Mark Adams Isn’t Ready to Say Goodbye To His Texas Tech Team
Mark Adams and Texas Tech punched their ticket to the Sweet 16 by beating Notre Dame 59-53 in a tough-fought slobber knocker. As part of the Texas Tech March Madness Confidential series, CBS Sports produced this cinematic recap of the Red Raiders' victory:
The whole recap is great, but many people are latching on to the halftime clip of Texas Tech Head Coach Mark Adams talking to his team and closing with an impassioned, "I DON'T WANT TO SAY GOODBYE TO YOU!" as he slapped the knee of Marcus Santos-Silva.
Is it a coincidence that Santos-Silva then went on to get the game-clinching block and free throws? I think not.
Adams is certainly not ready to say goodbye to this season, but neither are the fans. Texas Tech pulled out all the stops to make sure the team knew that with this video featuring Patrick Mahomes, Norense Odiase, Brandone Francis, Davide Moretti, Keenan Evans, plus a bevy of civic leaders and Texas Tech students:
Every Sweet 16 matchup features a goodbye of sorts, but this one between Texas Tech and Duke will be the most impactful of the field in 2022.
If Texas Tech loses, the culmination of a truly special season and the lifelong dream of Mark Adams completing a season as Texas Tech's head coach will be realized against Duke as Coach K celebrates his 100th NCAA Tournament victory.
If Texas Tech wins? One of the greatest coaches in the history of college basketball has a retirement party on the court and at his postgame press conference.
The stakes are high, but I'm not ready to say goodbye to the 2022 Texas Tech men's basketball season. Just like Mark Adams and Texas Tech aren't ready to hang up the jerseys.