Big 12 Football | Post Spring Assessment | Texas Tech Red Raiders

What We Know

Returning Starters: Offense - 5, Defense - 8

Kliff Kingsbury Is A Rising Star In The Coaching Ranks

In hindsight, Tommy Tuberville walking out on a dinner with recruits may have been one of the best things to have happened to Texas Tech football. He never really seemed to fit in West Texas and now the Red Raiders have brought home one of their own to lead the program. Don't think that Kingsbury didn't earn the right to be where he is though. Everyone knows about him coaching Johnny Football to a Heisman Trophy as the quarterbacks coach and offensive coordinator at Texas A&M. However, prior to that he led the Houston Cougars to record breaking offensive seasons in 2008 and in 2010. While he may be a member of the Tech family, that's not the reason he was hired there.

There Is Depth At Running Back

Kenny Williams was Tech's leading rusher last season (824 yards) and will have an experienced backs in SaDale Foster and DeAndre Washington, along with freshman Quinton White there to back him up. Texas Tech is loaded at running back and the only question mark surrounding them is how much they will be used?

Michael Brewer Looks To Be The Starting Quarterback

Kingsbury knows a thing or two about the quarterback position and his track record proves it. While there was officially an open competition during spring ball it appears as if its Brewer's job to lose. He received high praise from Kingsbury during the spring and clearly seemed to have a physical advantage over true freshman Davis Webb. Brewer completed 34-0f-48 passing attempts last season for 375 yards, four touchdowns and no interceptions. Most notably, he reminds Kingsbury of another quarterback he used to coach.

Three Question Marks

How Strong Are They At Safety?

Texas Tech returns eight starters from last year's defense but two of the positions that need to be filled are at safety where Cody Davis and D.J. Johnson have moved on. Tech had the top-rated passing defense in the Big Twelve last season and finding replacements at the safety position are key to keeping the Red Raiders near the top in 2013.

What Will Their Identity Be?

Tuberville wanted a balanced offensive attack and a strong defense. There's a lot of speculation that Kingsbury is going to go back to his version of the air-raid offense. They'll certainly run a hurry-up scheme but with a new quarterback, and a ton of experience at running back, how much will they be able to go away from their running game?

Is Kingsbury Ready To Be The Top Dog?

He certainly earned his stripes at the assistant level of coaching but now he's into his first stint as a head coach. Not only that but at the age of 33 he's the youngest head coach in division one football.

Top Threat

As we've already stated, its unsure how much Texas Tech will go to the running game. When they do, though, they have an athletic running back, with an unstoppable motor, in Kenny Williams. Last season Williams led the Red Raiders in rushing yards and yards per carry (5.8).