Where Texas Tech football, Behren Morton stand after Tyler Shough's injury | Giese

Joey McGuire and the rest of the Texas Tech football team have spent weeks defending quarterback Tyler Shough.

Pressed last week to say what, exactly, separates Shough from understudy Behren Morton, offensive coordinator Zach Kittley said, essentially, Morton is a bit flashier while Shough has the steady hand and presence that comes with being a sixth-year senior.

Kittley noted Shough's ability to read how Tarleton State, unexpectedly, came out in a two-high safety look and opted to stick to the ground game against the Texans.

Even in-depth analysis from someone hired to provide such a point of view wasn't enough for Texas Tech fans. They wanted Morton because he's flashier, gets the ball out of his hands and makes quick decisions — even if he could stand to take a beat longer to do so.

McGuire does care what the Red Raider fanbase thinks of his team, but not when it comes to who plays and who doesn't. He went out of his way to say that Morton spelling Shough in the 41-3 blowout win last week was by design and it had nothing to do with future plans. Shough remained the guy.

Those plans have changed, at least in the short term. For the third year in a row, Shough was unable to get four full games before suffering an injury. The first two years it was his collarbone. On Saturday in the 20-13 loss at West Virginia, Shough's left ankle became the culprit.

At the time this story publishes, Shough's status moving forward is unknown. Assumptions can be made based on Shough being carted off with an air cast around his lower leg, but we'll wait until something is confirmed before guessing on a timeline for a potential return.

Should Shough miss an extended period of time, what does that mean for the Red Raiders? The team has spent all offseason planning on a healthier, more mature Shough to guide them to heights unseen in more than a decade.

More: What grade did Texas Tech football offense get for subpar performance at WVU?

Depending on what Shough's status is for the future, the present sees the keys being handed to Morton, who grew up wanting to sling it around the field like Tech great Graham Harrel. He showed flashes of brilliance and inexperience in his nine games last season. The Red Raiders will need far more of the former from Morton if lofty goals are to be attained.

Morton will have to rein in some of his negative tendencies and find a way to complete balls over the middle of the field, something he wasn't able to do as Texas Tech attempted the comeback against West Virginia.

Most importantly, should Shough be out for a while, it'll be Morton the team, coaches and fan base turn to, to help turn this season around. Tech's high expectations have slipped to a 1-3 start, matching its start to the 2020 season.

Fans wanted to see Morton get the nod. They got it, but it's because of injury rather than coach's decision. How it happened is besides the point.

For now at least, it's Morton time.

This article originally appeared on Lubbock Avalanche-Journal: Where Texas Tech football, Behren Morton stand after Tyler Shough's injury | Giese