The Countdown – #7

Over the next several weeks, HornSports is counting down the games of the 2014 football season. For this series, “most important games” will be defined as those having the biggest impact on the program’s outlook and the 2014 season.

The main question to ask is “How would a win help bolster Texas’s national perception?”

The Countdown – #7 Texas Tech Red Raiders

Last 2 meetings:

2013: W 41-16

2012: W 31-22

Analysis:

The Texas Tech Red Raiders haven’t beaten the Texas Longhorns since their magical season of 2008. That doesn’t feel like a long time ago but it’s been five straight wins for the Texas Longhorns. So why is this game higher in importance compared to teams that have recently beat the Longhorns?

Recruiting.

Kliff Kingsbury wants to get Texas Tech back on the map and he is wasting no time trying to do it. For the 2015 class, he already has the commitment of arguably the best quarterback of the class in Jarrett Stidham and his 2014 class wasn’t bad at all. Not to mention being in a Kentucky Derby picture with Tom Brady and Mike Tyson is only going to increase the “cool factor.” Kingsbury is a smart guy and he understands that if he is going to win even more recruiting battles, he must beat Texas.

The national media adores Kingsbury. With that in mind, there will be no shortage of hype surrounding this game. And, of course, the situation is amplified since Lubbock isn’t an easy place to win.

The last 3 trips to Lubbock haven’t been easy for the Longhorns. They lost in 2008, even though most Longhorns fans have blocked that memory. Also, the last two wins in Lubbock were by 10 (2010) and 9 (2012) points. I expect this game to be a difficult challenge for the Texas but a game that the Horns will be expected to win according to preseason expectations.

About Texas Tech University:

After almost a 40 year struggle to establish a university in West Texas, the people finally got their university when Texas Tech was established in 1923. Tech is the youngest school in the Big 12 conference, but is still known as a top tier research university (including partnering with Harvard to develop a potential cure for HIV). Notable alumni include astronaut John Husband, John Denver, Pat Green, and CBS Evening News anchor Scott Pelley.

Texas Tech Football was mostly dormant until attorney Mike Leach came with his pirate sword and hat to save the day. He won 8 or more game in 8 of his 10 seasons at Texas Tech, but was fired in 2009 after putting Craig James’s son in a shed. The Red Raiders then hired Tommy Tuberville who only won 8 games once in his 3 seasons in Lubbock. Texas Tech football has 0 national titles, 0 Heisman trophy winners and only 12 Consensus All Americans.