Much as they did a season ago, the Texas Longhorns will open up their conference schedule against an in-state foe, the Texas Tech Red Raiders.
Last year’s game was a wild ride and if you enjoy offensive explosions, it was the game for you. Things could look completely different this time around, as it won’t be Alan Bowman behind center.
Texas Tech head coach Matt Wells announced on Tuesday that former Oregon Duck transfer Tyler Shough would indeed be the starter. While there was a “quarterback competition,” it really comes as no surprise that the former Duck would be leading the offense onto the field when the Red Raiders kick off the season.
“As I’ve said for several months now, this is the most talented our quarterback room has been since we arrived here at Texas Tech,” Wells said in a statement Tech released. “After evaluating the entire body of work, we feel as a staff that Tyler gives this team the best chance to win. He is well-respected by his teammates, a tireless worker and has developed a strong understanding of what we want to do as an offense.” – Matt Wells via Lubbock Avalanche-Journal
Shough and the Red Raiders travel to Darrel K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium on Sept. 25. It still remains somewhat of a mystery as to what time kick off will be, but we should know in the coming weeks. Shough spent the last three seasons in Eugene, Oregon.
During his time at Washington, new defensive coordinator Pete Kwiatkowski never faced Shough at quarterback. In 2018 and 2019, Justin Herbert was the quarterback, and the 2020 game was canceled due to the Huskies not having the required number of players to compete.
Shough threw just 15 passes for Oregon in 2019 for 144 yards and three touchdowns. Last season in seven games, he completed 63.5% of his passes for 1,559 yards with 13 touchdowns to six interceptions in seven games. He will get his first taste of Big 12 play where Tech travels to Austin, Texas, in late September.