Texas Tech has a few streaks on the line when Sam Houston heads to Lubbock on Saturday and the Red Raiders are not looking for any of these to get snapped by the Bearkats.
LUBBOCK -- No. 11 Texas Tech is taking a step back into non-conference play and welcomes Sam Houston in the finale to its schedule outside of the Big 12.
After a heart-stopping 28-26 win over No. 25 Houston a week ago, the Red Raiders improved to 3-0 for the second straight season and supplanted themselves as a frontrunner in the Big 12 title race.
Fresh off the Friday night theatrics, Texas Tech gets to stay home for another weekend when the Bearkats come to Lubbock on Saturday morning.
The aforementioned win over the Cougars not only kept the Red Raiders' early undefeated season alive, it extended their win streak at Galaxy Stadium to 10 games.
This dominance in Lubbock dates all the way back to the final week of 2024, when Texas Tech took down West Virginia, and includes a perfect stint at home in 2025.
Despite the impressive run, Texas Tech still needs to two more wins to match its longest streak in recent memory, which came from 2007-09 under legendary head coach Mike Leach.
And another ongoing trend for the Red Raiders could point to them getting one win closer to that illustrious mark this weekend.
Texas Tech has not lost to a non-conference opponent at home since 2023, which saw No. 13 Oregon escape Lubbock in a much closer game than many expected at the time.
Outside of ranked foes, the last defeat for the Red Raiders in a non-conference showdown in Lubbock happened all the way back in 2014, when Arkansas took home a win.
Needless to say, Texas Tech is a much better program than it was back in 2014 and while they were not ranked, Arkansas was still an assumedly tougher draw than Sam Houston this year.
There is yet another bit of history heading into the contest that favors Texas Tech.
In the all-time series against the Bearkats, Texas Tech posts a pristine 2-0 record that got its start in 2005.
The Red Raiders were the decisive victors in that debut with an 80-21 win over Sam Houston. However, the most recent meeting was a completely different story.
Although it had mythical quarterback Patrick Mahomes II under center, Texas Tech could not get its defense to shut down the Bearkats in an eventual 59-45 shootout win.
Joey McGuire and company are obviously hoping for a final score more reminiscent of that 2005 meeting and they should have the talent necessary to do so.
Regardless of whatever recent trends it has backing it up, Texas Tech will ultimately have to rely on nothing much than its play on the field.
If the Red Raiders can hit their stride, they will not only keep its record spotless but continue these historic streaks in the process, whether they are the primary motivation or not.
Texas Tech will suit up and square off against Sam Houston at 11 a.m. CT from Galaxy Stadium in front of a sold-out crowd in Lubbock.
