Ben Roberts recorded two interceptions, Butkus Award winner Jacob Rodriguez racked up 13 tackles and No. 4 Texas Tech earned a College Football Playoff spot with a convincing 34-7 victory over No. 11 BYU on Saturday afternoon in the Big 12 championship game at Arlington, Texas.
Behren Morton completed 20 of 33 passes for 215 yards and two touchdowns and Roberts was named the Most Outstanding Player for the Red Raiders (12-1), who earned the Big 12’s automatic bid and are expected to receive a first-round bye in the playoff after winning the program’s first outright conference championship since 1955.
Coy Eakin had two scoring receptions and Cameron Dickey rushed for a touchdown for Texas Tech, which also routed BYU in the regular season and set a school record with its 12th victory. Anthony Holmes Jr. forced a big fumble, as the Red Raiders coaxed four turnovers without committing any.
“We have some really special kids and they buy into what we ask them to do,” Red Raiders coach Joey McGuire said of the team’s success. “Don’t let the Red Raiders get hot. We have the best fans in the world and the best university.”
Bear Bachmeier completed 16 of 27 passes for 115 yards and was intercepted twice for the Cougars (11-2).
LJ Martin rushed for a touchdown for BYU, which had just 200 yards of total offense. The Cougars are likely going to miss the College Football Playoff despite having just one regular-season loss.
“You can’t make a lot of mistakes like we did,” BYU coach Kalani Sitake said. “We learned it for the second time this year against the best team in the country.
“I’ve said it before, I think they’re the best team in the country. Now I’m confirming it, they’re the best team in the country.”
All 12 Texas Tech wins have come by 20 or more points. Roberts said the Red Raiders are ready to make some noise in the postseason and have a lot to prove.
“We can play with every team in the country,” Roberts said. “We really are who we say we are, and I’m looking forward to the country seeing that.”
The Cougars trailed by six late in the third quarter before Roberts made his huge play to ignite the Red Raiders.
Bachmeier fired a pass to his left towards Roberts, who deflected the ball and then grabbed it for the pick and returned it 9 yards to the Cougars’ 11-yard line.
On the following play, Dickey dashed in for a touchdown with 3:21 remaining. Morton then hit Terrance Carter Jr. for the two-point conversion to give the Red Raiders a 21-7 advantage.
On the second play in the fourth quarter, Holmes exploded into the backfield and forced Bachmeier to fumble, with Romello Height recovering at the Cougars’ 24. Texas Tech cashed in on Stone Harrington’s 44-yard field goal to take a 17-point lead with 12:49 remaining in the game.
On the next offensive play, Bachmeier was intercepted by Roberts, who returned it 11 yards to the BYU 31. The Red Raiders came up empty when Harrington was wide left on a 49-yard field-goal attempt.
Texas Tech added on when Eakin caught a 28-yard touchdown pass from Morton for a 31-7 lead with 7:03 remaining. BYU then turned the ball over again when Martin fumbled and Jayden Cofield recovered at the Cougars’ 37, setting up Harrington’s 28-yard field goal with 4:39 left.
“We put our defense in some tough positions,” Sitake said. “Those guys kept battling. We will build from this and get better. I’m really proud of our team.”
The Cougars struck first in the first quarter when Martin took a direct snap and scored on a 10-yard run with 4:58 left.
Harrington got the Red Raiders on the board with a 23-yard field goal to open the second quarter. Morton tossed a 33-yard scoring pass to Eakin to give Texas Tech a 10-7 lead with 10:42 left in the first half. Harrington tacked on a 40-yard field goal with 21 seconds remaining for a 13-7 halftime advantage.
–Field Level Media
