Wood, Texas Tech defense look to continue defensive dominance
Fresh off their first in conference shutout since 2005, the Red Raiders are turning their attention to Kansas State. The Wildcats are coming off a dominant win against Kansas in Lawrence 42-17, they will now look to play spoiler on Saturday against Texas Tech. Shiel Wood reflected on the shutout and what challenges Kansas State will give.
Oklahoma State Scoreless on Saturday
The Red Raiders coming off a tough loss to Arizona State in the final minute of the game looked to get right on Saturday against Oklahoma State. Get right they did as they pitched a shutout against the Cowboys in the Jones.
“Well, we were happy to get the win. Getting the shut out is kind of icing on top of the cake. It’s nice. It’s hard to do, hard to win games and hard to hold teams to a few points. So it was fun, and our guys worked really hard for it, so that was exciting.”
Avery Johnson and Adjustments
Texas Tech fans will know this name, and to spare you the details he “cooked” your defense a few seasons ago. But as we all know this is a completely different team, and Shiel Wood will look to limit explosive dual threat quarterback Avery Johnson.
“He’s a really good player. You’ve got to try to do a great job with the rush lane integrity. There will be some design quarterback runs in the game as well. So, just gotta fit the defense, play with great leverage in the run game and play with great leverage as far as pass rush goes.”
Shiel Wood also spoke on working on rush lane integrity, and quarterback contain compared to the Arizona State game preparation. It will be crucial for the Red Raider defense to contain Avery Johnson on Saturday.
“Yeah, I mean, I don’t know that it’s necessarily anything a lot different. It’s just more of the same emphasis and focus.”
“You know, when you have a quarterback that has the legs like Avery does, you got to do a great job with your technique and fundamentals.”
“Just understand that getting up to the level and depth of quarterback is important. Not getting pushed past him, and then just got to do a great job keeping him contained.”
Corner Play
During the Oklahoma State game the Cowboys could hardly move the ball. Just to showcase this dominance, take a look at Oklahoma State’s drive chart;
| Plays | Yards | Time | Result |
| 3 plays | 9 yards | 1:39 | Punt |
| 5 plays | 14 yards | 2:44 | Punt |
| 4 plays | 17 yards | 1:42 | Punt |
| 7 plays | 21 yards | 3:38 | Downs |
| 3 plays | -1 yard | 0:59 | Punt |
| 4 plays | 11 yards | 1:46 | Fumble Return TD |
| 3 plays | 6 yards | 1:32 | Punt |
| 3 plays | 7 yards | 1:11 | Punt |
| 6 plays | 20 yards | 2:18 | Punt |
| 2 plays | 6 yards | 0:47 | Fumble |
| 3 plays | 5 yards | 1:34 | Punt |
| 9 plays | 36 yards | 3:23 | Downs |
| 8 plays | 25 yards | 3:14 | Punt |
| 3 plays | 6 yards | 2:09 | Punt |
To recap that, their longest drive was 3:38 and 36 yards. Obviously Oklahoma State is not good, but that’s quite the drive chart. Shiel Wood weighed in on what he saw out of his corners during their lockdown game.
“I think that I’m seeing improvement out of them in practice and in games. Mo (Horn) came in and played really well. I thought, so I was very pleased with that”
Jacob Rodriguez’ Impact
In case you missed it, Joey McGuire posted this on Twitter late Saturday night Rodriguez inclusion in the Heisman race.
Needless to say, Jacob Rodriguez has been a leader on this team and has been massive to the defensive success thus far. Shiel Wood spoke on what has made him so special.
“He’s just a great leader for our football team. Defensively, he’s a great leader. He’s a very consistent individual in terms of his preparation, physically, mentally, the work ethic that he has.”
“He’s a great note taker in meetings. he leads by example. You know, I think he’s really well liked by his teammates, and certainly he’s a really fun guy to deal with and coach.”
Outside of Avery Johnson
Although Dylan Edwards is now out according to multiple sources, including On3’s Pete Nakos, the Red Raiders will still have their plate full. Jayce Brown, a WR for the Wildcats will be a huge threat.
“Their receiver is really good. #1, that is (Jayce) Brown. They’ve got several backs that are really good. #3, Dylan Edwards has got some really good speed.”
“They’ve got a nice group of tight ends, and their offensive line is really well coached. They’re lean, they’re athletic, they play really hard, so they’re a very good football team offensively, and they’re really well coached.”
K-State’s Comeback
After some blunders by the K-State early in the season against Iowa State, North Dakota, and Army, it appears they have been able to get back on track. The Wildcats went 2-1 in the month of October, taking down Kansas, and TCU while falling short against Baylor in Waco.
“They are on a roll. Point wise, last 4 games, two times 34 points, 41 points, and 42 points. I think they’re just they are in a groove.”
“I think some of those early games, I mean, you go to Dublin, Ireland to play the opener against a really good opponent. You lose by 3, you come back jet lag. You got to flip your whole schedule. You play a really good North Dakota FCS program, I don’t know what their record is, but that’s a hard way to start the season.”
“They played Army and lost at home by 3. That’s a really difficult game. It’s a different type of game. Those are those Academy games. We don’t play those Academy teams, they’re just tricky games to handle.”
“So I guess there’s a lot of reasons that I could look on the surface and just say I can see why. Maybe they had some challenges early. They’re really well coached. They’ve got really good players, they’ve got a great scheme, and they are hitting their stride.”
“I think they’re playing the type of football that they expect to play, and certainly are going to be a great challenge for us Saturday on the road”
Summary
The Red Raiders will look to pickup a big road win in a place it hasn’t won since October 4th, 2008. This one is definitely not going to be an easy one, but I have faith that they will get this one done in Manhattan Saturday afternoon.
Join the conversation with other Red Raiders on the Inside The Double T forum.
Subscribe today to get the most in-depth Texas Tech sports and recruiting coverage.
Follow us on X: @RedRaiderSports
Like and follow us on Instagram @rrs_rivals & like us on Facebook.
