This is not hyperbole: This week’s contest at Texas Tech is the second most significant game in BYU history, trailing only the 1984 Holiday Bowl to secure the consensus national championship. No. 7 BYU is 8-0 while No. 8 Texas Tech is 8-1.
This is the only matchup between two Top 10 teams in the country this week. ESPN College GameDay will be in Lubbock and is sending the A-team with Rece Davis and Kirk Herbstreit. The eyes of the college football universe will be on Kalani Sitake’s program this Saturday. A Top 10 win may put the Cougars in the College Football Playoff.
Related: BYU football might be one win away from a spot in the College Football Playoffs
Texas Tech’s history and BYU connection
The Texas Tech Red Raiders joined the Big 12 in 1996 after the implosion of the Southwest Conference. Tech has had its ups and downs since joining the Big 12.
In 2000, under new head coach Mike Leach, himself a BYU grad, the Red Raiders kicked off a stretch of making 13 bowl games in 14 seasons, including two Cotton Bowl appearances. Leach, who passed away in 2022 at the age of 61, is a legend at Texas Tech after winning 84 games in 10 seasons at the helm of the program. At the same time he was winning in Lubbock, Leach remained something of a 'favorite son' in Provo. The charismatic coach's ties to both programs unite two teams that are now preparing to face off this weekend.
But after Leach left Lubbock in 2009, the program began to decline. Between 2010 and 2013 they appeared in three mid-tier bowl games, never winning more than eight games in a season. The bottom fell out between 2014 and 2020 with six losing seasons and just two bowl appearances. But the Red Raiders have recently righted the ship and this season will be their fifth straight bowl appearance, and Tech is hoping this year will be the College Football Playoff.
The power of the transfer portal
After a solid 8-5 season last year and 6-3 conference record, the Red Raiders went all-in on the transfer portal. They put together the No. 2-ranked transfer class in the country this year, per 247 Sports. And good for them! They’re playing by the rules of the game. They’re just playing it better than most.
And the results are showing on the field.
Outside of a four-point loss at Arizona State, Texas Tech has been annihilating their opponents. They beat Oregon State by 31, Utah by 24, Houston by 24, and Kansas by 25. Over their last two games, the Red Raiders have pummeled Oklahoma State and Kansas State by a combined 85-20.
While BYU has been winning, Texas Tech has been dominating. BYU tends to play with its food. Texas Tech devours it. This game could determine who makes and eventually wins the Big 12 conference championship, and ultimately the College Football Playoffs.
The stakes couldn’t be any higher between two programs connected by one legendary coach.