Iowa State

Offense Texas Tech has given up 350+ yards to every Big 12 opponent they’ve played besides Kansas. Texas and Oklahoma both had over 500 yards of total offense. The playmakers for Iowa State have to be licking their lips looking at that. Their passing defense is bad, and their rushing offense has been less than subpar against good rushing attacks. I don’t really have a certain player to keep an eye on here. I think Breece will have a monster game, Xavier Hutchinson and Charlie Kolar could both dominate on the receiving end. I like our chances of offensive success against Texas Tech, especially if we get off to a quick start.

Defense Texas Tech, on the flip side, has been solid on offense. As abysmal as their defense has been at times, they still have more total yards than yards given up by their defense. Which is an impressive feat.

I expect the Iowa State D-Line to get after Donovan Smith, the third starting quarterback for Texas Tech this season. Enyi Uwazurike and Will McDonald are both on absolute tears right now, and McDonald is the reigning Big 12 defensive player of the week.

Photo by David K Purdy/Getty Images

Texas Tech

Offense Donovan Smith got plenty of playing time last Saturday. He didn’t play terrible though, and can’t be at fault for their blowout loss against the Sooners. He threw 21-27 for 263 yards with a touchdown as well as an interception. Smith is just a redshirt freshman, and facing one of the top defenses in the Big 12 in his second game of his career is a tall task.

Defense Colin Schooler is a name to look out for on Saturday. The linebacker leads the team in tackles this season with 68. He’s gotten a sack on the season as well as three forced fumbles. Iowa State isn’t prone to fumbling the ball, but the Big 12 refs certainly think that they are.

The other name is Tyree Wilson. The Red Raider defensive lineman has over half his total tackles as tackles for loss. Iowa State will have to get past him before he blows up the play behind the line of scrimmage.