Texas Tech's schedule: SMU & Sam Houston State???

[MrMustang1965]

By DON WILLIAMS
AVALANCHE-JOURNAL

Texas Tech plans to play seven of 11 football games at home in 2005 and not leave Jones SBC Stadium until October of that season, athletic director Gerald Myers said Tuesday.

The Red Raiders' tentative schedule calls for them to open 2005 with September home games against Indiana State, Florida International and Sam Houston State, take a week off and then begin Big 12 Conference play with an Oct. 1 home game against Kansas.

"It gives us a chance to get off to a good start with four home games," Myers said. "It gives us an opportunity with those games to get off to a good start as well as be a good opportunity to generate some revenue."

Myers said he's awaiting a signed contract from Indiana State for the non-conference schedule to be finalized. Tech will pay an average of $250,000 to each of the three non-league opponents for one-game deals.

Indiana State, Florida International and Sam Houston State, all playing Division I-AA, went 3-10, 2-10 and 2-9, respectively, last season. Florida International received Sun Belt Conference football membership for the upcoming season, paving the way for the Golden Panthers to be a conditional Division I-A member in 2004 and 2005.

Florida International, a Miami school that started a program in 2002, is coached by former Dolphins quarterback Don Strock and has former Dolphins Bruce Hardy and Tony Nathan among its assistants.

The NCAA requires Division I-A teams win six games in an 11-game schedule to become bowl eligible. Once every four years, a victory against a Division I-AA member can be counted toward bowl eligibility. The Raiders never have used that provision.

The makeup of the schedule continues to illustrate diametrically opposite philosophies of Tech's last two football coaches. Mike Leach prefers to play as many home games as possible, even against non-conference opponents perceived to be weak. His predecessor, Spike Dykes, took Tech to hot spots such as Florida State, Ohio State, Penn State, Tennessee and Georgia, not to mention Oklahoma and Nebraska when the two were non-conference opponents.

Myers said more than once in the past two years, ESPN has contacted Tech to be a possible opponent for a televised game at Michigan, but the Raiders have declined.

"We've more or less decided we're not going to play anybody one way anymore," Myers said. "We're going to play home games or we're going to play home-and-home. That's our approach right now. If teams won't play us home-and-home, we're not going to sell out to play a money game on the road. I think our football team and our program is at the point we don't need to do that."

To set up the steady stream of home games next year, Tech paid $100,000 to get out of a September 2005 trip to Fresno State.

"I don't blame (Leach)," Myers said. "I don't want to go play Fresno State at Fresno. It was one of those games he didn't schedule anyway. It was one of those games carried over from (Dykes' coaching tenure)."

Tech's non-conference games this year are at Southern Methodist and New Mexico and at home versus TCU.

Beyond 2005, the only finalized non-conference games are a home game with SMU and a road game at TCU, both in 2006.

In addition to his desire for home dates, Leach also prefers to play teams from in-state or close by. Tech has had conversations with SMU, TCU, New Mexico State, Houston and Rice about filling slots for 2006 and later, according to football operations director Tommy McVay. New Mexico is another possibility, Myers said.

In any event, the Raiders want to get more games mapped out soon.

"That's a major priority right now," McVay said.

"We've got to really get on that," Myers said, "because that'll be here before you know it."

The proposed 2005 schedule would be the Raiders' highest concentration of home games since 2000, when they played eight of 12 at home.

[Sam I Am]

Texas Tick clearly wants a soft non-conf schedule, even softer than playing SMU. I don't mind being the cream puff in the usual non-conf mix, but TTU is forfeiting any chance of a good BCS rating and major bowl bid with its schedule. What's up in Lubbock?

[WildHorse]

My initial reaction is the same: "Indiana State, Florida International and Sam Houston State?" But the argument could be made, of course, that there's some logic to scheduling a few roadkill games. A couple of easy wins are better than no wins at all. I'm sort of torn -- I'd like to see us get some wins, of course, but not sure how proud we can be of wins over junior high teams.

[bubba pony]

go to
http://www.nationalchamps.net/NCAA/futu ... s_home.htm

I've reviewed all the schools here to get the below. but for 2006 do we drop Boston College to take tech? I want SMU to have a game up in the Northeast for all us Yankee alumni.

2004
SMU At TCU
Texas Tech At SMU
SMU At Oklahoma State

2005
TCU At SMU
Baylor
Oklahoma State

2006
SMU At Boston College at Texas Tech?
SMU At Northwestern
Wake Forest At SMU

2007
Northwestern At SMU
At TCU
SMU At Wake Forest

2008
TCU At SMU

2009
SMU At TCU

2010
TCU At SMU

[KnuckleStang]

I've reviewed all the schools here to get the below. but for 2006 do we drop Boston College to take tech? I want SMU to have a game up in the Northeast for all us Yankee alumni.

Lord, I hope we don't drop that game! In 2006, I'm looking forward to hopping on the Amtrak, w/ bloody marys, etc., and screaming my fool head off (at the game, not on the train).

[Red+BlueDude]

There's absolutely no reason that you shouldn't be yelling your fool head off on the Amtrak, too.

[davish75]

Why not drop TCU in 2005 and thereafter and substitute Tx A&M for all the years?

[SMUguy]

Metroplex rivalry with the little froggies is fun. The proximity of the schools makes it cool. We match up better with the little froggies than with the aggies, 2003 records notwithstanding. And why create another DFW recruiting foothold for A&M?
I'd rather see the team improve and beat TCU a few times. I wouldn't mind playing A&M, too, but not at the expense of the TCU game.
Just my two cents.

[Mustangs35SMU]

Agreed
If we can get rid of OSU and add A&M Im all for it but not to replace the Frogs no way,