Coming into the Kansas game, the question was whether this defense would continue it’s impressive performance or would it be “typical Tech” and regress against a bad team. David Gibbs’ crew showed themselves to be a different unit as they layed the hammer on the Jayhawks and never let up. The Red Raiders held Kansas to their lowest yards gained and points scored all season while also forcing four turnovers on the day. Good teams bounce back from tough losses by beating their next opponent mercilessly and that is exactly what this team and this defense did.

Defensive Line

The line did a great job of plugging up holes throughout the day. Kansas running backs had difficulty breaking past this line all game and were constantly plugged. Not only was this felt in the running game but also the passing game as Peyton Bender and Carter Stanley had difficulty finding passing lanes constantly. Eli Howard had one official pass deflection but affected many more passes as he got his big long arms in the way of numerous throws. Kolin Hill joined in on the party with a deflection of his own as well as a big sack on 3rd down in the fourth quarter. The line had difficulty getting pressure on the quarterbacks all game however, with only one sack and no hurries from this group, there was plenty of times to make throws. That will need to change going forward, but didn’t hurt in this match.

Grade: B+

Linebackers

Dakota Allen continues to amaze in his redemption tour this year as he was sensational once again. Allen had four solo tackles along with his big first half interception. Jordyn Brooks added ten more tackles to his team leading total and was able to help stuff the run game. Kansas was never able to get their wildcat going and even when the more mobile Stanley came in at QB, Brooks and Allen were able to snuff out these types of plays. Riko Jeffers and Brayden Stringer kept up the strong play as the second unit came into the game and Jeffers was even able to recover a fumble for the fourth turnover of the game.

Grade: A

Defensive Backs

This is the best game this secondary has played all year. While Bender and Stanley had time in the pocket, they constantly had to hold onto the ball. All game long Kansas receivers were harrassed and had to work to get open. Jah’Shawn Johnson led the way with seven tackles and two pass deflection as the defense had a season high eight deflections during the game. Desmon Smith and Vaughntae Dorsey also did a great job limiting receivers with nine tackles combined. Justus Parker had his coming out party in this game. Starting with his fumble strip, recover, and run for touchdown, Parker then went onto pick off Stanley on the very next drive to cement his remarkable ballgame.

Grade: A