Texas Tech University is a public research university in Lubbock, Texas. Established on February 10, 1923, and called Texas Technological College until 1969, it is the flagship institution of the five-institution Texas Tech University System. As of Fall 2022, the university enrolled 40,528 students, making it the sixth-largest university in Texas. Over 25% of its undergraduate student population identifies as Hispanic so the university has been designated a Hispanic-serving institution (HSI).
The Texas Tech Red Raiders and Lady Raiders are the athletic teams that represent Texas Tech University, located in Lubbock, Texas. The women's basketball team uses the name Lady Raiders, while the school's other women's teams use the "Red Raiders" name.
Raider Red is one of the mascots of Texas Tech University. The university's primary mascot is The Masked Rider who rides a live horse. Raider Red is used at events where The Masked Rider is not allowed or would not be appropriate.
The Texas Tech Red Raiders football program is a college football team that represents Texas Tech University. The team competes as a member of the Big 12 Conference, which is a Division I Football Bowl Subdivision of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). The program began in 1925 and has an overall winning record, including a total of 11 conference titles and one division title. On November 8, 2021, Joey McGuire was hired as the team's 17th head football coach, replacing Matt Wells, who was fired in the middle of the 2021 season. Home games are played at Cody Campbell Field at Jones AT&T Stadium in Lubbock, Texas.
DeWitt Thompson Weaver Sr. was an American football player, coach, and college athletics administrator. He served as the head football coach of the Texas Tech Red Raiders from 1951 to 1960.
Graham Stanton Harrell is an American football coach and former quarterback, who is the current offensive coordinator for the Purdue Boilermakers. He played college football at Texas Tech from 2004 to 2008. He played in the Canadian Football League (CFL) National Football League (NFL) for 5 seasons from 2009 to 2013, with his longest tenure as a player with the Green Bay Packers. He served as the offensive coordinator of the North Texas Mean Green (2016–2018), USC Trojans (2019–2021) and the West Virginia Mountaineers (2022).
The 2008 Gator Bowl was played on January 1, 2008, as part of the 2007 NCAA Division I FBS football season. It featured the Red Raiders of Texas Tech University, who finished third in the Big 12 Conference's South Division, and the Cavaliers of the University of Virginia, who finished second in the Atlantic Coast Conference's Coastal Division. Texas Tech won the game on a last-second field goal, securing a 31–28 victory.
Guns Up is the famous slogan and hand signal of Texas Tech University. The slogan and hand signal are used by students and alumni as a school-spirited greeting. It is also used as a celebratory sign during athletic events.
Victor Duane Payne Jr. was an American college basketball and college football coach. He was the head football coach at Abilene Christian College and Simmons University. Payne was also the basketball head coach at Texas Technological College—now known as Texas Tech University.
Texas Tech University traditions are an important part of the culture of Texas Tech University.
The 1973 Gator Bowl was an American college football bowl game played on December 29, 1973, at Gator Bowl Stadium in Jacksonville, Florida. The game pitted the Texas Tech Red Raiders and the Tennessee Volunteers.
The Texas A&M–Texas Tech football rivalry is an American college football rivalry between the Texas A&M Aggies football team of Texas A&M University and Texas Tech Red Raiders football team of Texas Tech University. The series began in 1927. The rivalry had continued uninterrupted since 1957 when the two schools became conference rivals. Texas A&M leads the series 37–32–1. Texas A&M started the series with a 12–3 advantage while the two teams played each other as non-conference opponents from 1927–1955. Texas Tech led with a 2–1 record during its probationary membership in the Southwest Conference from 1957–59. Texas A&M led the series during the Southwest Conference years (1960–95) with an 18–17–1 record. Texas Tech led the series during the Big 12 Conference years (1996–2011) with a 10–6 record. In summary, Texas A&M dominated the series during the early years (1927-1955) with a 12-3 advantage, while Texas Tech leads the series in the modern era (1957-2011) with a 29-25-1 advantage. Both teams are tied with six games each for the longest winning streak. Texas Tech holds the longest uninterrupted winning streak of the series, six games between 1968 and 1973, while Texas A&M has the longest nonconsecutive winning streak, six games in 1927, 1932 and 1942 through 1945. Texas A&M currently holds a three-game winning streak but with their departure from the Big 12 Conference in 2012, it is uncertain if the rivalry will continue in the future.
The History of Texas Tech Red Raiders football covers 95 seasons since the team began play as the "Matadors" in 1925.
The 2012 Texas Tech Red Raiders football team represented Texas Tech University as member of the Big 12 Conference during the 2012 NCAA Division I FBS football season. Led by Tommy Tuberville in his third and final season as head coach the Red Raiders compiled an overall record of 8–5 with a mark 4–5 conference play, placing in a four-way tie for fifth place in Big 12. Texas Tech was invited to the Meineke Car Care Bowl of Texas, where they defeated Minnesota. The team played home games at Jones AT&T Stadium on the university's campus in Lubbock, Texas.
The Baylor–Texas Tech football rivalry is an American college football rivalry between the Baylor Bears and Texas Tech Red Raiders. Each school is a member of the Big 12 Conference. The rivalry began in 1929. The game has been played every year since 1956 despite the fact that Texas Tech was a member of the Border Intercollegiate Athletic Conference. In 1960, Texas Tech joined the Southwest Conference, ensuring the rivalry would continue. In 1996, the Southwest Conference dissolved, and both teams were invited, along with the Texas Longhorns and Texas A&M Aggies, with former members of the Big Eight Conference to form the Big 12 Conference. From 1947–64, Baylor won 14 of the 15 games. From 1996–2010, Texas Tech won 15 straight games. Baylor then won 5 straight meetings.
