A similar question probably has been posed regarding every Texas Tech quarterback since Mike Leach began coaching the Red Raiders in 2000: Is Graham Harrell really talented, or should his success and statistics be attributed mostly to Leach’s spread offense?
Leach said Harrell, a 6-foot-3, 197-pound junior from Ennis, Texas, is immensely gifted and ranks at the top of the QBs he has coached.
“I think it’s a dumb question; teams that don’t have a system don’t need coaches,” Leach said during this week’s Big 12 coaches teleconference. “If Graham personifies his system better than the other guy, that’s why his numbers are better. And the reason his numbers are better has something to do with the fact that he’s a better player.”
In his second season as a starter for the Red Raiders (6-2, 2-2 Big 12), Harrell enters Saturday’s game in Lubbock against Colorado (4-4, 2-2) ranked first nationally in total offense (434.8 yards per game), completions per game (37.75), passing yardage (3,548) and touchdowns (32).
Despite putting up gaudy numbers, Harrell isn’t listed among top Heisman candidates. Don’t look for him on postseason All-America lists.
“I think it’s an unfortunate thing that comes with playing in this offense,” Harrell said this week. “There have been some great players who have come out of here, and they haven’t gotten the credit they deserve because everybody wants to label them ‘a product of the system.’
“I don’t think that’s fair. Look at Wes Welker,” Harrell added, referring to the former Tech receiver now with the New England Patriots. “If anybody could have been labeled a product of this system, it would have been Wes. He doesn’t have any size at all. He’s not blazing fast. But if he was only a product of our system, why is he putting up great numbers in the NFL?”
Colorado coaches believe Harrell is the real deal.
“You’re talking about a guy with anticipation, an arm, touch,” said Greg Brown, who coaches CU’s defensive backs. “He has a commanding presence out there. He’s an impressive guy.”
Tech’s spread offense, which employs at least four receivers on every down, reflects Leach’s “gunslinging” personality, Harrell said. Leach was raised in Cody, Wyo.
“He tells us stories about Cody all the time,” Harrell said. “He tells us about walking around the street shooting at cans as a kid, and nobody thought much about it. He likes to tell us that he grew up in the ‘Wild Wild West’ and loved it there. I guess you could say he’s carried that over to his offense.”
Tom Kensler: 303-954-1280 or tkensler@denverpost.com
