Can Morton be the man? Takeaways from Tech's loss at Oklahoma State

STILLWATER, Okla. — Oklahoma State coach Mike Gundy didn't know much about Texas Tech's quarterback Saturday when Behren Morton came off the sideline at Boone Pickens Stadium for the first series. Four hours later, even after Morton piled up 425 yards of total offense and three touchdowns, Gundy was still learning.

He never referred to Morton by name, and he asked a roomful of reporters what year Morton is in terms of eligibility. Told Tech's young quarterback is a redshirt freshman, Gundy wryly observed, "That's not good," meaning the Cowboys will have to defend him for a few more years.

"He slings it around pretty good," Gundy said. "I heard this summer they had a kid that could throw it around, sling it pretty good. Obviously, that's who it was. Good player."

No. 7 Oklahoma State came from behind to beat the Red Raiders 41-31, but Morton, given his first start because of an injury to Donovan Smith, had quite a few wow moments. Trey Cleveland caught nine passes for 100 yards and Jerand Bradley caught eight for 119, career highs for both, as Morton delivered the Red Raiders' outside receivers one missile after another.

On Tech's first eight possessions, the Red Raiders scored four touchdowns and got into position for two field goals, making one. They led 31-23 midway through the third quarter, and then Oklahoma State held Tech scoreless on its last six series.

Now the Red Raiders go into an open week, and the most talked-about topic will be the same one that was discussed all spring and summer:

Who's in at quarterback for the Red Raiders?

All three among original starter Tyler Shough, Donovan Smith and Morton are viable options. All three are dealing with physical issues: The clavicle injury that sidelined Shough on opening night, the sore shoulder that sidelined Smith for Saturday's game, the shot to the lower leg just before halftime in Stillwater that had Morton limping the rest of the way.

Tech coach Joey McGuire has given indications that Shough's timeline for a return could be right around the corner — if not the Oct. 22 game against West Virginia, the Oct. 29 game against Baylor. Shough won the competition the first time around and has the edge in terms of experience and doing all the things operationally that offensive coordinator Zach Kittley wants, but for the second year in a row, he's spent a big chunk of a season rehabbing an injury.

Whoever get the call next will be operating an offense whose identity is becoming a little clearer every week. Part of that identity is ...

The Red Raiders run more plays than anyone.

They ran a season-high 104 plays Saturday. They ran 103 against Houston and 100 against Texas.

Part of the reason the Red Raiders run more plays than other teams is because they go fast. Another reason is because ...

They go for it on fourth down more than almost anyone.

Tech converted six of eight on fourth down in the win against Texas and converted four of seven on fourth down against Oklahoma State. The correlation isn't perfect. Tech was only two of three on fourth down against Houston, not a huge number of gambles, but those two conversions extended drives that helped them get to triple digits.

"When you go for that many fourth downs," Gundy said, "you're going to run that total up, especially as fast as they play. You're going to get into that number. There's pros and cons. You keep a drive alive and sometimes, if it doesn't work, you give up good field position. But one thing that can happen is you run up a bunch of plays because you keep possession."

McGuire has cited Championship Analytics and the CAI Game Book that a staffer monitors every Saturday as the reason for going for it on fourth down so many times, even taking chances in his own end. More and more teams use the book and the strategies.

McGuire, who describes the earlier version of his coaching self as more old school and making gut decisions, has evolved in that regard. Gundy hasn't. The OSU coach said last week his staff had the CAI Game Book a few years ago, but 75 percent of the time he didn't want to make a call that the book said was statistically the correct choice.

"I'm not a big fourth-down guy," Gundy said after Saturday's game. "I've got to have a good reason for it. I'm not saying they're wrong. Everybody's got their own way of playing the game, but I have to have a good reason for doing it and feel like I have an advantage in doing it. Because I have a good punter."

Meanwhile, Texas Tech's offense is evolving because ...

The Red Raiders have a developing deep threat.

For the third game in a row, Trey Cleveland produced a highlight-reel catch on a deep ball. This time, Tech's slender 6-foot-4 split receiver went up over Oklahoma State cornerback D.J. McKinney for a 36-yard reception to the OSU 4-yard line.

Last week, he one-handed a Donovan Smith throw while warding off K-State corner Ekow Boye-Doe. That one went for 58 yards. And the week before that, Cleveland tracked a ball in the air and came down with it between Texas defenders Jahdae Barron and Jamier Johnson. That play covered 35 yards.

"Trey just continues to make big plays," McGuire said. "That's how he practices, and so ... (it's) expected."

If Tech can count on Cleveland for at least one such deep shot a game — and volume; he had several other timely catches Saturday — then that'll make the second half of the season more fun for the Red Raiders.

The Red Raiders are supposed to be through the toughest part of their schedule — or at least, on paper, the toughest part of their schedule going into the season. They've spent the past five Saturdays playing ranked opponents. No remaining opponent appears to be a juggernaut, and while Kansas and TCU have surprised to the up side — enough to attract ESPN's College GameDay to Lawrence, Kansas on Saturday — Iowa State and, especially, Oklahoma look more beatable than in recent years.

The Red Raiders won't be able to press any advantage they have, however, unless ...

They solve some season-long issues.

Tech went into Saturday bottom 10 in the FBS in turnover margin and sacks allowed, and that appears to still be the case. Oklahoma State sacked Morton four times, increasing Tech's total of sacks allowed this season to 23. And part of the reason the Cowboys won is because they didn't turn the ball over once, whereas Morton threw an interception deep in Tech territory that led to points.

Turnovers tend to fluctuate from one season to the next and aren't predictable no matter how much a team emphasizes takeaways. Nevertheless, Tech made "take three" (turnovers per game) a mantra, and the Red Raiders are coming up two short of that.

"We have not won the turnover battle in the three losses," McGuire said, "and we have not hit their quarterback enough and they've hit our quarterback too much. Those two things in our plan to win, if you don't win at least one of those, you're going to have a hard time winning the game."

This article originally appeared on Lubbock Avalanche-Journal: Can Morton be the man? Takeaways from Texas Tech's loss at Oklahoma State