NEW YORK -- He doesn't want to talk about his foot, really. He's been asked about it so much that he can feel the question coming, and he heads it off with a tsk, a shake of the head and a practiced response.
"I've got a brand-new set of wheels, man," Michael Crabtree said Thursday night. "That's the way I look at it."
The Texas Tech receiver, a likely top-10 pick in this weekend's NFL draft, was making the interview rounds at the premiere party for EA Sports' NCAA Football 10 video game. (He's on the cover of the Xbox 360 version.) He's looking forward to finally finding out which team he's going to, and the stress fracture in his foot is healed, thank you very much, and he's not real keen on talking about it.
What he does like talking about is college football. Which is something he's going to miss.
When Jack Bicknell Jr. left Lubbock to become the offensive line coach at Boston College, it left Texas Tech scrambling to fill the void. It now appears that Red Raiders have secured Bicknell's replacement. Mike Leach has hired Matt Moore who spent last season as offensive line coach at Troy. Moore is one of Leach's former players, as the two crossed paths at Valdosta (Ga.) State, an NCAA Division II school, where Leach coached from 1992-96.
"He's had a great career at a variety of high schools, one of them being Hoover (Alabama) High, when they ran offenses very similar to ours and borrowed from ours and where they had a lot of success and won a lot of Alabama state championships,'' Leach said. "He's done well in college, too. It's exciting to have him on board and get going.''
Moore, who is 34, served stints as both the offensive line coach and offensive coordinator at Hoover, the Alabama powerhouse featured on the MTV series Two-A-Days. Despite missing all of the Red Raiders' spring practices, Moore is confident he can fit right in with Leach and his staff.
"It'll be a little different not getting to go through spring with the kids before you start the season,'' Moore said. "But I'm confident, having played in this system and having run this system for the past eight years, that I'll be able to fit right in from a technique standpoint and from a terminology standpoint.''
Tyler Bridge and Kari Rodgers have served their school anonymously as they manned Texas Tech mascot Raider Red's costume. On Sunday the pair was unmasked as their role in the Texas Tech tradition was honored. As part of the ceremony Bridge and Rodgers passed Raider Red's guns to the incoming mascots, whose identities will now remain anonymous.
Bridge performed as Raider Red at football and basketball games for three years and he might have taken it a bit too seriously.
"I've had the privilege of not growing into the costume but growing with the character," Bridge said.
It should surprise no one that Bridge also played the lead role of Danny Zuko in the Texas Tech School of Music's rendition of "Grease."
Interestingly, the Raider Red tradition used to be limited to members of a Texas Tech spirit organization known as the, um ... Saddle Tramps. Really? Is it any wonder Mike Leach fits in so well in Lubbock?
With the Saddle Tramps and the "Passing of the Guns" it's great to see that school spirit is alive and bizarre at Texas Tech. And don't even get me started about the Bell Ringer. Just watch.
The emergence of Britton and Crabtree could be an important development for Texas Tech fans. The Red Raiders are trying to replace a talented trio of 2006 seniors in Joel Filani, Jarrett Hicks and Robert Johnson. The offense is also relying on a young, first-year wide receivers coach in Lincoln Riley. Riley was pleased with what he saw on Saturday.
"Every guy that we have right now is pretty good after the catch as far as making things happen," Riley said. "That's exciting, knowing that if we can get completions and make routine plays, those guys have a chance to take it the distance."
Despite being somewhat overshadowed by the wide receiver play, the Texas Tech quarterbacks also enjoyed solid days. Incumbent Graham Harrell finished the day 16-25 for 317 yards and three touchdowns. The only negatives to Harrell's performance were his two interceptions, both of which were returned for touchdowns. Taylor Potts who is challenging for Harrell's job completed 16-27 passes for 139 yards and also threw one interception.
"I'm a Bill O'Reilly fan. I listen to a lot of talk radio. G. Gordon Liddy. Rush Limbaugh. Sean Hannity. I like G. Gordon Liddy. I got Leach that Stacked and Packed Calendar. G. Gordon Liddy puts out this calendar. It's women in bathing suits holding guns. He talked about it; I figured he'd want it. Maybe that's why he put me on scholarship."
Seriously, that must be it. I mean how else does a guy with two catches for 10 yards in his career, earn a scholarship at pass-happy Texas Tech?
Schaeffer also has some well-developed ideas about Hillary Clinton's presidential aspirations.
"I'm really pretty outspoken about a lot of stuff - guns, abortion, stuff like that, just basic hard-line conservative views. See, I'm all for Texas seceding from the Union if Hillary Clinton gets elected president. That's an idea I've run across (Mike) Leach, and he thought it was a pretty good idea."
"Taylor Potts has outperformed Graham Harrell the last two practices, so the quarterback situation's wide open,'' Leach said. "If Taylor Potts is able to continue to outperform Graham the rest of the spring and through camp and some things like that, he's got a shot to be the starting quarterback here.''
"Competition brings out the best in everybody," Leach said, "but you want to make sure it's real and warranted competition, the best you can. I think both are good quarterbacks. Both do good things. Both have some real strengths, and now I think we want to prepare them both so that they can have the best offseason possible, and then see who we're going to go with in the fall."
The emergence of Potts is an unexpected development in Lubbock. Prior to his recent performance, he was probably most known for taking part in ESPNU's televised summer camp-on steroids Summer House. For his sake I'm glad that it looks as though he will soon be able to add something a little more meaningful to his resume'.
I don't care if you've never punted before, son, it's fourth and 38. I could cut you some slack on, say, fourth and 37, but we all have to live in a world where sometimes fourth and 38 happens.
What to do when you're swashbucklin' Mike Leach and you lose one punter to graduation, another to a broken leg, and a third to grades? 1. Adjust eyepatch. 2. Adopt roguish, princely bearing, preferably with one leg perched upon a handy bulwark. 3. Set sail for the classified ads!
McNeill said anyone can tryout for the position, and whoever is successful could wind up with a spot on the team this upcoming season.
"It would be good to have some film, if they don't then that's OK," McNeill said. "It could be one, two, three (people); there's no certain number. We try them, and if they are able to kick successfully, then they have a chance to go to the spring with us and maybe even through the fall." ... "No specific criteria on height and weight," he said of a potential punter's requirements. "Just be willing to work, be willing to accept coaching and be willing to compete."
Hyyyyarrr! All aboard the SS 600 Passes, bound for bowls unknown after adventure on the high seas. Must provide own linens and citrus fruit. Any candidates wishing to apply can call the Texas Tech Athletic Department at (806) 742-4260 and ask for graduate assistant Clay, who knew he was signing up for some crappy duties but couldn't imagine just what Angry Prothro-Hating God had in store for him. Please, only serious inquiries. Happy punting.
I don't even think about it," James said. "I mean, when you get to know him, he's really a normal guy. So to me, it doesn't even feel like he is."
Adam James was a greyshirt in the fall, meaning the spring practices have given Texas Tech coaches the first glimpse of what he is capable of.
"We don't entirely know what we have with him," [Texas Tech coach Mike] Leach said after Monday's practice. "We're looking forward to seeing. I think he's got real soft natural hands and catches the ball real well."
Those receiving skills might mean that Adam winds up as a tight end in the Red Raiders pass-happy offense. Lining up at TE could be just what Adam needs to help escape the shadow of his father's three-time all-SWC career as a running back at SMU. However, if Craig James is anything like I imagine, "Old Pony" will gleefully remind Adam of his 96-yard TD reception against North Texas in 1982 that set a new record as the longest scoring play in Southwest Conference history.
Former walk-on quarterback Lincoln Riley, who was cut by Mike Leach in 2003, is now the wide receivers coach at Texas Tech. Lincoln who is just 23, might be the youngest full-time assistant coach in Division I football. He joined the Red Raiders staff as a student assistant after Leach recognized he lacked the athletic ability to quarterback Texas Tech.
"That was fairly obvious,'' Leach said. "Yeah. Recognition would be an understatement. He had a real good mind for (the game), but at the time I had a lot of quarterbacks, and with the limitation on walk-ons, we weren't going to have an extra slot. Plus, he could help the team better as a coach anyway."
Riley got his shot as a full-time coach this season, when former wide receivers coach Sonny Dykes left to take a position with Arizona. His progression through the coaching ranks is interesting given that he is being mentored by Leach, who just happens to be one of the few major college coaches who never played a down of college football.
Riley will certainly have his work cut out for him in 2007, as the Red Raiders must rebuild their receiving corps following the losses of Joel Filani, Robert Johnson and Jarrett Hicks. Filani, Johnson, and Hicks combined for over 2,500 yards and 26 touchdowns a year ago.
In case you've missed the FanHouse's awesomely awesome and fantastic Spring Practice Questions, I've cobbled together the "Complete Series" for Big 12 teams.
Seriously, read these, folks. They're about football. And right now the sporting world isn't about football. And you're dying for more football. That's why you're here. To endure this choppy writing of mine. And read these Big 12 Spring Practice Questions. The complete series. Below.
NEW YORK -- He doesn't want to talk about his foot, really. He's been asked about it so much that he can feel the question coming, and he heads it off with a tsk, a shake of the head and a practiced response.
When Jack Bicknell Jr. left Lubbock to become the offensive line coach at Boston College, it left Texas Tech 
Tyler Bridge and Kari Rodgers have served their school anonymously as they manned Texas Tech mascot Raider Red's costume. 
In a game that was supposed to highlight 
A year ago Graham Harrell (pictured at right) won the starting quarterback job for Texas Tech as a sophomore. All he did was complete over 60% of his passes and throw for 38 touchdowns. One would assume that he had the job for 2007 all locked up. 
Adam James, son of ABC analyst Craig James, is currently a 6-3, 220-pound freshman at Texas Tech
