Connect with us

Football

Patrick Mahomes II Is The Real Deal

Published

7 years ago

on

We have looked at the amazing Texas Tech offense and the putrid Texas Tech defense. Now it’s time to look at some players on both sides of the ball who could make some noise on Saturday in Stillwater.

Players to Watch

When Texas Tech and Oklahoma State get together, there are more fireworks than a Grand Lake 4th of July, let’s take a peek at who some of the major players on the Tech side of the game will be on Saturday afternoon.

Quarterback Pat Mahomes II, No. 5

Kansas Defensive Coordinator Clint Bowen: “He’s a magician. You can tell your kids, but over and over on film you see it. Someone has him dead to rights for a sack and he does something to get away.”

Long before Patrick Mahomes II set his sights on the record books in Lubbock, Texas, he was taking grounders with Alex Rodriguez and shagging balls for Cowboy great Robin Ventura, always in tow as he followed around his father, Patrick Mahomes I, an 11 year MLB veteran beloved by New York Mets fans for an 8-0 season in 1999 that helped get them to the NLCS.

Patrick II looked bound for professional baseball from an early age, earning a trip to the Junior League World Series when he was 14.

Mahomes excelled in baseball, basketball and football at Whitehouse, his pedigree and talent meriting calls from MLB teams and being picked in 37th round by the Detroit Tigers in 2014.

It only took one half of a game for Kliff Kingsbury to know he had found his quarterback, the only he would offer in the 2013 class. Mahomes stayed true to Tech and turned down LSU and Notre Dame when they called late.

Mahomes made his first appearance as a freshman in relief of injured starter Davis Webb on a late September night in Stillwater, some might remember as the best game Daxx Garman played in the orange and black but Mahomes went two for five with a touchdown and an interception to Cowboy linebacker Seth Jacobs.

It’s safe to guess he’ll look a bit better when he comes back this weekend.

Coach Gundy spoke reverentially of Mahomes this week saying he’s “a potential first round pick. He reminds me a lot of (Dallas Cowboy quarterback) Dak Prescott… Style of play, body, strength, speed, ability to run and throw in different positions.”

Dak Mahomes leads the nation in passing yards (3,886), passing yards per game (431.8), offensive yards per game (460.7) and is second nationally in points responsible for as he averages 27.3 points per game off of 31 passing touchdowns and ten rushing touchdowns.

And while the statistics are incredible, Kingsbury gushes about Mahomes’ will to win, saying it’s “second to none.”

It’s hard to accuse Mahomes of not leaving it all on the field with a sore shoulder in a close loss to Oklahoma last month when he completed 52 of 88 attempts through the air for an NCAA record 734 yards passing.

I’m no NFL scout, but I’d say coming out to see Mahomes mix it up against Mason would be worth the price of admission given the likelihood you’ll be watching at least one NFL quarterback, maybe two.

Wide Receiver Jonathan Giles, No. 9

Mahomes’ favorite target is the 5’11”, 185 pound receiver that has really turned it on after a slow freshman year. It’s hard to blame him, he was recruited by numerous FBS programs (Houston, Colorado, Indiana and more) to play quarterback like he did in high school.

After a solid year of learning how to block and picking up the route trees, he’s really blossomed as a sophomore. He measures at 5’11” and 185 pounds with dazzling athleticism in the open field with an eye for the end zone.

With 982 yards through nine games and 12 scores, he’s having one of the best seasons for a receiver in Tech history. He leads the team with 60 catches and is one of the most productive receivers in the country (12th in receiving yards per game and 18th in receptions per game).

He has four 100-yard games to his record so far this year and recently torched the OU secondary for 167 yards and two scores. Considered the best athlete on the team, it’s time for some Real Talk with Ramon: Look out for No. 9.

Linebacker Jordyn Brooks, No. 20

It’s rare when a true freshman, especially at middle linebacker, can step in from day one and adjust to the physicality of Power 5 football, but Jordyn Brooks has done just that. He leads the Red Raiders in tackles (61) and leads all freshmen nationally in solo tackles per game (4.7).

From the same high school in Houston that produced Andrew Luck, Brooks stands at 6’1”, 235 pounds and packs a punch in the middle of the defense.

Starting in all nine of Tech’s games so far and as a member of his high school’s 4×100 meter team, Brooks has speed to chase down quicker players. Turning down offers from SEC schools like Arkansas and Missouri, Kingsbury and Co. were sure glad the big instate schools didn’t come after him as they look to have him running the defense for years to come.

Defensive Tackle Ondre Pipkins, No. 9

When Captain Khaki took over at Michigan, change ensued and some players in the program were sent packing to make room for scholarships and you won’t hear Texas Tech complain.

Former Army All-American defensive tackle Ondre Pipkins struggled with injuries throughout his time in Ann Arbor and decided to follow the tumbleweeds to west Texas where he found a warm welcome in Lubbock.

The senior nose guard weighs in at a whopping 325 pounds and while his stats aren’t eye popping (28 tackles, four tackles for loss), his presence looks to have tons of positive effect on those around him. You could possibly draw a straight line from the success of middle linebacker Jordyn Brooks to Pipkins, who often draws a couple of blockers.

Another underrated benefit for Pipkins is his mentorship of talented defensive tackle Breiden Fehoko, a true sophomore that will be counted on for leadership in coming years. With Pipkins in the starting lineup this season, their rushing defense has improved by nearly 50 yards per game, down to 236 from 280 in 2015.

Related Topics:

Most Read

Copyright © 2011- 2023 White Maple Media