Countdown to Kickoff: 15 Days
PREVIOUS COUNTDOWN TO KICKOFF ENTRIES: 50 | 49 | 48 | 47 | 46 | 45 | 44 | 43 | 42
41 | 40 | 39 | 38 | 37 | 36 | 35 | 34 | 33 | 32 | 31 | 30 | 29 | 28 | 27 | 26 | 25 | 24 | 23 | 22 |
Texas Tech's 2016 football season will begin in exactly 15 days with a Sept. 3 kickoff against Stephen F. Austin.
Today, we continue our Countdown to Kickoff series with a notable way the number 15 relates to Red Raider football.
15: Brandon Sharpe set a single-season program record with 15 sacks in 2009.
Entering the 2009 football season, the biggest question surrounding Texas Tech's defensive line involved replacing Brandon Williams' production at defensive end. Williams recorded 13 sacks and 15.5 TFL in 2008, and his early departure for the NFL left the Red Raiders without a proven pass rusher.
Enter Brandon Sharpe.
The former two-star junior college transfer had played in just 11 games during his first two seasons at Texas Tech, recording one sack and 4 TFL. There was little reason to believe that he would be able to fill Williams' shoes.
Sharpe did that and then some.
In 12 games, Sharpe broke Adell Duckett's Texas Tech record for sacks in a season. He did this thanks in large part to a torrid six-game stretch in October and November - Kansas State, Nebraska, Kansas, Oklahoma State, Oklahoma, Baylor - where he logged 13 sacks of his 15 sacks and 14 of his 18 TFL.
Tomorrow: 14 - We look at one of the most impressive single-game performances of Texas Tech's Air Raid era.