<\/p>\n
LUBBOCK, TEXAS – SEPTEMBER 26: Will Hammond #15 of the Texas Tech Red Raiders passes the ball during the first half of the game against the Sam Houston Bearkats at Galaxy Stadium on September 26, 2026 in Lubbock, Texas. (Photo by John E. Moore III\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n
John E. Moore III\/Getty Images<\/p>\n
LUBBOCK \u2014 No. 11 Texas Tech rounded out nonconference play with a 49-14 victory over Sam Houston on Saturday at Galaxy Stadium in Lubbock, avoiding a scare after a poor second-quarter performance.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
The Red Raiders struck first at the 5:11 mark in the first quarter after a 35-yard strike to Kenny Johnson set them up at the 1-yard line. The following play, Cameron Dickey punched the ball into the end zone.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Tech\u2019s next two scores came on the defensive side at the start of the second quarter, each from linebacker Austin Romaine. Sam Houston\u2019s Brett Holloway\u2019s pass was batted up into the air from the Red Raiders\u2019 defensive line as Romaine intercepted it and returned it to the end zone. On the very next play from Sam Houston, Romaine took another interception to the house to make the game 21-0.<\/p>\n
Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n
Sam Houston responded with a trio of interceptions of Will Hammond in the second quarter. Picks from Cameron Franklin, Caesar Magee and Tyler Bailey assisted the Bearkats\u2019 offensive unit to lessen the margin to 21-14 at halftime.<\/p>\n
Here are five takeaways from Tech\u2019s victory against Sam Houston:<\/p>\n
QB controversy?<\/p>\n
Head coach Joey McGuire told the media after Tech\u2019s win against Houston last week that Hammond was the Red Raiders\u2019 starting quarterback, pushing aside the narrative that Tommy Castellanos was in the mix.\u00a0<\/p>\n
However, a three-interception first half on three consecutive drives for Hammond could revive that narrative. When Hammond threw his first interception, the Red Raiders had a 21-0. By the end of the half, Sam Houston had managed to make it a one-score game at 21-14.<\/p>\n
Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n
Hammond was able to have a much more comfortable second half, and while the Red Raiders were still able to come away with the victory, talks of Tech\u2019s quarterback battle won\u2019t go away. In the victory, Hammond finished with 224 passing yards and a touchdown pass.<\/p>\n
Romaine\u2019s two pick-sixes prove pivotal<\/p>\n
Prior to Sam Houston, Romaine had only one career interception and it was against the Red Raiders last season as a member of Kansas State. Romaine\u2019s interceptions totaled 46 yards for both returns, and helped Tech retain its lead going into halftime.<\/p>\n
Hindered by \u00a0Hammond\u2019s interceptions, the Red Raiders\u2019 offense wasn\u2019t able to gain \u00a0momentum in the first half after Dickey\u2019s early touchdown run. In total, Tech\u2019s offense managed seven points in the first half, with Sam Houston\u2019s putting 14 on the board.<\/p>\n
Without Romaine\u2019s pick-sixes, the Red Raiders\u2019 would have been in a much tighter spot at the half. Aside from his two interceptions, Romaine ended the day with eight tackles.<\/p>\n
Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
LUBBOCK, TEXAS – SEPTEMBER 26: Cameron Dickey #8 of the Texas Tech Red Raiders runs the ball during the first half of the game against the Sam Houston Bearkats at Galaxy Stadium on September 26, 2026 in Lubbock, Texas. (Photo by John E. Moore III\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n
John E. Moore III\/Getty Images<\/p>\n
Red Raiders\u2019 offense is boom-or-bust<\/p>\n
Tech kicker Stone Harrington didn\u2019t see the field for a field goal attempt once against Sam Houston, only trotting out for seven extra-point attempts. Every Red Raider offensive drive either ended in a touchdown, punt or interception.<\/p>\n
Tech\u2019s offense finished the game with 470 total yards and five total touchdowns for its widest margin of victory of the season. The Red Raiders were only forced to fourth down once in the red zone and chose to go for it, ultimately moving the chains for a first down<\/p>\n
\n
Tech\u2019s special teams unit has\u00a0 fumbling issue<\/p>\n
The Red Raiders fumbled the ball five times against Sam Houston, with four occurring on special teams. Only one Tech fumble, by Malcolm Simmons, was recovered by the Bearkats on a punt return.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n
The Bearkats weren\u2019t able to find the end zone from Simmons\u2019 fumble, but the sheer volume of loose balls could have plagued the Red Raiders if the game stayed as close as the first half. Simmons fumbled another punt earlier in the game along with fumbles by Kenny Johnson, Jett Carpenter and J\u2019Koby Williams.<\/p>\n
Special teams coordinator Kenny Perry has been very vocal this season on eliminating self-inflicted wounds within his unit, and he\u2019ll have a lot to correct on film and in practice prior to Colorado next Saturday.<\/p>\n
The Red Raiders are\u00a0 prepped for Big 12 play<\/p>\n
After rounding out nonconference play against the Bearkats, the Red Raiders have seen enough in-game scenarios through four weeks to feel prepared for games that count in the standings from here on out.<\/p>\n
Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n
From finding out their initial struggles against Abilene Christian, to a come-from-behind victory on the road against Oregon State, to a game-sealing defensive stand against then-No. 22 Houston and finally, a 49-14 against the Bearkats, the Red Raiders have faced adversity and will benefit from it.\u00a0<\/p>\n
McGuire said Sam Houston was the final opportunity for Tech to improve before its run at a second consecutive Big 12 Championship, and while the 2026 Red Raiders may not be up to last season\u2019s caliber, they know an assortment of ways to come away with a victory The Red Raiders\u2019 first Big 12 road test will come next Saturday against Colorado at Folsom Field in Boulder.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"LUBBOCK, TEXAS – SEPTEMBER 26: Will Hammond #15 of the Texas Tech Red Raiders passes the ball during…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":448728,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[27,29,28,144221,89414,88145],"class_list":["post-448727","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-texas","tag-texas","tag-texas-headlines","tag-texas-news","tag-tp-college-football","tag-tp-texas-tech-red-raiders","tag-tp-colleges"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/448727","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=448727"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/448727\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/448728"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=448727"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=448727"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=448727"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}