Baskerville, Banks reflect on big impacts, journey to bowl game berth
For the last two seasons, E’Maurion “Dooda” Banks has been waiting for an opportunity. The Wichita Falls Rider graduate has been patient in his process, and throughout the 2023 season, his third in Lubbock, Banks has been a reliable option for the Texas Tech defense at defensive tackle. Saturday against Central Florida, Banks got his shining moment, getting a forearm on Colton Boomer’s extra-point attempt that would have tied the game at 24 apiece. Instead, Banks’ deflection kept the Red Raiders on top to snag the win, 24-23, and a bowl game berth.
“We were telling our coach we were getting a lot of penetration,” Banks said following the game Saturday. “And that we was gonna get one by the end of the night. Luckily, it just happened right when we needed it… It was just a ‘What’s next?’ mindset. Tony (Bradford) told me, ‘Let’s just go block it. Just jump vertical and I got you.’ and I was like well let’s go.”
Banks was given a substantial task against UCF. Normally a rotation piece in the defensive line, the sophomore was thrust into more action than originally anticipated due to an injury to star defensive tackle Jaylon Hutchings. It was a big blow for the Red Raiders and an even bigger hole left to be filled in the line. At 6-foot-5, 305 pounds, Banks was more than capable of taking the baton.
“I couldn’t even really put it into words for you, for real,” Banks said in regards to stepping into Hutchings’ spot. “He’s done a lot for us, and it was just my job to step up as the next guy up.”
The block was a monumental play in and of itself, but it was not the only major impact Banks made against the Knights. The UCF offense was seemingly having its way with the Tech defense for a majority of the evening, with John Rhys Plumlee serving as the catalyst for their attack. With less than two minutes remaining in the third quarter, Plumlee dropped back to pass before coming face-to-face with a roaring Banks, the pressure forcing the UCF signal caller to sky the ball into a welcoming basket that were the hands of CJ Baskerville. The ensuing Red Raider drive was capped off in a touchdown run by Tahj Brooks to give Tech its first lead of the game, 21-14. It was Baskerville’s first interception as a Red Raider and it will not be a moment he will soon forget.
“It’s kind of hard to explain, it just means so much more than I can put into words,” Baskerville said as he sat alongside Banks. “Because just everyday I’ve been working to get that first one in The Jones, I’ve gotten so close every week. Being switched to boundary safety, you’re kind of put in more places to do so. My body just filled up with butterflies just right after that. It was just amazing having everybody gathered around, and for us to go score right after that, it was just complimentary offense and defense.”
The Red Raiders were able to reach bowl eligibility for the third consecutive season Saturday night and it is a moment of celebration for all who have been involved in the drastic culture shift around West Texas. It may only be Baskerville’s first season in the red and black, but the camaraderie developed through the course of 2023 has been monumental for this group.
“The journey is what is so special,” Baskerville said. “Being bowl eligible, starting off 1-3, I mean nobody in America would have thought that we’d be bowl eligible. But us, playing the way that we have, going through the adversity, the injuries, the events that we’ve gone through, to be bowl eligible at the end of the day. And now to have a winning record in the Big 12, no matter how we finish, it’s just a big deal. I just think of the journey, that’s what’s important to me when I think about being bowl eligible.”
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