Texas Tech Red Raiders vs. Texas Longhorns: Keys To The Game

The Texas Longhorns are facing their final regular season test of the season against the Texas Tech Red Raiders - a team that has spoiled the Horns championship hopes before.

Matt Galatzan | Nov 24, 2023

In this story:

The Texas Longhorns are on the precipice of a Big 12 Championship game berth and are banging on the door for a College Football Playoff bid.

But standing in their way - for potentially the last time ever - is the Texas Tech Red Raiders, who would love nothing more than to derail the Longhorns' hopes at postseason glory.

This is a different Texas Tech team than we have seen in the past, however, with the Red Raiders taking on more of a run-first and defensive-minded approach in Lubbock this season.

Fortunately for Texas, they are much better equipped to handle that kind of attack on defense, than the air-it-out style of previous Texas Tech teams.

So what do the Longhorns have to do to make it to Arlington next weekend? Let's examine:

Texas vs. Iowa State / Sara Diggins-Austin American-Statesman

Texas wins if...

... It stops the run.

Texas Tech is a run-first team, and without Tyler Shough in the lineup, the passing game has been inconsistent at best, ranking ninth in the Big 12. If the Longhorns can slow down the conference's leading rusher, Tahj Brooks, it will be very hard for the Red Raiders to keep pace offensively.

Texas Tech wins if...

... it can disrupt the Longhorns' rhythm and cause chaos.

Texas has one of the most explosive offenses in the Big 12. But when they struggle, it has been due to turnovers and Quinn Ewers being thrown out of rhythm in the passing game. If the Red Raiders can get after Ewers, and force a few turnovers, they will have a great chance at escaping Austin with a major upset.

Published Nov 24, 2023

MATT GALATZAN

Matt Galatzan is the Managing Editor and Publisher of Texas Longhorns In SI and Texas A&M Aggies On SI and a long-time member of the Football Writer’s Association of America. He graduated from the University of Mississippi, where he studied integrated marketing communications, with minors in journalism and business administration. Galatzan started in the sports journalism industry in 2014 covering the Dallas Mavericks with the 247Sports network. He also spent two years covering the SMU Mustangs for PonyStampede.com for 247Sports. He then moved over to Sports Illustrated's Fan Nation network in 2020, eventually being taking over as the Managing Editor and Publisher of the Longhorns and Aggies sites a year later. Through the years, Galatzan has conducted a handful of high-profile one-on-one interviews to add to his resume — in both writing and podcasting. Some of his biggest interviews have been with Mavs owner Mark Cuban, NBA legend Dirk Nowitzki, ex Longhorns Dan Neil and Phil Dawson, FOX News and former ESPN host Will Cain, as well as countless other recruits and former players for each of the teams he has covered. You can find Galatzan on all major social media channels, including Twitter on @MattGalatzan.