Two Quick Thoughts Post-Duke

I'm writing about basketball this week–I need the change of pace just as much as you guys do, tbh–but two little things I probably would've written about:

At this point, I don't think anyone would be fooled by a single result, but there's a lesson to be learned here. Tech was dominant on both sides of the line of scrimmage. They were bigger, stronger, tougher. Receivers ran open, backs sprinted into the open field, quarterbacks could bomb away with abandon. This says significantly more about Duke than Tech (someone needs to tell Cutcliffe it's time...)

Games like this shouldn't be the anomaly, they should be the norm. Physically dominant, confident performances. They made mistakes, but played with such confidence in all three phases that it didn't really matter. This is the kind of game I hope the new coaching staff can string together more of. Not even in regards to the score, just in the way they played with physicality and confidence.

Second point: I went to Texas-Kansas last night, and if you think the Tech fanbase is toxic/caustic/unrealistic, I urge you to meet a Longhorn fan. Because let me tell you, things got dire in a HURRY. We got "go back to Bama" chants at Steve Sarkisian, booing the team when they were down 14-0 in the first quarter and leaving at halftime.

I know no one wants to lose to Kansas, but that crowd seemed to expect to lose half way through the fourth quarter. The "ah shit, here we go again" energy was palpable. They're a group with sky-high expectations and a program that will probably never live up to them. I know it isn't usually productive to compare yourself to someone else, but it was a nice reminder that it could always be worse. I'd take Tech and their problems over Texas' issues every time.