Game Preview: Red Raiders Close Non-Conference With FIU

LUBBOCK, Texas – Texas Tech will look to sweep through the non-conference portion of the schedule Saturday when the Red Raiders welcome FIU for a 6 p.m. kick inside Jones AT&T Stadium.

Mark Neely and analyst Brandon Jacobs will call the game from inside Jones AT&T Stadium as coverage will be provided via Big 12 Now on ESPN+. The broadcast can be accessed from any desktop or laptop computer, any personal cellular device and television streaming services using the ESPN app. Registration for the subscription service can be found at ESPNPlus.com.

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 211, Sirius channel 211 or via the TuneIn app.

INSIDE THE SERIES

This will be the second all-time meeting between Texas Tech and Florida International as the Panthers previously traveled to Lubbock to start the 2005 season. The Red Raiders ran away with that game, routing FIU, 56-3, for the first of six-consecutive wins to start a memorable season that ended with an appearance in the Cotton Bowl.
Two current Texas Tech staff members were still in their Red Raider playing careers the last time FIU visiting the South Plains. Joel Filani had four catches for 78 yards in the win over the Panthers, while Antonio Huffman racked up seven tackles to go along with a pair of pass breakups.
Texas Tech is 51-30-2 all-time versus Conference USA members as Florida International is one of five league schools to face the Red Raiders in school history. In addition to FIU, Texas Tech has squared off against North Texas (4-4), UTEP (17-6-1), Rice (27-20-1) and Louisiana Tech (2-0). The Red Raiders are 13-2 against CUSA members over the course of the Big 12 era (1996-present).
Texas Tech head coach Matt Wells is 2-0 all-time against Conference USA members after defeating UTEP twice during his career. The Red Raiders dropped UTEP, 38-3, in only Wells' second game as Texas Tech's head coach in 2019. His Utah State program topped UTEP, 21-6, to wrap the 2014 season as the Aggies and Miners faced each other in the Gildan New Mexico Bowl.

TEXAS TECH-FIU CONNECTIONS

Texas Tech will be the first Big 12 opponent to face FIU head coach Butch Davis in his respective career. Davis is in his fifth season at FIU after previous head coaching stops at Miami and North Carolina as well as the NFL's Cleveland Browns.
FIU defensive line coach Deke Adams and Texas Tech inside receivers and tight ends coach Luke Wells, associate head coach and special teams coordinator Mark Tommerdahl and offensive line coach Steve Farmer were all on the same staff together in 2008 at Louisiana-Monroe. Farmer was in his final year as Monroe's offensive coordinator, while Wells was the wide receivers and tight ends coach. Tommerdahl, meanwhile, served as Monroe's assistant head coach that season and special teams coordinator. Adams was in a similar role that season as he is now at FIU.
Texas Tech boasts five Red Raiders on its roster that hail from the state of Florida - offensive lineman Ethan Carde (Valrico), quarterback Henry Colombi (Hollywood), long snapper Jackson Knotts (Plant City), linebacker Jesiah Pierre (Mount Dora) and defensive back Marquis Waters (Delray Beach). Both Colombi and Waters are South Florida natives who grew up within an hour from Florida International's campus in Miami.

CRABTREE, TARBOX AWAIT RING OF HONOR INDUCTION

Texas Tech great Michael Crabtree will be back at his alma mater this weekend as he and the late Elmer Tarbox will be formally inducted into the prestigious Ring of Honor. The Ring of Honor ceremony will be held at 11:30 a.m. Saturday at The Overton Hotel and Conference Center followed by a pregame recognition prior to kickoff against FIU. The names of both Crabtree and Tarbox will both be unveiled on the West Stadium Building wall to Jones AT&T Stadium during the pregame ceremony.
Crabtree was announced as Texas Tech's sixth inductee into the Ring of Honor early in the 2020 season as his ceremony was pushed back a year due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Crabtree remains a fixture in Texas Tech history after shattering many of Texas Tech's receiving records during his two-year playing career from 2007-08, a span that saw the Red Raiders finish 20-6 overall, which was highlighted by an 11-2 campaign in 2008 that pushed Texas Tech to as high as No. 2 in the national rankings.
Tarbox, meanwhile, was selected for Ring of Honor induction earlier this summer in recognition for his outstanding playing career during the early stages of the Texas Tech football program. Tarbox played three seasons for the Red Raiders from 1936-38, quickly developing into one of the most prominent two-way players in the country. For Tarbox, his legacy was felt on the defensive side of the ball. In 1938, Tarbox set the Texas Tech single-season record with 11 interceptions, a mark that has not seriously been approached by any Red Raider since then as the next-highest total is eight.

NON-CONFERENCE SUCCESS FAMILIAR FOR RED RAIDERS

Texas Tech enters this weekend having won each of its last 13 non-conference games at home and 38 of its last 39 contests dating back to the 2002 season. The Red Raiders are an impressive 45-2 overall in non-conference home games since moving to a spread offense in 2000.
Texas Tech's success against non-conference opponents from either the FCS level or a Group of Five conference is even more impressive as the Red Raiders have won each of their last 29 regular-season contests at home or on the road against non-power five members.
In fact, Texas Tech has not dropped a non-conference game against a Group of Five opponent since falling at No. 17 Houston, 29-28, early in the 2009 season. In addition, Tech has not lost to an unranked, Group of Five opponent since New Mexico surprised the Red Raiders, 27-24, in 2004.
Texas Tech head coach Matt Wells is 5-1 in non-conference games during his tenure at Texas Tech and is 17-14 over his career with 10 of those losses coming to power-five schools, nine of which that were during his tenure at Utah State. Texas Tech can run through the non-conference slate with an undefeated record for the first time in Wells' career with a win over FIU (not including 2020 where there was only one non-conference game).

RECAPPING THE HOUSTON WIN

Texas Tech started its season at 2-0 with wins over both Houston and Stephen F. Austin. It marks the eighth time since 2010 where the Red Raiders have opened their season with a 2-0 record.
The victory over Houston marked the fourth-straight for the Red Raiders over the Cougars as Texas Tech is now 16-3 against former Southwest Conference foes since the league disbanded in 1995. The Red Raiders have now won nine of the past 10 meetings against Houston, including four of the five meetings since joining the Big 12 in 1996.
Texas Tech started its season with a victory for the 18th time in the past 19 years after defeating the Cougars. With the win, the Red Raiders improved to 67-27-3 all-time in season openers.
Texas Tech improved to 25-1 all-time against FCS opponents and 76-18-3 in home openers with its 28-22 victory over Stephen F. Austin last weekend. The Red Raiders have now won 19-consecutive games against opponents from the FCS ranks.
Texas Tech notched four interceptions in the win over Houston, its most in a game since the Red Raiders picked off five passes against SMU early in the 2008 season. For comparisons sake, Texas Tech is now just one interception shy of its entire total from the 2020 season.
Texas Tech's four interceptions matched the most in the FBS through the first two full weekends of the college football season as both Troy and Kent State have picked off four passes in a game thus far (Kent State has done so twice).
Texas Tech limited Houston to only 251 yards of total offense, marking the second-straight game the Red Raiders have held an opponent to less than 300 yards dating back to the 2020 finale against Kansas. The Cougars only totaled 53 yards of total offense in the second half and went no where on the ground with negative-18 yards.
The Red Raider defense was in the backfield often against the Cougars after totaling 11.0 tackles for loss, its most since recording the same amount against Baylor midway through the 2019 season. The Red Raiders have made it a habit of stopping the opposing offense behind the line of scrimmage thus far with 19.0 tackles for a loss through two games, their second-highest total in that stretch dating back to 2000. The 2009 team had 20.0 tackles for a loss through two games in the season. The Red Raiders currently rank 18th nationally in tackles for loss entering this weekend.
When looking at Texas Tech's offensive output through the first two weeks, its important to note the Red Raiders have only had 102 plays (52 at Houston, 50 vs. SFA), their fewest through two games in a season dating back to 2000. Texas Tech's next-lowest total was the 137 the Red Raiders attempted early in the 2003 season.
Tahj Brooks has been the breakout star for the Texas Tech offense through the first two weeks as he has carried 26 times for 237 yards and four touchdowns. Brooks has been explosive in finding the end zone, scoring on touchdown runs of 41 and 44 yards against Houston before breaking loose on a 67-yard scamper against SFA. To this point in the season, Brooks is the only FBS running back with three runs of at least 40 yards or longer.
Brooks finished with a career-high 134 rushing yards against Houston and then added 103 on the ground versus SFA, marking his first two games to reach the 100-yard mark. His four rushing touchdowns this season are tied for the Big 12 high and match the most for a Red Raider through two games dating back to 2000.
His rise gives Texas Tech the nation's leading receiver in Erik Ezukanma and then a top-25 rusher in Brooks, who ranks 23rd nationally in rushing yards entering this weekend. Texas Tech is one of three schools nationally currently with a player ranked in the top 10 for receiving and another in the top 25 for rushing.
Xavier White added a 52-yard run against SFA as part of seven carries for 88 yards and a touchdown. With that run, Texas Tech has had four carries go at least 40 yards this season, which leads all team's nationally.
Riko Jeffers stepped in front of a Clayton Tune pass midway through the third quarter against Houston for his first career interception. Jeffers returned the interception 13 yards for a touchdown, marking the first pick-six by a Red Raider since Adrian Frye went 43 yards into the end zone against Lamar in 2018.
In addition to Jeffers, Reggie Pearson Jr. and Eric Monroe both recorded the first career interception of their respective careers versus the Cougars. Pearson, in his debut as a Red Raider, also forced a fumble and had eight tackles, while Monroe contributed five tackles.
Colin Schooler reached double digits for tackles for the 15th time in his career and the second time as a Red Raider after notching 10 against the Cougars. That total included a pair of tackles that went for a loss, giving him 53.0 now over his career at both Texas Tech and the University of Arizona. Schooler is Texas Tech's leading tackler through two weeks with 16 stops.
The play of both Jeffers and Pearson earned the two Big 12 weekly award honors as Jeffers was tabbed Defensive Player of the Week, while Pearson was recognized as the top newcomer. It was the first conference weekly award in each of their respective careers.

Texas Tech University Athletics

Game Preview: Red Raiders Close Non-Conference With FIU

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Players Mentioned

Tahj Brooks

Ethan Carde

Henry Colombi

Erik Ezukanma

Adrian Frye

Riko Jeffers

Jackson Knotts

Eric Monroe

Reggie Pearson Jr.

Jesiah Pierre

Colin Schooler

Marquis Waters

Xavier White

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