Texas Tech coach blasts 'prima donnas'

DES MOINES, Iowa -- Texas Tech coach Mike Leach ripped into his players following a 12-3 loss at TCU last week, blaming the defeat on what he said were "prima donnas" who have gone "soft."

Texas Tech, which scored at least 50 points five times last season, didn't score a touchdown for the first time in six years. What has Leach most concerned is that many of the players who he said didn't put forth the effort needed against the Horned Frogs were veterans.

Leach said he has a handful of players who think they're better than they are. He didn't single anyone out -- but changes could be imminent.

The Red Raiders, who dropped out of the Top 25, host Southeast Louisiana on Saturday.

"We had guys sauntering around like prima donnas, and the guys that were the worst were our older guys. I've got find a way to reach them somehow," Leach said. "I've got some guys that were formerly good players that now think they're too good to do the little things that got them there. I think I'm going to have to replace some of them."

The last time the Red Raiders fared so poorly on offense was when Nebraska shellacked Texas Tech 56-3 in 2000, Leach's first season in Lubbock.

"We went out there and (TCU) was tougher than we were," Leach said. "We were soft, and (had) our pretty boy little attitude ... we got what we deserved."

Bad week

Mike Leach isn't the Big 12 coach wondering what went wrong.

Texas Tech's poor showing against TCU was symptomatic of the conference's struggles as a whole last weekend. Lost in Oklahoma's controversial 34-33 defeat to Oregon was that Nebraska, Iowa State and Colorado also lost to Top 25 teams; and Kansas and Baylor fell over the weekend as well.

Nebraska cornerback Andre Jones guaranteed a victory at No. 3 USC. It didn't happen. The Trojans cruised to a 28-10 win, holding the Cornhuskers to just 68 yards rushing.

Coach Bill Callahan wasn't thrilled about Jones' guarantee, which he said was taken out of context. But for a coach trying to get the Cornhuskers back into the national elite, Callahan said that instilling confidence -- even when players take it too far -- is a crucial element in getting Nebraska's players to buy into what he's selling.

"These guys are young guys, and they exude confidence, and we try to build confidence in them every day," Callahan said. "I think sometimes a player or two can get over-exuberant in that message...we don't like to make bold statements or predictions, that's for certain. We're very supportive of the individual that erred, and we're going to try and help him the best we can."

Stumbling Buffs

Nobody's making bold statements in Boulder, Colo., these days.

Coach Dan Hawkins and Colorado are 0-3 after losing to Arizona State 21-3 at home, and the Buffaloes have now dropped seven straight dating back to last season.

Expectations were high for Hawkins after the success he had turning Boise State into one of the nation's best non-BCS programs. But losses to Division 1-AA Montana State, Colorado State and the Sun Devils have put a damper on his rebuilding efforts.

The Buffaloes don't have much time to turn things around, not with Saturday's trip to No. 9 Georgia looming. Hawkins has maintained his trademark enthusiasm, however, in the face of an uncharacteristically long losing stretch, both for him and the Buffaloes.

"I knew coming into this thing that it wasn't going to be easy. I knew I was jumping into fire," Hawkins said. "We're just trying to get a lot things in place, both philosophically and schematically, and those things never come as fast as you want. We're getting better, but our schedule's getting better."

Honors

Oklahoma running back Adrian Peterson, Missouri defensive end Brian Smith and Oklahoma State punter Matt Fodge.

Peterson ran for 211 yards in a loss to Oregon. Smith tied a school record with four sacks at New Mexico. Fodge had a 70-yard punt against Florida Atlantic.

Good start

Kansas State is 3-0 under new coach Ron Prince following a 23-7 win over Marshall Saturday. The Wildcats struggled past Illinois State 24-23 in the opener, but has outscored its opponents 68-7 since.