Red Raiders Survive Nailbiter in Tuscon 28-22
Nothing comes easy for the Texas Tech Red Raiders this year. Fans will say this win on the road was worth it. The Red Raiders who were 3-9 on the road under Head Coach Joey McGuire, pulled out a gutsy 28-22 victory. The win moved them into 1st place in the Big 12 going into their bye week.
Defense:
The Red Raiders defense did everything in the 1st half you could want from them. They forced Arizona to punt twice, stopped on downs once and pulled in two interceptions. That in addition to Tahj Brooks two touchdown runs gave the Red Raiders an 18-3 lead at halftime. Jacob Rodriguez led the Red Raiders with 13 tackles, 5 solo with a sack and a pass breakup. Maurion Horn contributed 10 tackles. Devynn Cromwell chipped 9 tackles as well as 5 other Red Raiders who had 4 tackles or more.
Interceptions by C.J. Baskerville, and Quincy Ledet Jr. helped the Red Raiders achieve 3 turnovers tonight. Brayln Lux returned from injury with primary coverage of future NFL wide receiver Tetairoa McMillan. McMillan was limited to 8 catches for 161 yards. The defense kept McMillan out of the end zone, and with the exception of 1 catch for 40 yards, in front of them.
First Half:
The offense was good in the 1st half with Behren Morton 12 of 17 for 150 yards. and 58 yards of rushing. However when the second half started nothing that Zach Kittley called worked with 3 punts and 2 Tahj Brooks fumbles leading to Arizona taking a 19-18 lead with 4:41 left in the game.
Morton drove the Red Raiders down to the Wildcats 23 during a 8 play 47 yard drive that took 2:31. This was the 2nd longest drive of the game for the Red Raiders that led to a Gino Garcia FG to give the Red Raiders a 21-19 lead that they would not relinquish. Tahj Brooks ran for his third touchdown with 1:53 remaining to put the game away.
Standings:
Texas Tech moves to 5-1 for 2024 and 3-0 in the Big 12. Arizona drops to 3-2 on the year 1-1 in the Big 12.
The Red Raiders have a bye next week and will face Baylor for their only home game of October. Time and TV should be announced on Monday if the game isn’t held for the six day window.