Give a man an opportunity and sometimes he will run with it. Or pass with it.
Texas Tech quarterback Baker Mayfield made history Friday night by becoming the first walk-on freshman quarterback to start a season opener for a football team from an AQ conference, and he put on a show in Texas Tech’s road victory at SMU. Mayfield completed 40 passes (out of 56) for a total of 413 yards and four touchdowns as the Red Raiders topped SMU 41-23. Mayfield also led the Red Raiders in rushing, rushing for 16 yards and a touchdown.
Whether or not Mayfield continues to play at this level throughout the season will be something to watch. His debut was certainly a memorable one and helps to get Texas Tech off on a good footing in 2013. Meanwhile, SMU may already be starting to feel some pressure. The Mustangs were the third team from The American to take the field this season and they continued the losing trend for the newly reformed conference (Rutgers and UConn lost Thursday night). The loss had to be a humbling one for the Mustangs, who entered the season opener hoping for more out of their offense.
SMU struggled on third down conversions and committed nine penalties in the game. The biggest problem for SMU was letting the game get away from them in the fourth quarter. For three quarters Texas Tech and SMU were rarely separated by more than a single score, but SMU had nothing left in the tank in the final quarter. Texas Tech outscored SMU 21-7 in the final frame to pull away with the win.