WSU and Texas Tech isn’t just a battle of versatile offenses. It’s a meeting of best friends

PULLMAN – Back when they worked together at Houston Baptist, when they reunited at Western Kentucky a couple years later, Zach Kittley and Ben Arbuckle grew close. Kittley was the offensive coordinator and Arbuckle was an offensive quality control coach, long before Kittley became Texas Tech’s offensive coordinator and Arbuckle became Washington State’s, which brought them together on the field too many times to count.

But really, Kittley was the mentor and Arbuckle was the student. Kittley had a little more experience in the coaching industry than Arbuckle, so he imparted lots of lessons.

Have a personal relationship with everyone in the building. Make sure everyone knows you care about them. Show them respect and they’ll do the same for you. Be a good person.

“The biggest things that Coach Kittley taught me really weren’t even football,” Arbuckle said.

When Texas Tech and WSU clash this weekend, Arbuckle will try to teach Kittley a little something of his own.

Arbuckle’s Cougars and Kittley’s Red Raiders might be in for a shootout. WSU racked up 637 yards of offense in last week’s 70-30 win over Portland State. Texas Tech totaled 539 in a 52-51 overtime win over Abilene Christian. The numbers are one thing. The approaches are another.

WSU and Texas Tech’s offenses have long been similar: Spread it out. Throw it all over the field. That’s what happens when a coach like Mike Leach implements the same offense, the Air Raid, at both schools. It’s what happens when one team’s offensive coordinator trains under the other team’s.

“I think it’s the exact same,” WSU coach Jake Dickert said of these teams’ offenses. “I think they call things the same. They signal things the same. I said it on Monday – it’s gonna be about execution. I think we’re very familiar with it, but at the same time, what makes (Tech’s) offense hard is every week is different. You see something one week and you can practice it, and it’s completely different in a new formation.”

The main differences in the Cougs’ and Red Raiders’ offenses might be the difference in their rushing attacks. Texas Tech rosters one of the best running backs in the country, fifth-year senior Tahj Brooks, who logged 27 carries for 153 yards one touchdown last week. He also caught three passes. The message is clear: Brooks figures prominently in the Red Raiders’ offense.

Last week, Brooks was at his best running on the outside, where he totaled 12 rushes for 109 yards and one touchdown, per Pro Football Focus. He also picked up six of his eight first downs running outside his tackles. He was a little less efficient running to the inside, where he registered 10 carries for 35 yards for an average of 3.5 yards per carry, down from his outside average of nine yards a pop.

Meanwhile, WSU running back Wayshawn Parker led the way for his team last week, totaling 96 yards rushing – the most by a Cougar running back in two seasons – on just eight carries, adding one touchdown on the ground and one through the air. Quick and elusive, Parker forced six missed tackles, darting around the left side twice for 57 yards on two carries.

Another subtle difference between WSU and Tech’s offenses: The Red Raiders are a tad more willing to throw the deep ball, at least in last week’s game. Against Portland State, WSU QB John Mateer tried five passes of 20-plus yards, connecting on three, all of which went for touchdowns. He completed two of his three passes between 10 and 19 yards.

On the other side, Texas Tech quarterback Behren Morton unfurled 14 throws of 10-plus air yards, connecting on nine, including four touchdown passes. He was at his best on intermediate routes, hitting on 6 of 7 passes.

“I don’t know if it’s as much about the plays as it is getting to the line and getting your eyes right,” Dickert said of defending the Red Raiders’ passing attack. “Then you gotta be able to make plays down the field on the ball. I think Texas Tech maybe pushes it down the field slightly more than we do. So we gotta be able to combat that and go make some plays.”

Also important will be the presence of two former Cougs turned Red Raiders: Former WSU wide receiver Josh Kelly and former offensive line coach Clay McGuire. Dickert took care to commend Kelly for his playmaking ability, hauling in 10 passes for 156 yards and a score last week, but the more tricky gameplanning has happened around McGuire.

WSU has made changes to its signals, to the names for different plays and checks, to avoid letting McGuire catch on to anything. Dickert suspects Texas Tech has done the same.

“It’s just one of those things – don’t overthink it, either,” Dickert said. “I mean, coaches can be paranoid about every little thing. It’s still gonna come down to who can block, run, tackle and play better in the fourth quarter.”

It also might come down to a battle of wits, of how Arbuckle and Kittley scheme their offenses and get the most execution out of their guys. One of the most important lessons he learned from Kittley, Arbuckle said last season, was to always pick up the phone. You never know who could be on the other end.

Arbuckle learned that lesson in the best way one morning in December 2022, when he was preparing for his Western Kentucky team’s bowl game. That’s when he got a call from a guy named Jake Dickert. Since then, Arbuckle has joined forces with Dickert in Pullman, where he’ll try to take down his best friend in Kittley this weekend.

Two Cougars still game-time decisions

WSU punter Nick Haberer and backup nickelback Jerrae Williams will be game-time decisions for Saturday’s game, Dickert said Wednesday.

Haberer missed last week’s game against Portland State with a back injury, the same one that held him out of the final few practices of fall camp. He’s improving, though, which is why he’ll have a chance to play Saturday.

Haberer is also the team’s holder on placekicks, so WSU QB John Mateer filled in at that position last weekend. It’s likely Mateer would do the same against Texas Tech if Haberer is unable to play.

Williams, out with an undisclosed injury, played 30 snaps last week. He’s the backup for WSU starting nickel Kapena Gushiken.