Commentary: Pat on the back to Tech defense

There have been times in the years of following Texas Tech football that I have left a stadium near you trying to comprehend exactly what I just lived through.

There was the 2014 abomination against TCU in Fort Worth. Frog quarterback Trevonne Boykin threw seven touchdowns passes that unseasonably warm afternoon in an 82-27 bludgeoning. I staggered out of Amon Carter Stadium like one of the survivors at the end of “The Poseidon Adventure.”

Only thing missing was Maureen McGovern signing, “There’s Got to Be a Morning After.”

Then there was the ghastly home performance against Oklahoma State in 2011. I didn’t exactly walk out at the end of that game. I could only stomach the first half, one in which Tech trailed, 49-0.

The Cowboys cruised that day, 66-6, scoring their last touchdown with 3:53 left – in the third quarter. Coach Mike Gundy threw water on that fire early or OSU would have scored 90 with breaking much of a sweat.

For much of the last 20 seasons, there’s been no defense for Tech’s defense. It’s often been an assault to the senses.

Oh, I could bore you with more gory details, like finishing in the bottom three in the entire NCAA in points allowed from 2014-2016, or that four times Tech scored more than 50 points in 2015-2016 and lost, or that Patrick Mahomes threw for 734 yards and had 819 yards of total offense against Oklahoma and still lost, but you get the idea.

Unless there’s some gray in the hair of Tech fans, most believe that explosive offenses and wretched defenses are as traditional as the campus statue of Will Rogers and his horse Soapsuds. Giving up 50 or more points 14 times and 60 or more points 13 times in the last 13 seasons kinda does that.

So what has happened with the current Red Raiders should be highlighted though most are not aware or care all that much. The identity of this program has always been offense, and the focus has always been on that side. It’s a given the defense will be bad so just move on to something exciting.

That’s a reason in this 6-5 season with the regular-season finale at Texas on Black Friday, a lot of heat has fallen on offensive coordinator Zach Kittley. What happened to all those weekly 400-yard passing and 40-point games?

The subplot to this season is a much-improved defense under veteran defensive coordinator Tim DeRuyter. Yes, it’s a low bar, but it’s the best Raider defense since seniors were 8 years old. No one is talking about it because it got lost in the frustration of an inconsistent offense and a slow 1-3 start to the season.

The Raiders won their third consecutive game and earned bowl eligibility on Saturday with a 24-23 win over Central Florida, one of four new Big 12 members. Tech held a speedy offense to nine points over the last three quarters. It was the second-lowest output of the season for UCF when quarterback John Rhys Plumlee has played.

For those keeping score – and very few are – that’s four consecutive games Tech has held an opponent under 30 points. BYU had 27, TCU had 28, Kansas had 13 and now UCF.

Big deal, right? That gets a yawn at Michigan, Georgia and a few other places. But the last time Tech held four consecutive teams under 30 points? Ten years ago in 2013. The last time it was four Big 12 teams in a row? Go back to 2009. That was four head coaches and eight defensive coordinators ago.

DeRuyter has worked around some key injuries, notably to the top linebacker, Jacob Rodriguez in the season opener, and in the secondary to cobble together a respectable group that is no longer wet tissue paper.

In fact, it’s the best group in 14 years. Tech is allowing 24.2 points. That’s 52nd nationally after no better than 84th in the previous 13 seasons. The last one better than the current defense was in 2009 at 21.6 points.

There’s some rotational depth in the defensive line led by experienced tackles Jaylon Hutchings and Tony Bradford. Ben Roberts, a redshirt freshman, stepped up for Rodriguez at linebacker. The secondary battled injuries, but has a mixture of playmakers and freshmen punching above their weight.

In a way, it’s an odd group. They don’t get many sacks or turnovers. The offense puts them in bad position with fourth-down gambles. They just don’t make it easy for teams to get into the end zone, which is the bottom line.

When allowing more than 30 points a game has been a way of life for nearly 15 seasons, only two teams have reached that in regulation play. Kansas State had 38. No. 6 Oregon had 31 (Ducks had a pick six), its lowest offensive output of the season.

No parade is scheduled for what is a slightly above-average defense nationally. Yet considering the woeful units Tech has turned out for most of the 21st century, a pat on the back is certainly in order.

Jon Mark Beilue writes about regional sports for The Eastern New Mexico News.