Texas Tech Hammers West Virginia Early Before Coasting to Victory
Texas Tech football hasn't had much positive news since beating Oklahoma State.
Enduring the botched call in the Baylor game, the first quarter flop against Iowa State and the blown lead to Kansas was enough to tank any season. On top of that was the scandal brewing on Friday coming off a bye week.
Matt Wells and the team could have certainly packed it in and lost a road game, but they did the opposite of give up and scored touchdowns on their first five drives of the game to scream out to a 35-10 lead against the West Virginia Mountaineers Saturday in Morgantown.
After Texas Tech reached that score, things slowed down in the game. Nobody scored in the 3rd quarter, but in the 4th quarter, Texas Tech would get a field goal and West Virginia scored a touchdown in the final seconds to end the game 38-17.
The offense, in the first half, was everything we've been clamoring for. Play action precision, down-hill running in the red zone, and a cutthroat mentality. It was the best half of football from the Texas Tech offense this season. Not only did the offense dominate early, West Virginia turned the ball over twice in their first three possessions.
No, it wasn't a complete game from the Red Raiders, but it was certainly refreshing to allow only 17 points on the road and survive for a win when only scoring three in the second half. A win is a win in the Big 12.
QB Jett Duffey finished the game 24-34 with 354 yards and one touchdown, and more importantly, 10-plus yards per attempt. The team would rush for 127 yards as well. Defensively, Texas Tech forced 4 turnovers, including Douglas Coleman's 8th interception of the year.
Overall, Texas Tech enjoyed their first road win under Matt Wells and stay alive for bowl eligibility at 4-5 on the season, with two home games left on the schedule.
Next up is TCU on November 16th in the friendly confines of The Jones.