It’s Throwback Thursday here at Red Raider Wire. Texas Tech fans don’t have to go far back for one of the best memories in program history. On December 6, 2025, the fifth-ranked team in the country rolled into AT&T Stadium in Arlington and left with a 34-7 win over 11th-ranked BYU, claiming the program’s first-ever Big 12 Football Championship.
For a program that hadn’t won an outright conference title since 1955, this was the moment Red Raider fans had been waiting generations for.
A first for both programs
Neither Texas Tech nor BYU had ever played in a Big 12 title game before that Saturday. Both teams punched their tickets after Arizona State’s regular-season loss to Arizona cleared the path. It teed up a rematch of a top-10 showdown the two had already played in Lubbock earlier that season.
ESPN’s College Gameday came to Lubbock to make it their showcase game of the week. The Red Raider faithful turned out in droves and created an electric atmosphere at the show and inside (what was) Jones At&t Stadium. Joey McGuire’s team also met the moment with a definitive 29-7 victory.
Texas Tech entered the Big 12 championship having led the conference in nearly every major statistical category all year. They powered through a dominant campaign that included their first 10-win season since Graham Harrell and Michael Crabtree led the program to an 11-win campaign in 2008. BYU, meanwhile, arrived having lost only to the Red Raiders all season, and hoped this rematch would go differently.
It didn’t.
Same song, different verse
BYU actually struck first. Running back LJ Martin punched in a 10-yard touchdown on the opening drive. For a brief moment, Cougar fans in Arlington had reason to believe. But that would be the last time BYU found the end zone.
Texas Tech answered with 34 unanswered points. Quarterback Behren Morton, who had missed Tech’s only loss of the season, threw two touchdown passes to Coy Eakin.
That included a highlight-reel, both-hands, twisting 33-yard grab that was the final nail in the coffin for the Cougars. Cameron Dickey added a rushing score off a direct snap, and kicker Stone Harrington chipped in four field goals to keep the scoreboard moving.
The defense stole the show in the second half. Linebacker Ben Roberts hauled in two interceptions, becoming the first player to grab multiple picks in a Big 12 championship game. Fellow linebacker (and future Miami Dolphin) Jacob Rodriguez piled up 13 tackles. Romello Height, who lived in backfields all season, recovered a crucial fumble that set up another Tech score.
The game was over by the time the fourth quarter started. But when the clock mercifully hit zero, the score was 34-7, and the Red Raiders were Big 12 champions.
What it meant
When Big 12 commissioner Brett Yormark handed the trophy to McGuire, it was validation. Texas Tech had made significant investments in the transfer portal that offseason. When it came to the ROI on those investments, it’s safe to say boosters and administrators got the exact return they were looking for. The win also locked in Tech’s spot in the College Football Playoff, with the Red Raiders sitting at No. 4 and in strong position for a first-round bye.
For McGuire, it capped a historic run: a first Big 12 title, a program-best CFP ranking, and a statement that Texas Tech had arrived as a genuine contender in the sport’s new landscape. Coming into 2026, the expectations have only risen as Texas Tech finds itself ranked 12th in the Coaches’ Poll.
Seventy years after their last conference championship, the Red Raiders were back on top. This time, the whole nation was watching.
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This article originally appeared on Red Raiders Wire: Throwback Thursday: Texas Tech delivers program’s first Big 12 title
Reporting by Andrew McCleary, Red Raiders Wire / Red Raiders Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Andrew McCleary, Red Raiders Wire | USA TODAY Network
