Texas Tech, TCU clash to stay relevant in Big 12 race

After its four-game winning streak was snapped last weekend, Texas Tech heads to TCU on Saturday to try to keep pace in the Big 12 race and win the Saddle Trophy for the second season in a row.

Texas Tech (5-2, 3-1 Big 12) suffered its first conference loss last Saturday in a 59-35 upset defeat to Baylor. In the loss, the Texas Tech defense was exposed as a unit that struggled to adjust.

"We're bringing a blitz we don't get, so we're gap exchanging with the defensive tackle and the linebacker and defensive tackle doesn't get there," head coach Joey McGuire said. "It's a broken record that you know whenever the ball bounces, we don't have an edge player. We're not gap sound and some of their plays in the second half, didn't adjust well."

Against Baylor, Texas Tech also gave up 144 yards after the catch, showing a side struggling to be in the right place and not making open-field tackles. Quarterback Spencer Robertson threw for a career-high five touchdowns.

TCU (4-3, 2-2) also has a quarterback that can hurt a defense in Josh Hoover. The Horned Frogs passer is fourth in the nation in passing yards (2,270) and was named to the Davey O'Brien midseason watch list for the nation's best quarterback.

In a 13-7 victory over Utah on Saturday, Hoover threw for 263 yards and scored the only TCU touchdown on the ground with a 1-yard run. It was the third road win for TCU this season, a stark contrast to a 1-2 record at home.

"We know we haven't played good at home," cornerback LaMareon James said. "We owe it to the fans to play good."

The Horned Frogs won four straight games against Texas Tech until last year's 35-28 defeat in Lubbock, Texas. A win Saturday gets TCU closer to evening the rivalry's record, with the Red Raiders holding a 33-30-3 advantage.

At stake is the Saddle Trophy, which dates to when TCU and Texas Tech both played in the Southwest Conference, which dissolved in 1996. The rivalry then was dubbed the West Texas Championship.

--Field Level Media