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Baylor’s Sawyer Robertson gets revenge in rout of Texas Tech football
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- Baylor’s Sawyer Robertson gets revenge in rout of Texas Tech football
It's complicated.
Alesha Ellis's T-shirt said the quiet part out loud for Baylor football quarterback Sawyer Robertson's family on Saturday night. His return to Lubbock, his hometown, where he was a dual-sport star at Coronado High School, was a special moment for all involved, even if split alliances were involved.
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Ellis and her husband, Andy, were basketball standouts at Texas Tech . His father, Stan, was a multi-sport star himself, signing with Texas Tech out of high school to play football and baseball. Stan wound up taking a detour to the minor leagues after being drafted by the Montreal Expos in the 1990 MLB Draft. He came back to join the Texas Tech football team in 1994.
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The family bleeds scarlet and black, making Baylor's trip to Jones AT&T Stadium multi-faceted. They would've been OK if the Red Raiders won so long as Sawyer played a great game. They just as pleased to settle for a career-high five touchdowns from Sawyer and a dominant 59-35 win by the Bears .
"It was probably a little more difficult than I thought it was going to be," Stan said. "But I guess blood is thicker than water. We're pretty happy about his play."
Sawyer Robertson #13 of Baylor Bears takes a photo with a fan after the game against the Texas Tech Red Raiders at Jones AT&T Stadium on October 19, 2024 in Lubbock, Texas.
How Sawyer Robertson stunned Texas Tech football in a triumphant homecoming
Sawyer said after the game he didn't put too much stock into his return home. He liked that his family and friends got to see him play in person for a change. Other than that, it was just a regular game.
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"... If I sit here and say this game was more important, then that implies the other ones aren't important, and that's not the case," Robertson said. "But it was cool having everybody in the stands and to have that kind of game and get out of here with a win."
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Stan knows the game meant a bit more than what his son is willing to say publicly. He called it "human nature" for Sawyer to have some extra emphasis on it, and how could he not? It wasn't just a return home. It was a return home to face the hometown school that didn't want him.
Sawyer was part of the 2021 recruiting class. Then-head coach Matt Wells and his staff had already settled on Eastland standout Behren Morton . Robertson wound up with Mike Leach in Starkville.
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"They picked Behren early and they never called Sawyer at all," Stan said. "He was upset about it. He wanted to go to Tech."
That decision by the old Tech regime came back to bite the new coaching staff in the butt. Robertson picked the Texas Tech secondary apart for about four full hours, totaling 274 yards. The Bears picked up steam in the second half, allowing Sawyer to exit the game with plenty of time on the clock, and Stan to finally relax his shoulders a bit.
Alesha Ellis, former Texas Tech Lady Raider legend, sports an "It's Complicated" shirt for the Texas Tech-Baylor football game on Saturday, October 19, 2024. Ellis is the aunt of Baylor quarterback Sawyer Robertson.
Since Robertson didn't get to stick around Lubbock, he made his first collegiate stop at Mississippi State, playing for the late Mike Leach. After The Pirate's death in 2022, Robertson headed for Baylor, where he had to wait another year, and an injury to opening-game starter Dequan Finn , to become QB1 in college.
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Through those trials and tribulations, Stan said he's seen Sawyer grow immensely, from both a physical and mental aspect.
Alesha Ellis, former Texas Tech Lady Raider legend, sports an "It's Complicated" shirt for the Texas Tech-Baylor football game on Saturday, October 19, 2024. Ellis is the aunt of Baylor quarterback Sawyer Robertson
"I think the biggest thing with guys like that, especially when you're in your junior year like he is, that clack is ticking and it's getting louder and louder in the background," Stan said. "You just don't know if you're every going to get that shot. ... We feel very blessed that things have worked out the way they have for him."
This article originally appeared on Lubbock Avalanche-Journal: Baylor's Robertson dissects Texas Tech football in return to Lubbock
