No. 5 Texas Tech has its eyes on postseason play, but before it could get there, it handled West Virginia 49-0 Saturday to conclude the regular season.
The shutout is Texas Tech’s second of the year, marking the first time since 2000 the Red Raiders have shut out two Big 12 opponents in the same season.
Texas Tech will head home as Big 12 regular-season champions before heading East to Arlington for its first appearance in the Big 12 Championship game Dec. 6.
With yet another dominant win, here are five takeaways from Texas Tech’s historic finish:
Sports Roundup
Red Raiders complete historic regular season
Texas Tech’s victory Saturday ties its best regular season in program history with its 11th win. After starting 6-0, the Red Raiders, with backup quarterback Will Hammond starting, lost to Arizona State. Since then, Texas Tech is 5-0 and on its way to a Big 12 Championship game.
The Red Raiders’ .888 conference win percentage is their highest since 1954, when Texas Tech was a member of the Border Conference. Furthermore, the eight conference wins mark a program record.
Barring a victory Dec. 6 against BYU, Texas Tech is in a position to accomplish three more program firsts. Twelve wins in a season, including postseason play, would be another program record, while also satisfying its first Big 12 Championship win and earning its first appearance in the College Football Playoff.
Texas Tech’s Achilles heel is its offensive tackles
Texas Tech right tackle Jacob Ponton had consecutive possessions in which he put his quarterback in danger. On a first-down play in the opening quarter, Ponton allowed linebacker Braden Siders to bully him into Behren Morton’s throwing motion, forcing a fumble. Texas Tech guard Davion Carter jumped back onto the ball, but a play later, Ponton allowed Siders to run unguarded at Morton.
Siders speared Morton moments after the ball was released. Morton’s body rolled in the air to avoid a similar lower-leg injury that he sustained in Week 1. He took a moment to get off the ground, but did not limp the remainder of the game.
The Week 1 injury and another of Morton’s lower-leg injuries suffered on Oct. 11 against Kansas came from missed blocks on the opposite side of the line. UNC transfer Howard Sampson has allowed multiple blindside sacks and leads the Texas Tech offensive line in holding penalties.
McGuire takes a risk playing starters
Texas Tech needed a win to get into the Big 12 Championship game up until Friday night, when Arizona beat Arizona State. So, before Friday night, the expectation was that starters would be a necessity.
However, with a spot clinched, Texas Tech still elected to play its starters through the full first half and into the third quarter. Outside linebacker David Bailey was sidelined after halftime with an arm injury, per the ESPN broadcast, while linebacker Jacob Rodriguez and Cameron Dickey both left the field at least once in the opening quarter in distress.
Rodriguez fell awkwardly on his left wrist after leaping over a Mountaineer during a 4th & 1 stop. Rodriguez grabbed his wrist immediately after the fall and held it the full jog back to the sideline. He came back on the field with tape around his hand, but played the remainder of the half.
Similarly, Dickey jogged off the field favoring his right leg to take weight off the left after a West Virginia defender fell on top of it. Dickey did not come back out on that series, but following the quarter-break, returned to eclipse 1,000 rushing yards on the year.
Bailey’s removal was precautionary, per McGuire’s statement to the ESPN broadcast.
Red Raider defense stays the course
Texas Tech defensive coordinator Shiel Wood furthered his case for the Broyles Award, forcing three more stalled drives than first downs allowed Saturday.
The Mountaineers didn’t record a first down until 6:24 left in the second quarter. When they did, quarterback Scotty Fox Jr. strung together three consecutive completions before a near-interception stalled them once again.
A drive later, Texas Tech cornerback Brice Pollock, who didn’t maintain control of the near-interception, redeemed himself. The Mississippi State transfer picked off Fox after the Mountaineers reached the red zone for the first time.
Texas Tech’s pass defense was able to play the throw more in the victory because its run defense allowed a season-best 37 yards to a conference opponent. West Virginia did not record a run of more than 10 yards until the middle of the fourth quarter.
The future looks bright in Lubbock
Between Dickey eclipsing 1,000 yards in his sophomore campaign to true freshman quarterback Lloyd Jones III posting his first career touchdown, Saturday proved Texas Tech won’t be a one-hit wonder.
Dickey finished with 79 yards and a receiving touchdown alongside his sophomore counterpart, J’Koby Williams, who had 60 rushing yards and a score. The true sophomore duo has combined for 2,531 all-purpose yards in 2025.
Both were pulled by the middle of the third quarter, when Jones entered for his first career snaps. His first throw was a 15-yard touchdown pass to former 5-star wide receiver Micah Hudson. The sophomore has dealt with a plethora of criticism during his short career, but his teammates surrounded him and celebrated his first career touchdown.
Jones and Hudson connected again on the next drive for a 30-yard score.
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