BYU Could Face Another First-Time Starter at Quarterback Against Texas Tech

Texas Tech played its backup quarterback in the second half against Kansas State

In the second half of its 38-21 loss to Kansas State, true freshman quarterback Jake Strong played quarterback for the Red Raiders after starter Behren Morton left the game with an injury. Morton aggravated a right shoulder injury that he's been dealing with since the loss to West Virginia.

Going into the game against BYU, Texas Tech's quarterback situation is firmly up in the air. It's possible that BYU could be facing another first-time starter at quarterback like they did against TCU.

Strong made some promising throws against Kansas State, but he made costly mistakes that allowed the Wildcats to grow their lead. Strong threw three interceptions and he threw another ball that was dropped by a Kansas State safety. He looked like a true freshman playing his first college football.

When asked about Behren's injury, Texas Tech head coach Joey McGuire it was an accumulation of hits he took in the first half. He got sacked twice," McGuire said. "He took a big hit on the sideline that we wished he was throwing the ball away but took a big hit. I mean, he's been playing through that shoulder and so I think...I think it was a mixture of stuff. You get a situation like that, you want to protect your guy and make sure that he can protect himself and we just didn't feel like he could."

McGuire said there's still a chance Behren Morton could start against BYU. "I would think that there's a really good chance that Behren starts [against BYU]," McGuire said. "We'll see tomorrow whenever he comes in and see how it goes during the week. Either way, we'll get Jake ready to play, we'll get Behren ready to play and go out there and play a really tough BYU. I know they play really good at home and so we're gonna go on the road again and hopefully get some guys back too."

The Red Raiders have been snake-bitten at the quarterback position. Tyler Shough broke his leg earlier this year and is out indefinitely. Morton has been dealing with the same shoulder injury for multiple weeks.

Against TCU, the BYU defense struggled mightily against first-time starting quarterback Josh Hoover. Hoover was rarely pressured and consistently delivered passes on time and on target. Hoover finished with 439 passing yards, 4 touchdowns, and 2 interceptions.

The BYU defense will prepare for both quarterbacks this week. Regardless of who is under center for the Red Raiders, BYU will need to improve in all areas to have a chance to beat Texas Tech.

Follow us for future coverage:

Facebook - @CougsDaily

Twitter - @Cougs_Daily and Casey Lundquist at @casey_lundquist

Instagram - @cougs_daily