With Win in Sight, DeAndre Washington Must Be Fed

Well, here we go.

Midway through the third quarter Texas Tech has a two touchdown lead and is setting their sights on seizing victory in the final home game of the 2015 campaign.

This is a situation that the Red Raiders have not been particularly good in this season, but the blueprint of what has gotten them in the drivers seat of a two possession game, also holds the key on how to finish it.

Run the football.

Coach Kliff Kingsbury has often criticized his receivers and even his quarterback on making plays late in games to salt away wins, but this time he needs to look in the backfield.

Despite the daunting season statistics that show Kansas State's ability to stop the run, they have not stopped DeAndre Washington.

Yes, of his 151 yards at halftime 80 of them came on one carry, an 80 yard touchdown run way back in the first quarter. However, even the remaining 71 yards he posted in the first two quarters against Kansas State puts him in rarified air this season.

"If it ain't broke, don't fix it."

Plus, it may be news in the Big 12 conference, but running the football effectively can serve as a team's best defense and kills clock. A critical component of holding leads and turning them in to wins.

Throwing the football is a beautiful thing when it's working, and Tech can and has shown the ability to do big things on that front, but it's time to protect a lead against a good opponent.

Throw style out the window and execute the fundamentals of winning football. Hand the ball to a senior running back on senior day, and let him do what he's done en route to back to back 1,000 yard seasons.

If what Washington has accomplished through two plus quarters is to continue, he will move the chains and eat up precious time that will otherwise be used against Tech in another crushing second half comeback.