Each Monday, Wednesday and Friday, the Eye on College Football examines what current hot topic the fans of one BCS team are obsessing over -- rationally or not. Today's team: the Texas Tech Red Raiders.
What they're talking about is ... Jarrett Stidham. If you didn't hear the news over the weekend, Texas Tech got a commitment from five-star quarterback Jarrett Stidham, who is easily the biggest recruit of the Kliff Kingsbury era in Lubbock.
What makes this commitment even more important for the Red Raiders is that Stidham chose Texas Tech over other local heavyweights like Texas, Texas A&M, Baylor, TCU and Oklahoma. Then there were the national powers that were interested as well. Schools like Alabama, Auburn, Florida, Michigan, Ohio State, Oregon and Penn State. So, you know, for Stidham to choose Texas Tech when he has offers from all those other schools is kind of a big deal.
What they're saying is ... They aren't saying anything as much as they're making noises of excitement. And it's really hard to blame Texas Tech fans for doing so. I don't mean this as a knock on Texas Tech, but considering its place in the national picture, five-star dual-threat quarterbacks just don't pick the Red Raiders over all those other schools. Until now, anyway, and you have to think that the presence of Kliff Kingsbury is the key factor.
Here's a sampling of what Texas Tech fans are saying on the WreckEm247 message boards, as well as at Viva the Matadors.
-- "Well, I guess I'm going to have to streak down Broadway Landon! Great day to be a red raider baby!"
-- "I wish more recruits handled the recruiting process like Stidham did [Edit. note: I'm sure what this poster means is 'picked Texas Tech']. He evaluated all his options in a very thoughtful and methodical manner. Then he pulled the trigger. I am one TTU Alumni that is fired up!"
-- "Amazing. Just amazing. Its about to get really good…"
-- "I haven't been this excited since I discovered the inside of a Mariah Carey album had pictures to hang up on your bedroom wall."
-- "This is just the start for Kliff, recruiting is going to be taken to wicked heights."
What we're saying is ... we'd be pretty excited about it too. While no recruit is a sure thing, picking up a five-star quarterback is exactly the kind of excitement a fan base needs to get through the offseason, and it's also what the Texas Tech fan base needs overall. This is a fan base that certainly had to be worried after Mike Leach was fired, because Leach had made the program relevant again, and Raiders fans had to wonder if it would ever happen again.
And Tommy Tuberville certainly didn't bring an excitement level to Lubbock.
So, naturally, when Kliff Kingsbury returned to Lubbock to take over the program, the excitement came back. Now Kingsbury is bringing a five-star quarterback to town, and more big-name recruits could follow. The future is bright in Lubbock once again, so what Red Raider fan wouldn't be pumped?
