Joey McGuire Expresses Frustration With Fans, Tortilla Toss Penalties

After unsportsmanlike conduct penalties were assessed against Texas Tech's crowd, head coach Joey McGuire made his feelings known about selfish fans

Nathan Giese/Avalanche-Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

"It's going to catch up to us," head coach Joey McGuire said after Texas Tech's game regarding a pair of unsportsmanlike conduct penalties. They were assessed as a result of fans throwing tortillas on the field.

On Saturday night, Oct. 11, the Red Raiders were penalized twice as a result of the Big 12's rule against objects being thrown onto the field. The rule, which was rewritten over the offseason and threatened Texas Tech's tortilla-tossing tradition, gives fans multiple opportunities for warnings before penalties are assessed, which will directly impact the play on the field.

Here is a look at the Tech tortilla toss. #kufball pic.twitter.com/rYCRxWowuZ

— Shreyas Laddha (@shre98) October 11, 2025

The first came midway through the second quarter with 6:40 left in the half. Up 21-7 after a Jayhawks touchdown, the Red Raiders received the kickoff before an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty pushed the offense halfway to the end zone. Starting with the ball at the 13, Tech proceeded to go three-and-out, giving the ball back to Kansas.

A second penalty was dished out early in the fourth quarter. After a Texas Tech touchdown extended the lead to 35-17, another flag was thrown after Kansas received a kickoff, giving them 15 yards and starting field position at the 40-yard line.

"It's frustrating because it's kind of like, whenever I talk to the guys, make it about the football, and so if you get any kind of extracurricular penalties, like we had a 15-yarder late in the game, hey, you made it about you," McGuire said. "So, if you're throwing tortillas more than once, now it becomes all about you."

"If you came to the game and you love this team and you're passionate about this team, but yet you're going to throw another tortilla, and you know it's against the rules, like, so we've got to do a better job."

Here's the postgame handshake between Joey McGuire and Lance Leipold following Saturday's game and McGuire's comments when asked about it in the postgame press conference. https://t.co/4UknCFOODV pic.twitter.com/n7tqLTmODI

— A David Collier (@CollieronTV) October 12, 2025

Similarly, Kansas head coach Lance Leipold expressed frustrations, both after and during the game. According to Jordan Guskey of The Topeka Capital-Journal, Leipold even attempted to petition the officials during the first quarter before any penalties had officially been delivered.

Before the week, McGuire had warned fans about these issues, urging fans to keep their attention on the football game and to be loud when opposing offenses were on the field.

"I just need everybody's help to really focus on that. It's not about the tortillas this week. It's not about us being defiant," McGuire had said on Monday, Oct. 6, during Tech's early week press conference. "… Let's focus on, when the best defense in the country steps on the field, and they are going to play like their hair is on fire, that we get up on our feet and we get extremely loud."

Nathan Giese/Avalanche-Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

As Texas Tech prepares to face Arizona State — the reigning Big 12 champion — and a ranked BYU squad within the next three weeks, the margin for error is thin.

While the Red Raiders have been dominant and look like not only a contender for the conference title but for the College Football Playoff, reckless and unnecessary 15-yard penalties could prove costly in closer games.

Despite the pair of penalties, McGuire commended the fans for their positive impact on the game, urging them to continue going forward.

"I've got to do a better job at expressing to the fans how important they are because the atmosphere tonight was absolutely incredible, electric," McGuire said. "We walked into the stadium, the students were already there. We came out during warm-up, the farthest student section was already filled. I mean, we have the best students in the country, and man, they, they rallied."