Ryder Daniels Quarterback

Big Man on Campus

Ryder Daniels was about to start his first game as a Red Raider against Texas State as he was warming up. He was trying to concentrate on the game but his mind was elsewhere after breaking up with Taylor, the QB Battle, and his buddy John decided to go to UCLA instead of Texas Tech. Ultimately, he knew he needed to put everything off the field behind him, shake off the nervousness, and concentrate on the game.  

Then came the game, it looked good when he completed his first collegiate pass to Harris for 12 yards however they couldn't get another first down and punted the ball. The Red Raiders trailed 10-9 at halftime with Ryder going 6 of 12 with 88 yards with a touchdown and two interceptions. Ryder was afraid that his college career as a starter was over after one half, at least in Lubbock. 

However, Tuberville came to him and said "Hey, you just need to settle down and play your game. Also, I'll give you some more time but if you don't improve you will be benched," 

That was all Ryder needed as his first throw in the second half was a 75-yard touchdown pass to Chris Harris which he threw for 50 yards hitting Harris in stride and Harris did the rest. Ryder for  three more touchdowns in a 50-10 win against Texas Tech. He went 21 of 30 with 362 yards. He led the Red Raiders to a 7-0  start including a huge win against the Oklahoma Sooners on the road. The Red Raiders were in the top 10 and Ryder himself was a strong candidate for the Heisman Trophy though he had some stiff competition in Andrew Luck from Stanford and a fellow Big 12 Quarterback Robert Griffin III of Baylor. 

Things were good however it didn't last long as they lost three games only scoring 33 points and Ryder who threw for 33 touchdowns in the first seven games only threw for 3 TDs in those three games with 7 picks ending his Heisman frontrunner chances. He rebounded in the next game throwing for four TDs but the team lost to Missouri by 4 and then there was the matchup of Heisman contenders as his Red Raiders faced off against RG3's Baylor Bears. However, RG3 after scoring another touchdown run with 90 seconds did go, suffered a concussion and was out for the rest for the game. Ryder threw another TD pass to cut the Bears led to 3. However, RG3's backup Nick Florence continued to lead the Bears to points. It was 66-63 Bears with a minute to go. Ryder led the Red Raiders to the Bears 30-yard line for a potential game-tying field goal. The kick was up and it was....... wide left. The Bears won. It wasn't for Ryder's lack of trying as he had thrown for over 450 yards and 6 touchdowns and run for another score. 

Despite losing their last five games, the Red Raiders were going to a bowl game and Ryder Daniels got the invitation to New York City for the Heisman Presentation after throwing for over Four Thousand yards and 46 touchdown passes with 5 rushing TDs. However, he finished third with RG3 winning the trophy and Luck being the runner-up. The Red Raiders finished the season beating Northwestern 35-22 in the Meineke Car Care Bowl with Ryder getting the MVP throwing for over 350 yards and 4 Touchdown Passes as he finished the season with 50 touchdown passes reminding Texas Tech fans of the days of Mike Leach. 

Ryder was the Big Man on Campus and it seemed like he couldn't go anywhere without being mobbed. As the cliche went, men wanted to be him and ladies wanted to go out with him (and some guys as well). He even was dating another blonde named Taylor, Lauren Taylor. 

As the 2012 season started to come around, people were predicting that the Red Raiders were going to be a surprise in the Big 12 race and that Ryder Daniels was going to win the Heisman and be the number one overall pick of the 2013 NFL Draft. They looked good as they went 4-0 to start the season and they were hoping to beat Oklahoma again. This time the Sooners beat them 41-20 however the Red Raiders rebounded and won their next two games going 6-1. 

However, they ended up losing four of their last five games including losing another shooting against the Baylor Bears with Nick Florence and again going to the Meineke Car Care Bowl this time against the Minnesota Golden Gophers. Again like last year, Ryder was invited to the Heisman presentation throwing for over four thousand yards and "only" 41 Touchdown Passes and again he was third in the Heisman race and again lost out to another Big 12 quarterback in Johnny Manziel of Texas A&M. The Red Raiders beat Minnesota 34-31 with Ryder winning MVP once again. 

Now, came decision time for Ryder as he had to decide if he wanted to stay for another season at Texas Tech possibly two if he wanted to or would he go into the NFL Draft. Before the end of the regular season, Coach Tuberville left to go to Cincinnati and he was going to be with his top receiver Chris Harris graduating and going into the NFL. Texas Tech's new coach and Ryan Gosling doppelganger Kliff Kingsbury did his best job to convince Ryder to stay for at least one more year and Ryder's girlfriend Lauren threatened to break up with Ryder if went to declared for the NFL Draft.

He spent days thinking about the decision over and over. A part of him wanted to stay but after throwing for over nine thousand yards and 94 touchdowns, what more did he have left to prove? Plus, he thought he was better than Geno Smith and EJ Manuel, who were two of the top Quarterback prospects of the 2013 draft and he felt he was better than them. It was a difficult decision and despite coach Kingsbury's full-court press and Lauren's ultimatum. Ryder Daniels would declare for the NFL draft and true to her word Lauren broke up with Ryder. Ryder was going to the NFL and going into the league single.