First road game won’t be pretty for NU

Nebraska travels for the first time this season when it takes on Texas Tech Saturday in Lubbock, Texas.

The Red Raiders are 5-0 this season and a real threat in the Big 12 Conference.

The game is set for 2 p.m. and will be televised by Fox Sports Net.

Mike Leach is in his ninth season as the coach of the Red Raiders. Texas Tech has one of the most potent offenses in the entire country.

Nebraska will face a Tech squad who runs a spread attack much like Missouri. While the Tigers are known for an exceptional group of athletes on offense, the Red Raiders are equally as talented on that side of the ball.

Graham Harrell, a 6-foot-3, 205-pound senior, is one of the most prolific passers in college football.

Like Missouri’s Chase Daniel last week, the Huskers face another quarterback that will be in the hunt for the Heisman Trophy.

Harrell averages 405 yards passing per game. He completes 66.7 percent of his passes (158-of-237) with 18 touchdowns and only three interceptions.

As a team, the Red Raiders average over 583 yards of offense per contest. Tech will likely pass the ball nearly 50 times against the Nebraska defense.

While Harrell directs the offense, the receivers are a diverse group that can shred defenses.

Michael Crabtree, a 6-3 sophomore, is quite possibly the best receiver in the entire nation. In only a season and a half, he already has 30 career touchdowns for the Red Raiders.

An extremely physical receiver with outstanding hands, Crabtree will be a future star in the NFL.

So far in 2008, Crabtree leads the team with 38 receptions and eight touchdowns. He also averages 112 yards receiving per game.

Senior Eric Morris is a small receiver that seems to always find a way to get open. He has 26 catches on the year while teammate sophomore Detron Lewis had added 27 grabs for Tech.

The running attack for the Red Raiders is better than in the past for Leach.

A pair of backs do the job for Tech.

Senior Shannon Woods averages 69 yards rushing per game with seven touchdowns.

Sophomore Baron Batch adds 61 yards per game on the ground. This is enough of a running game to really help the potent passing of the Red Raiders.

The offensive line does an outstanding job of protecting Harrell. The line uses extremely wide splits that create good running and throwing lanes for the offense. So far, the Red Raiders have only given up one sack on the season. From tackle to tackle, Tech averages nearly 6-6 and 323 pounds per man.

Senior left tackle Rylan Reed (6-7, 314) and junior right guard Brandon Carter (6-7, 354) lead the way. Overall this is a veteran group that knows their job to spark the Red Raider offense.

Defensively, Tech is an improved group. The Red Raiders use a 4-3 defensive scheme. The defense allows 336 yards of total offense per game, which includes 102 yards per game rushing. In the past, the defense has given up a great deal of yards, but they have solidified their defense after changing defensive coordinators midway through the 2007 season.

The defensive line is led by junior end Brandon Williams. Williams has four sacks, and is a threat as a pass rusher.

Sophomore middle linebacker Brian Duncan leads the team with 27 solo and 40 total tackles.

The secondary is paced by senior strong safety Daniel Charbonnet with four interceptions. The defense will play with confidence coming off of a big win last week at Kansas State.

In the past, this was the weak link for Texas Tech, but in 2008 the defense is playing with much more passion than in the past.

The Red Raiders have been poor in the kicking game. Freshman kicker Donnie Carona is 2-for-6 on field goals and 29-for-32 on extra points. His longest field goal is only 35 yards.

Punter Jonathan LaCour averages 37 yards with one punt blocked this season. LaCour has only punted nine times this season.

Eric Morris has an 86-yard punt return for a touchdown to spark the Tech return game. With team speed, the Red Raiders are a threat both on kickoff and punt returns.

Nebraska likely has lost some confidence. Texas Tech has an explosive wide-open offense that can score from anywhere on the field. The Red Raiders average 48 points per game and will look to take advantage of their talent edge over the Husker secondary. The Big Red goes on the road and is humbled by a deadly passing game. Texas Tech runs it up in a 63-24 win over Nebraska.

Jim Dolezal is a local Husker football fanatic as well as a part-time sports writer for the Telegram. He will analyze the Huskers’ opposition from a hometown perspective every Thursday throughout the season.