters averaging a nation-leading 87 per contest through six games.

“They’re probably the highest tempo team in the league,” WVU defensive coordinator Jordan Lesley said. “The issues are really alignment, assignment and as the game goes on, if you’re thin somewhere, it becomes a number of snaps game more than anything. You really have to be careful with how much you try to do and when you try to do it. Alignment is the key and assignment behind that. 

“It’s always a challenge. There’s a reason people do it. It’s tough, especially if they’re moving the ball from hash to hash and if they can get it back to the middle, it can give you some issues. You have to practice it, work it, be aware of it and know that it’s coming.”

In its most recent outing October 8, the Red Raiders ran 104 plays and gained 527 yards in a 41-31 loss at Oklahoma State.

Despite the setback, first-year Red Raiders’ head coach Joey McGuire is hopeful the offense can maintain a number that reaches or nears triple digits on a consistent basis.

“You saw the tempo we want to play at against Oklahoma State,” McGuire said. “You’re going to see a lot of that on Saturday. We’re going to try to tempo. It helps our offensive line and sometimes it keeps personnel on the field that you want to be on the field. It’s going to be a big part of our game plan on Saturday and from here on out.”

The Red Raiders began the season with Tyler Shough at quarterback, and though he has a chance to play Saturday for the first time since the opener, they’ve regularly utilized Donovan Smith and Behren Morton behind center since.

McGuire indicated all three could play against the Mountaineers and Smith and Morton will see action.

Regardless of who’s quarterbacking the Red Raiders, West Virginia head coach Neal Brown knows his team will need to be equipped to handle a tempo matched by few teams.

“The thing is how you practice and we’re going to do some things differently, because we’ve had some issues with tempo in the past,” Brown said. “It’s been something that’s affected us. You can’t continue to do the same things and expect different results, so we’re going to definitely do some things different [Tuesday] and [Wednesday] in how we practice and prepare our guys. We’re going to do some things within the game plan and structure of our defense where there’s not as much movement from side to side.”

The Mountaineers had great difficulty getting aligned properly in their Big 12 opener against Kansas, and it played a significant role in a 55-42 overtime loss.

That task becomes even tougher Saturday against a team consistently seeking to run a play no more than 20 seconds after the previous one finished.

Sep 22, 2022; Blacksburg, Virginia, USA; West Virginia Mountaineers defensive coordinator Jordan Lesley watches from the bench during the second half against the Virginia Tech Hokies at Lane Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Reinhold Matay-USA TODAY Sports

“As far as getting themselves lined up and communicating the call, there’s not a lot of time to do that,” Lesley said. “Our linebackers and safeties, whether we’re going off of a hand signal or maybe we called four plays in the huddle like an offensive script, they’ll communicate that way. Every person has to know what’s going on, be aware of the tempo and get lined up.”

The tempo also makes it to where unless the Red Raiders are substituting, the opponent isn’t able to in most instances. In turn, that can create favorable personnel for the offense on certain down and distances.

“You have to have a plan out of your base stuff. With the situation that presents itself, what do you need to be? It may not be ideal,” Lesley said. “That’s why people do it.”

Under offensive coordinator Zach Kittley, who previously held that title at Houston Baptist and then Western Kentucky, the Red Raiders are averaging better than 484 yards and 34.3 points.

Even while shuffling quarterbacks, the Red Raiders have six wideouts — Jerand Bradley, Myles Price, Trey Cleveland, Xavier White, Nehemiah Martinez and Loic Fouonji — with better than 200 receiving yards. 

“Besides Myles, we rotate so much that you don’t have one guy or two guys that some of the teams we play have, but at the end of the year, when you put the guys together, they’re going to equal out that,” McGuire said. “The depth allows us to play fast and fresh.“





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