SaRodorick Thompson carries offense in Manhattan

Oct 3, 2022 - 7:00 PM

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The loss in Manhattan on Saturday was tough to watch. Texas Tech seemingly had K-State figured out for 2 ¹⁄₂ quarters, then seemed to completely ditch the game plan that worked and the game got away from the Red Raiders.

Even though there were some poor performances, the one that stood out was SaRodorick Thompson. Thompson had 6 carries for 55 yards on Saturday.

Scott Sewell-USA TODAY Sports

Now the stat line may look a little bare. Only 6 carries? 55 yards? No scores? That is where i invite you to reference my comment earlier about abandoning what was working. Tahj Brooks was a close second in my mind because while Thompson averaged 9.2 yards per carry, Brooks still averaged just shy of 4 yards at 3.9. If my math is correct, that would mean the backs averaged 5.8 yards per carry in Manhattan, the best for the backfield duo this season, I believe.

Tech actually out-gained K-State 473-459.

I will speak to the offense this week on the Hub City Homers podcast, but I have said for a while that these running backs are all-conference worthy, even with Bijan Robinson and Deuce Vaughn around. I think it would be a grave mistake to not try to get these guys as many touches as possible. The offense flows better when the running game is utilized, and we saw that for two-ish quarters on Saturday.

With this that brings the POTW Race to:

Tahj Brooks-2

Donovan Smith-1

SaRodorick Thompson-1

The Red Raiders hit the road again this week for their 5th straight Top-25 opponent in #7 Oklahoma State in Stillwater.

Let’s see how involved the RBs are in the game plan.