Texas Tech
Texas Tech is 8-1, No. 12 in the CFP rankings, and No. 21 of 138 in the machine's ratings, 13.3 points better than an average FBS team. Last game: won 53-48 vs West Virginia in Week 10. The machine gives Texas Tech a 21% chance to make the playoff.
Week 11: at Oklahoma State, Saturday, Nov 14: the matchup, unit by unit
Why Texas Tech is No. 21
- Texas Tech's rating is 13.3: the machine's estimate that Texas Tech is 13.3 points better than an average FBS team on a neutral field. That is No. 21 of 138. For scale, 0 is an average FBS team: right now the closest to it is No. 68 Arizona State (0.2).
- It started the season at 20.0, ESPN's preseason Football Power Index from July. Its results since have moved it down 6.7.
- The biggest weekly moves: −3.7 after Week 2 (W 35-24 at Oregon State) and −2.7 after Week 8 (L 24-37 at Cincinnati).
- Its record is 8-1. The loss was to No. 61 Cincinnati, by 13 points. The 8 wins came by 16.8 points on average; the best was over No. 26 Arizona. The rating weighs how much a team won or lost by and against whom, not just the win-loss count.
- Its FBS opponents so far average No. 65 in the machine's ratings.
- Just above is No. 20 Missouri (13.7); just below is No. 22 BYU (13.1).
The rating, week by week
Strengths and weak spots
Head coach
Joey McGuire is in his 5th season at Texas Tech (since 2022). This season: 8-1. At Texas Tech overall: 43-19, counting this season.
Data provided by CollegeFootballData.com.
Team stats
Season totals and averages over 9 games, each with its national rank among 138 FBS teams (No. 1 = best). The game-by-game story is in the season, week by week.
Passing
| Completions-attempts | 171-264 |
|---|---|
| Passing yards | 2112 |
| Touchdowns-interceptions | 15-7 |
| Yards per attempt* | 7.8No. 51 of 138 |
| Explosive pass rate | 10.4%No. 70 of 138 |
| Sacks allowed (rate) | 5.8%No. 77 of 138 |
Rushing
| Carries-yards | 365-1933 |
|---|---|
| Yards per carry | 5.3No. 21 of 138 |
| 10-plus-yard runs (rate) | 17.1%No. 14 of 138 |
| Stuffed at or behind the line (rate) | 18.0%No. 84 of 138 |
Scoring
| Points per game | 37.6No. 15 of 138 |
|---|---|
| Yards per play | 6.49No. 29 of 138 |
| Third-down rate | 40.2%No. 70 of 138 |
| Red-zone TD rate | 52.9%No. 108 of 138 |
| Giveaways | 13No. 104 of 138 |
Defense
| Points allowed per game | 24.1No. 65 of 138 |
|---|---|
| Yards per play allowed | 5.68No. 84 of 138 |
| Yards per pass attempt allowed | 7.5No. 98 of 138 |
| Yards per carry allowed | 3.5No. 34 of 138 |
| Sack rate | 7.0%No. 40 of 138 |
| Takeaways | 14No. 35 of 138 |
| Third-down rate allowed | 39.1%No. 79 of 138 |
Totals are the official box score. * Yards per attempt and the rates come from the play-by-play, where passing yards count on completions only, so they can differ from the box score by a play or two.
Data provided by CollegeFootballData.com.
Player leaders
The top 3 in each category over the same games. Passing yards count every completion (official box score).
Passing
- Will Hammond139-205, 1561 yds, 6 TD, 6 INT
- Thomas Castellanos32-56, 551 yds, 9 TD, 1 INT
Rushing
- J'Koby Williams119 carries, 954 yds, 7 TD
- Thomas Castellanos57 carries, 284 yds, 3 TD
- Cameron Dickey69 carries, 282 yds, 4 TD
Receiving
- Kenny Johnson40 catches, 632 yds, 4 TD
- Coy Eakin24 catches, 285 yds, 3 TD
- Terrance Carter24 catches, 274 yds, 4 TD
Tackles
- Austin Romaine81
- Ben Roberts67
- John Curry46
Sacks
- Anthony Holmes Jr.6.5
- Trey White5
- LaDamion Guyton4
Interceptions
- John Curry3
- Amier Boyd-Matthews2
- Austin Romaine2
Data provided by CollegeFootballData.com.
Who's playing
Based on who has actually played this season, from the box scores, not the team's published depth chart. Each bar is that player's share of the team's attempts, carries (quarterbacks left out), catches or tackles. The box score lists no positions, so there is no offensive line here.
Throwing
- Will Hammond7 games205 attempts78%
- Thomas CastellanosMost passes in the last game6 games56 attempts21%
Carrying
- J'Koby Williams9 games119 carries45%
- Cameron Dickey7 games69 carries26%
- Quinten Joyner9 games63 carries24%
- Ashton Rowden3 games7 carries3%
Catching
- Kenny Johnson9 games40 catches23%
- J'Koby Williams9 games28 catches16%
- Coy Eakin8 games24 catches14%
- Terrance Carter7 games24 catches14%
Tackling
- Austin Romaine9 games81 tackles14%
- Ben Roberts9 games67 tackles11%
- John Curry9 games46 tackles8%
- Malik Esquerra8 games42 tackles7%
Data provided by CollegeFootballData.com.
The season, week by week
- Week 1 W 33–10 vs Abilene Christian. Abilene Christian is an FCS team, so there is no FBS baseline to grade this one against.
- Week 2 W 35–24 at Oregon State. The run game struggled: 3.4 yards a carry, 1.6 less than Oregon State usually allows. Its fewest yards a carry of the season.
- Week 3 W 28–26 vs Houston. The pass defense was the strength: Houston got 7.4 yards an attempt, 1.6 under what it usually gains.
- Week 4 W 49–14 vs Sam Houston. The run game was the strength: 6.3 yards a carry, 1.3 more than Sam Houston usually allows. The fewest yards an attempt it has allowed all season.
- Week 5 W 29–7 at Colorado. The passing game struggled: 5.2 yards an attempt, 3.2 less than Colorado usually allows. Won the turnover battle by 4.
- Week 7 W 53–25 vs Arizona State. The run game was the strength: 7.0 yards a carry, 3.6 more than Arizona State usually allows. The defense had 6 sacks.
- Week 8 L 24–37 at Cincinnati. The passing game struggled: 5.8 yards an attempt, 2.8 less than Cincinnati usually allows. The machine had Texas Tech by 15.0 (82%), so this was a loss it did not see coming.
- Week 9 W 34–26 vs Arizona. The run defense was the strength: Arizona got 0.4 yards a carry, 3.8 under what it usually gains. The defense had 5 sacks.
- Week 10 W 53–48 vs West Virginia. The pass defense gave ground: West Virginia got 18.9 yards an attempt, 9.5 over what it usually gains. Its most yards an attempt of the season.