Perhaps no college football program in the nation is associated with a more potent offense than Texas Tech, thanks to the late Mike Leach. But what's strange is that until his arrival in 2000, Red Raider football was all about defense and running the ball.
That identity was solidified in the 1980s and '90s by head coach Spike Dykes, himself a former defensive coordinator. During his tenure, he relied heavily on his defense and a stable of running backs, including Byron Hanspard, Byron “Bum” Morris, and Ricky Williams.
Of course, those days are long gone, and for nearly 25 years, the Red Raiders have been synonymous with getting the ball in the air and lighting up the scoreboard. That's why the offensive coordinator position at Texas Tech is one of the hottest jobs in Lubbock.
But until Leach left after the 2009 season, no one cared who the offensive coordinator was because everyone knew Leach was the mastermind of the entire offense. But when defense-first Tommy Tuberville (one of the worst head coaches in Texas Tech history) was brought in to replace Leach, there was hope among Texas Tech fans that the program could continue its newly established program. As a result, people around Raiderland began to obsess over the offensive coordinator's performance. Identity as an aggressive juggernaut.
So let's take a look back at how the six offensive coordinators since the end of the Leach era have stacked up against each other. A countdown of the Red Raider offensive coordinators over the past 15 years.
Few Red Raider fans will remember Kevin Johns' name, but he was Kliff Kingsbury's offensive coordinator in Kingsbury's final season as head coach in 2018. If you don't remember him, don't feel bad. His tenure in Lubbock was rather forgettable.
Of course, being an offensive coordinator under Kingsbury wasn't as important as being a coordinator under Leach. Both head coaches were bent on running the offense and dictating plays (often to the detriment of the defense), without giving the coordinator much responsibility or leeway.
But Johns was brought to Texas Tech for a reason. He was supposed to energize the Red Raider run game, much like Indiana's rushing attack. In fact, he was touted as an expert in running the football in a spread offense.
Unfortunately, he was unable to make much of a difference. During Johns' year in Lubbock, Tech ranked 108th nationally in rushing offense, averaging just 132.6 yards per game on the ground.
Tech really needed a run game late in the season when the Red Raiders were down on third-string QB Jett Duffy and had to play through an injury to end the season. However, against Kansas State, Tech had just 26 rushing yards, and in the final game of the season against Baylor, the offense had just 100 rushing yards.
Johns was tasked with breaking the deadlock in the game at Tech Ground. But that year, Duffy was the team's leading rusher with just 369 yards. Additionally, Tech's average distance per carry was just 3.6 yards per carry.
So what exactly does Johns bring to the table? It seems like the answer is “nothing.” That's why he checks in as the worst Texas Tech football offensive coordinator of the past 15 years.
