Game Preview: Halloween Night vs. No. 24 Oklahoma

LUBBOCK, Texas – Texas Tech will look to continue its winning ways Saturday night when the Red Raiders host Oklahoma inside Jones AT&T Stadium. Tech will be searching for its first win over the Sooners since 2011 when the Red Raiders shocked the top-ranked Sooners in Norman.

The game will be broadcast to a national audience on FOX with Tim Brando on the call alongside analyst Spencer Tillman. Fans can access the game from their mobile or streaming device by using the FOX Sports app.

The Texas Tech Sports Network will also broadcast the game over 46 affiliates throughout the state of Texas and New Mexico as Brian Jensen will have the call alongside analyst John Harris, sideline reporter Chris Level and engineer Steve Pitts. The radio broadcast can also be heard on XM channel 199, Sirius channel 138 or via the TuneIn app.

UNDER THE LIGHTS ON HALLOWEEN

Dating back to the start of the 2002 season, Texas Tech is 40-15 in night games at Jones AT&T Stadium. The Red Raiders are currently 1-1 in night games at home under Matt Wells.
The Red Raiders will be playing on Halloween night for only the 15th time in program history. This will be the first time during the Big 12 era where Tech will host a game on Halloween night as the Red Raiders previously faced Missouri (1998), Kansas (2009) and Oklahoma State (2015) in the afternoon.
Texas Tech is only 4-9-1 all-time on Halloween date. Tech has only played at home on Oct. 31 four times previously as its only win came via a 42-21 victory over Kansas in 2009.

COLOMBI PICKS UP WIN IN FIRST START

Henry Colombi pushed the Red Raiders to a victory in his first career start as the junior finished 22-of-28 for 169 passing yards and a touchdown, while also rushing 11 times for 40 yards and another score versus the Mountaineers.
Colombi, who was tabbed Texas Tech's starting quarterback in the open week leading up to the West Virginia game, has appeared in 16 games over his career between Utah State and Texas Tech.
Colombi became the 16th Red Raider quarterback to make his first career start since 1999 and the eighth to make his first career start versus a Big 12 opponent.
Texas Tech is now 7-1 in that time when its starting quarterback is making his first career start versus a Big 12 foe. Ironically, the lone loss came with Patrick Mahomes as the now NFL MVP was injured early versus Texas in 2014.

FINDING OTHER WAYS TO SCORE

Tech has developed a knack for key moments on defense this season as the Red Raiders are currently tied for the national lead with three defensive touchdowns this season.
Tech found the end zone defensively for the third time this season in the win over West Virginia as Zech McPhearson broke a 27-27 tie by returning a fumble recovery 56 yards for a touchdown.
Zech McPhearson has been the most frequent Red Raider finding the end zone as he scored on a 90-yard return off a blocked field goal at Iowa State and then scooped a loose fumble against West Virginia for a 56-yard touchdown return. McPhearson had another fumble recovery at Kansas State as he shares the Big 12 high entering this weekend.
McPhearson's two fumble returns for a touchdown (the blocked field goal is credited as a fumble return) mark the most by a Red Raider since Paul McClendon set the Texas Tech single-season record with three in 2001.

RED RAIDERS VERSUS RANKED FOES

The Red Raiders will be looking to knock off a top-25 opponent for a third-consecutive season Saturday after topping a ranked Oklahoma State program each of the last two years.
Oklahoma is the third top-25 foe for the Red Raiders already in Big 12 play as Texas Tech took then-No. 8 Texas to overtime before falling to No. 24 Iowa State a few weeks ago.
Texas Tech's three losses this season have come against schools currently in the top 25 polls (Kansas State, Iowa State) and one other in Texas that is receiving votes after previously being ranked as high as No. 8 nationally.
Since the start of the 2007 season, the Red Raiders have knocked off at least one ranked opponent in nine of the past 13 years. Texas Tech failed to record a top-25 win over a four-year stretch from 2014-17 before breaking that streak at No. 15 Oklahoma State in 2018.
With a win Saturday, Matt Wells will become only the second Texas Tech head coach to record a top-25 win in each of his first two seasons, joining Tommy Tuberville (2010-11).

INSIDE THE SERIES

This will be the 28th all-time meeting between Texas Tech and Oklahoma as the Red Raiders will be looking to snap an eight-game losing streak against the Sooners.
Oklahoma controls the overall series between the two schools with a 21-6 all-time record versus the Red Raiders.
The Red Raiders will be looking for their first win over the Sooners at home since 2009 when Texas Tech handed Oklahoma a 41-13 rout. That victory marked the Red Raiders' third-consecutive win over the Sooners inside Jones AT&T Stadium at the time.
Texas Tech will be facing a ranked Oklahoma team for the 11th-consecutive year Saturday. The Red Raiders are 3-18 all-time against ranked Oklahoma teams.

TEXAS TECH – OU CONNECTIONS

Texas Tech has numerous ties to the state of Oklahoma on its coaching staff, beginning with head coach Matt Wells and his brother, inside receivers and tight ends coach Luke Wells, who are both natives of Sallisaw. Luke Wells attended the University of Oklahoma and served as a student assistant for the Sooners from 1999-01. In addition, defensive coordinator Keith Patterson and offensive line coach Steve Farmer are also natives of the state.
Oklahoma head coach Lincoln Riley graduated from Texas Tech in 2006 and was a member of the Red Raiders' coaching staff from 2006-09.
Three other members of Oklahoma's staff - Bill Bedenbaugh (offensive line), Dennis Simmons (outside receivers) and Bennie Wylie (Director of Sports Performance) - previously worked on Texas Tech's staff.
Bedenbaugh was a graduate assistant at Tech from 2000-02 before earning a full-time position as the running backs coach from 2003-04 and then the offensive line coach from 2005-06. Simmons was an Assistant Athletic Director in charge of quality control from 2000-04, the program's Chief of Staff from 2005-07, and then wide receivers coach from 2008-09. Wylie was Tech's head football strength and conditioning coach from 2003-09.

STAT NOTABLES vs. WEST VIRGINIA

Eli Howard has 2.0 career sacks against the Sooners as he got to the quarterback in the 2017 meeting as well as last year's contest in Norman. Howard is currently ninth all-time in Texas Tech history with 16.5 career sacks.
Zech McPhearson recorded six tackles in his first game against the Sooners a year ago to go along with a 27-yard punt return that marked the longest of his career. The Red Raiders have not recorded a punt return of that length in the 13 games since facing the Sooners in 2019.
SaRodorick Thompson came close to reaching the 100-yard mark for the first time in his career a year ago as he carried 13 times for 96 yards versus the Sooners. Thompson eventually eclipsed the 100-yard plateau two weeks later with a career-high 153 yards in an overtime loss at Baylor.
T.J. Vasher has 12 career catches versus the Sooners as he has recorded 142 yards and a touchdown through the air in three career games. Vasher's best came in the series came as a redshirt freshman in 2017 when he hauled in five passes for 98 yards. He followed with six catches for 42 yards and a touchdown in the 2018 meeting between the two schools.

FINAL NOTES

Following this weekend, Texas Tech will have already faced five of the top-six teams currently in the Big 12 standings. Kansas State shares the Big 12 lead currently at 4-0 followed by Iowa State at 3-1 and Oklahoma, Texas and West Virginia at 2-2 in league play.
The victory over West Virginia snapped a six-game losing streak for the Red Raiders in Big 12 contests decided by a possession or less (8 points). The Red Raiders had not previously won a close game against a league foe since topping TCU, 17-14, midway through the 2018 season.
The win marked the first time the Red Raiders went to the fourth quarter tied with its opponent since Tech used overtime to edge TCU, 27-24, in 2016. It also marked the first win in Matt Wells' career when his team has been tied entering the final 15 minutes.
The win over West Virginia improved Matt Wells to 32-13 in home games over his career (.711 winning percentage).
This weekend's meeting with Oklahoma wraps a two-game homestand for the Red Raiders, who will be looking to win consecutive conference games at home for the first time since defeating Kansas State late in the 2015 campaign and then Kansas in the 2016 league opener.
With its 169 passing yards against West Virginia, Texas Tech recorded its first win when throwing for less than 200 yards since the Red Raiders defeated New Mexico, 24-3, in the first game under Mike Leach in 2000. The victory marked only the 11th time since 2000 that the Red Raiders had failed to throw for at least 200 yards in a game.

LIVE: Coach Wells takes the mic to preview Saturday's matchup against No. 24 Oklahoma. https://t.co/UJLn3P5Gb7
— Texas Tech Football (@TexasTechFB) October 26, 2020

Game Preview: Halloween Night vs. No. 24 Oklahoma

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Henry Colombi

Eli Howard

Zech McPhearson

SaRodorick Thompson Jr.

T.J. Vasher

Game Preview: Halloween Night vs. No. 24 Oklahoma

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Henry Colombi

Eli Howard

Zech McPhearson

SaRodorick Thompson Jr.

T.J. Vasher

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