Eye of the storm: Smith takes heat, even as Big 12 passing leader
Donovan Smith leads the Big 12 in all sorts of individual categories this season: passes attempted, passes completed, passes intercepted, passing yards and touchdown passes.
Leading a conference in passes intercepted is nothing to aspire to. Neither is ranking eighth in a 10-team conference in passing efficiency, which is where the Texas Tech quarterback sits at the moment.
And when the team loses, as happened Saturday when Kansas State beat Texas Tech 37-28, the heat gets turned up on the most high-profile members of a football team. Which is why Tech coach Joey McGuire phoned Smith later Saturday.
"I gave him a call, because he's down, man," McGuire said during his weekly Monday press session. "That kid wants to win and he's a great kid, has got very high character. I told him, 'There's no position that will get more praise, unwarranted, than the quarterback position and the head coach's position, and there will be no position that gets more criticism unwarranted than quarterback. That's just the nature of the beast.
'You chose to play quarterback, and you're a really good one.' I think he's going to be a guy that plays on Sundays. You've just got to learn it now and find ways to get better — and we've got to find ways as a program to help him be better."
The 6-foot-5, 240-pound sophomore has made eight starts for the Red Raiders. Among those eight starts have been six against ranked teams, another against a team receiving votes and the one that was neither was Mississippi State in the Liberty Bowl.
The Red Raiders are 4-4 in his starts. Smith shined in the wins last year against Iowa State and Mississippi State and in wins this year against Houston and Texas, accounting in those games for 1,406 yards of total offense and 11 touchdowns. He had his worst game last year in a 23-0 loss to Oklahoma State, throwing for only 83 yards in the Red Raiders' first shutout defeat since 1997.
Turnovers have been an issue. He threw three interceptions in the Houston game, though he also made big plays late to win it. He was picked off twice at North Carolina State and threw two interceptions and lost a fumble at Kansas State.
"I've been proud of Donovan," McGuire said. "He's leading the Big 12 in passing. He's given us a chance to be in a lot of games. He's a big guy that will step up and make some courageous throws. He's getting a lot of criticism by a lot of different people.
"The thing I told the team (Sunday) is, 'Let's go back and look at that, and who should have some of that criticism along with Donovan.' It's going to start with me. (Offensive coordinator Zach) Kittley is going to be the first one to tell you it's going to start with him, with protecting (Smith) with different play calls.
"The first interception (Saturday), he gets hit on the arm as he's throwing it. He didn't hit himself, and so the criticism lies with him being clean in the pocket. That goes with play calls. That goes with the offensive line, all that."
Despite having three mobile quarterbacks, all three being running threats, Tech has allowed 19 sacks. Only three teams in the FBS have given up more. That's prompted criticism of not only the offensive line, but Smith's pocket presence, awareness and perceived indecision.
"That starts with me," Kittley said. "I've got to try to clear up the picture for him as much as I can, and I don't think I did a very good job of that last week."
Kansas State sacked Smith six times. Aside from having one of the nation's top pass rushers in Felix Anudike-Uzomah, who had three of the sacks, Kittley said K-State presented more complex looks than Smith saw the week before against Texas, when he threw for 331 yards and two touchdowns with no interceptions.
McGuire said repeatedly since summer he intends to play original starter Tyler Shough, Smith and redshirt freshman Behren Morton. Shough has been out since the first half of the first game with a left shoulder injury, and the staff has stuck with Smith almost exclusively since.
When Smith has struggled, fans have called for Morton to get a shot.
"Behren's still a young guy and still just learning," Kittley said Monday. "His biggest thing that we've talked about is just the operation of the offense, the little things — where to signal, what O-line code. Again, Behren's very, very talented, as everybody knows, and he's waiting his time.
"If something happens or whatever, I don't have any hesitation throwing Behren Morton out there. He's just got to continue to get better, and he is every week. I'm still just trying to develop him in the mental mindset more so than the physical traits right now."
In the meantime, Shough continues to work to be back in the picture. Tech has an open date next week before its Oct. 22 game against West Virginia. Shough threw with Tech staff Sunday and Monday. The plan is for him to continue throwing all week, consult with a doctor and determine if he's far enough along to practice with the team for the West Virginia game.
McGuire was asked how long it will take for Shough to be back in games after he's fully cleared for football activity.
"I don't think it will take a lot," he said. "The biggest thing right now is nothing but his throwing motion: One, is it safe to put him in the game with his shoulder? And two, his throwing motion. Once he feels good about that, I think when the doctors release him, you put him in practice and let him go.
"Whenever it gets to that point, you're also going to say, ... 'I know he won the job, but who gives us the best chance to win that week?' And then hopefully we get all three of them and we can do some things that we planned on doing at the first of the year."
Personnel updates
Starting inside receiver Myles Price will be a game-time decision for Tech's game Saturday at No. 7 Oklahoma State, McGuire said. Price suffered an injured left ankle at Kansas State while blocking for a wide-receiver screen. McGuire said Monday there was no fracture, but there will be pain to manage.
"Can he cut on it? Can he plant? Can he hit high speed?" McGuire said. "If not, it's probably good that we're butting up against a bye week. And so, if he does miss a game, I think it's just only going to be one."
RB Cam'Ron Valdez, who missed the first four games with a knee strain, returned to practice last week and is now out with a hamstring injury, McGuire said. CB Adrian Frye, limited since the season opener with quadriceps and knee problems, will return this week. ...
Matt Keeler, the top backup to starting left tackle Caleb Rogers since the spring, has been moved to second-team right tackle behind Monroe Mills. Southern California transfer Ty Buchanan has gone the other direction, from backing up Mills to now backing up Rogers.
McGuire said it might be strange for Buchanan, because he's not played left tackle in the past, but coaches think the redshirt freshman from Corpus Christi Calallen has the athletic ability to be a fit.
College football
Who: Texas Tech at Oklahoma State
When: 2:30 p.m. Saturday
Where: Boone Pickens Stadium, Stillwater, Oklahoma
Records: Texas Tech 3-2, 1-1 in the Big 12; Oklahoma State 4-0, 1-0
Rankings (AP/coaches poll): Texas Tech unranked/unranked; Oklahoma State 7/7
Last game: Kansas State 37, Texas Tech 28; Oklahoma State 36, Baylor 25
Last meeting: Oklahoma State 23, Texas Tech 0 last year in Lubbock
TV: Fox Sports 1
Line: Oklahoma State by 9 1/2
Fast fact: According to STATS, Inc., Texas Tech is the fourth team since 1980 to play five ranked opponents in its first six games of the season. The others were Michigan State (1987), Tennessee (1991) and Ohio State (1995).
This article originally appeared on Lubbock Avalanche-Journal: Eye of the storm: Donovan Smith takes heat, even as Big 12 passing leader
