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TEXAS TECH UNIVERSITY FOOTBALL MEDIA CONFERENCE

October 21, 2019

Travis Bruffy

Lubbock, Texas

Q. Did you have a chance to watch the Kansas-Texas game and, can you give us your initial thoughts of a fan watching and as a player?
TRAVIS BRUFFY: Yeah. As you can see, this conference is up for grabs. I think as obvious, there is one team playing better than the rest of us. Everyone else is kind of competing for that next spot. And it doesn't go out. The guys in Lawrence are playing great ball right now. The record may not show it but they're a tough team. They went down to Austin and took it to the wire, and whatever they were pre-season ranked, whatever they're called that kind of stuff, it's a darn good football team that went down there and did that. I'm looking forward to going up there and Lawrence and seeing what they got that will give us our best. We will give them our best and they'll give us their best and I'm looking forward to it.

Q. Travis, the defense has done a really good job these last few weeks, forcing the turnovers, getting you guys the ball back. From your perspective out there, what do you think you guys are lacking in going down and scoring really capitalize on those and bringing that momentum after the turnover?
TRAVIS BRUFFY: Honestly, I don't know. I honestly don't know. I feel the same thing you feel. We all feel it in the huddle. I could tell you we attack those drives just like every other drive from a schematic standpoint. From a protection standpoint we try to pick it up a little bit. Everyone is trying to run a bit harder. I don't know if we're pressing or what it is, but this kind of goes onto what we need to do as an offense with these last five, hopefully a sixth game is to find our identity and finding that identity as an offense of someone who starts fast as well as finishing strong is something we haven't done all season. We've been inconsistent as an offense. We've been inconsistent as players executing. And that's not just -- I mean if we were to say all the stuff about turnovers and touchdowns, it is totally -- it's comparable to how we get good field position from our special teams. We're not capitalizing on the opportunities we need to to win football games. And that, again, is nobody's fault except the players on offense. We're not executing at a high enough level. We're not executing the game plan that has been crafted throughout the week. We need to pick it up as I say every week it seems like and it all falls back down to leadership. And I guess we're not paying enough attention to detail. We're not holding our guys accountable at those crucial moments in the game and the scoreboard is starting to show that a bit more. And it does suck. It really is hard to admit to that. It's hard to swallow, especially for me, and I seem to do it a lot every week, and I hope we're going to get this thing rolling. I know we will one day. I know we will very soon. And it's going to start this Saturday with a good performance and we're going to continue throughout the rest of the season.

Q. And Coach Wells mentioned that this team looks at obviously turnovers. Iowa State generally, they don't go three-and-out with that offense. Can you feel something different when you do get a stop, it's not a turnover, but something similar where there's a quick stop and you guys can go down and score? What does that feel like?
TRAVIS BRUFFY: Right. That feels really good, because our defense is out there, I mean this is an offensive conference predominantly. And they're putting up great numbers regardless of what anyone says, they're doing a darn good job of keeping guys out of the end zone and out of the uprights. I mean it's unmatched, especially since I've been here at Texas Tech. It's unreal. And whenever they convert and they stop the prolific offense that Iowa State has shown to be or they stop a Baylor to make them go three-and-out or they get five turnovers like they did against Oklahoma State, you know, there's a momentum shift in that game. We all feel it on the sideline, and we do, we hopefully try to bring it to the field. I know it's contradicting to my previous answer, but we do feel a change. And we need to capitalize off that a bit more. Maybe we're interpreting those emotions the wrong way, but somehow we need to channel what we feel into what we produce and that's something that we still need to work on.

Q. What stands out about the defensive line of Kansas?
TRAVIS BRUFFY: Great pressure. As usual. They've produced, I believe -- I know they had a draft pick two years ago, plays for the Cowboys, Dorance Armstrong, and I know he got picked up last year, Daniel Wise, Jr. He got picked up last year and they produced great defensive linemen as they always have. They're going to bring -- they have a really great linebacker, as you all know. Their goal as a defensive line is to keep -- let him make the tackles. From a pass rush standpoint, they're going to have great edge rushers, really young guys that have had good idols to look up to, so you know you're always going to get a good match when you're on the offensive line going against Kansas. They have good edge pressure, a good nose that I've seen so far, but throughout the week I'll be able to give you a bit more ins and outs.

Q. Travis, I know that competition on the road has been tough, but internally are you guys putting pressure on yourselves to get that first road win not necessarily for Coach Wells but for you guys.
TRAVIS BRUFFY: I don't know. It is harder operating an offense when people are screaming at you. But to be honest, I'm not sure. This is just my perspective, but when the bullets are flying, you're in the same battle ground, whether that's in Jones AT&T Stadium or you're anywhere on the road. Bullets are flying, it's still the same game, no matter where you are. I'm not sure if that's because I've played a bit more football or what it is, but that's how I feel about it. Our record may speak to the contrary, but that's how I personally feel. And I think that there needs to be a sense of atmosphere. We kind of have our swagger when we're at home, and regardless what you say about last Saturday's performance, prior to that we have had a different type of feeling a different type of energy when we run under that tunnel. And we need to find a way to replicate that. I think we did a better job in Waco doing that. I think we're going to do an even better job in Lawrence this Saturday doing that. And we have, I believe, two more road games after that. So at least we need to let this Saturday build off of the pass road game and keep that same energy so the next two Saturdays are even more energetic and much more similar to home games.

Q. Seems like that's more difficult at a place like Kansas. You've played before there, typically in a morning game. Do you think it'll help maybe that you're at night playing in that environment again but in a different situation.
TRAVIS BRUFFY: Right, right. I think the last time we played them, I don't know what their record was, but I can tell you, I'm going into Lawrence expecting a sold-out stadium because they just gave, what is it, the number 19 ranked team in the country they took them down on the wire. I expect Lawrence to be as loud as anywhere I've ever been. And that's what I'm fully expecting. Hopefully when someone is screaming at you and it is loud in there, it feels really good when you're operating and you hear them get quiet and on third downs get loud again. It is kind of fun, but it is going to be a different environment, to answer your question and hopefully we all respond well to that.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

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