In life, successful people often set goals for themselves. The same is true in sports: Almost every team goes into a season with clear goals that they believe will lead to a championship.
For example, one of the Red Raiders’ defensive goals is to force three turnovers per game, a lofty goal and one that Tech didn’t come close to reaching in 2023.
Other goals involve luck. For example, one of the goals for 2024 is for the quarterback to be healthy for the entire season. The Red Raiders haven’t had that happen since 2017.
So let’s take a look at some goals the entire team should aim for this fall, starting with an area where the Red Raiders have struggled under coach Joey McGuire.
A fast start is essential if this team is to become a contender in the Big 12. But Tech has not been a team that has gotten off to good starts in McGuire’s two years.
In fact, the Red Raiders are just 5-5 overall in their first five games over the past two seasons, and that needs to change in 2024.
This season’s schedule lends itself well to a fast start, and there’s really no reason why this team can’t start the year at 5-0.
In its first five games, Tech will face an FCS team, a weakened Washington State team that lost a ton of players last season, North Texas, a group of five teams at home, and Arizona State and Cincinnati, the two worst teams in the Big 12 in 2023.
If Tech can jump to a 5-0 record, it could set up a big showdown on the road at Arizona in Week 6. But for that game against the Wildcats to have any meaning, Tech would have to be perfect through its first five games of the season.
