Trey Wolff connected on a 20-yard field goal to give Texas Tech a 37-34 comeback overtime win over No.22 Texas on Saturday in front of a sold-out home crowd at Jones AT&T Stadium.
The Red Raiders trailed 24-14 at halftime and 31-17 late in the third quarter but rallied to take a 34-31 lead on a 45-yard field goal by Wolff with 21 seconds remaining in regulation. The Longhorns responded by driving down the field in just three plays to set up a 48-yard field goal by Bert Auburn to tie the game and force overtime.
Texas running back Bijan Robinson fumbled on the first play of overtime after a hit by Texas Tech’s Krishon Merriweather. Reggie Pearson Jr., who had an interception earlier in the game, recovered the fumble for the Red Raiders to set up the winning field goal.
“I’m really proud of our guys,” Texas Tech first-year head coach Joey McGuire said. “It was 31-17, and they could have given up at any point. They didn’t. We asked them coming out of the half to keep fighting and good things would happen. These guys believe. When you have results like this, it just fires that belief up even more.
“We have confidence in Wolff, and he came through today,” McGuire added about his kicker. “We almost took a delay to give him a better angle, but he said he felt good about it. He said he was going to knock it through. I believe in my guys, and he did.”
The Red Raiders (3-1, 1-0 Big 12) converted 6-of-8 fourth down attempts to keep multiple crucial drives alive. After throwing five interceptions in the previous two games, Tech’s sophomore quarterback Donovan Smith threw no interceptions on 38-for-56 passing with 331 yards and two touchdowns.
Myles Price had a career-high 13 receptions for 98 yards as the Red Raiders beat the Longhorns in a Big 12 opener for the first time in six tries.
“What this means to us is that we are 1-0 in the Big 12,” McGuire said. “I’m fired up to beat Texas, but I’m more fired up to be 1-0 in the Big 12. Our guys will enjoy this, but this is not the end. We are going to refocus after enjoying this for the next 24 hours. We’ll build off this. We’ll find out how we respond to success.”
For the Longhorns, the loss was reminiscent of the first three games in a six-game losing streak that soured coach Steve Sarkisian’s Texas debut last season. Texas held double-digit leads in all three losses.
“Give Texas Tech a lot of credit,” Sarkisian said. “They played it aggressively. Our inability to get off the field was a real factor. And we couldn’t get their quarterback on the ground.”
Texas had 426 yards of total offense led by quarterback Hudson Card who was 20-for-30 passing with 277 yards, two touchdowns, and one interception. Card, who was making his second consecutive start after season-opening starter Quinn Ewers went down with an injury, was still limping at times because of a high ankle sprain.
The Longhorns (2-2, 0-1 Big 12) went into halftime with a 24-14 lead after scoring two touchdowns in the final six minutes of the half. The second touchdown came after a 12-play, 82-yard drive that ended with a Bijan Robinson 8-yard touchdown run.
Robinson scored his second touchdown with a 40-yard burst down the sideline to give Texas a 31-17 lead with 4:27 to go in the third quarter. Robinson finished with 101 yards on 16 carries.
The Red Raiders tied the game at 31-31 on a 19-yard touchdown pass from Smith to Baylor Cupp with 7:54 remaining after Smith ran for a first down on a fourth-and-5 on the previous play. It was Texas Tech’s fifth fourth down conversion of the game and set up the final sequences leading to the overtime win.
In the end, it was a thrilling game in what might be Texas’ last trip to Lubbock if they leave early for the SEC in 2024. The football rivalry has been played for 63 consecutive seasons.
“There’s a reason they don’t want to, and it happened today,” McGuire said. “But we should. It should be in every sport. Let’s just talk about revenue and sellouts.”
Both schools continue Big 12 play next Saturday as Texas Tech travels to play Kansas State, while Texas will be back in Austin to host West Virginia.