Southwest Conference

COLORS: Scarlet and black
BASIC OFFENSE: Split-T
1956 RECORD: Won 2, lost 7, tied 1
LETTERMEN RETURNING: 10 of 27
WATCH FOR: Breakaway running from Floyd Dellinger, Charlie Dixon

THE DOPE: The Red Raiders, who were accepted by the Southwest Conference last year after a long wooing, will not participate as a football member with a full schedule until 1959, which is fortunate. Coach DeWitt Weaver, with a weak team last year, lost most of his starters to graduation, bad grades and injury. Only three starters return from the 1956 team, and there are four positions which not only have no starters returning but no lettermen either. With only seven seniors on the team, the defense could suffer tremendously, since it is on defense where lack of experience tells most heavily. The team is especially weak at end and center (one letterman back at each position) and at halfback, where Weaver must depend upon completely untried players with no lettermen at all returning. Floyd Dellinger, a junior college transfer, is a better than adequate quarterback who gives the Red Raiders a strong running threat as well as good passing. One senior—205-pound Pat Hartsfield—returns at end but, with only him to concentrate on, the Tech opponents may stop him without too much trouble. Luckily, the Tech schedule falls short of Southwest Conference strength.

SEPT. 21 West Texas State, N (14-34)
SEPT. 28 Texas A&M, N (7-40)
OCT. 5 Louisiana State, N (no game)
OCT. 12 at Texas Western, N (13-17)
OCT. 19 Baylor, N (0-27)
OCT. 26 at Arizona, N (21-7)
NOV. 2 at Oklahoma A&M (13-13)
NOV. 9 Tulsa (7-10)
NOV. 16 Hardin-Simmons (14-41)
NOV. 23 Arkansas at Little Rock (no game)