Sights & Sounds: ‘We’re Never Apologizing for a Victory’ Texas Tech Looks Right At Home in Houston
Behind 552 yards of total offense, a dominant defensive front and a second-half shutout, No. 11 Texas Tech handed the Houston Cougars their first loss of the season – improving to 5-0 for the first time in more than a decade. Enjoy a few postgame quotes of note, stat leaders and some GREAT shots in a full photo gallery.
Defensive Dominance
We stopped the run, and we were able to get after the quarterback. That’s the key, man. With the front that we have, if we can stop the run and be able to get our guys that can really rush the passer at a high level, that makes a big difference.” – Joey McGuire
“Coach Z, he’s a phenomenal coach. The stuff that we preach, that we coach, it’s just the hard work that we do. We push each other and there’s no envy in that room. Everybody wants to see everybody win.” – Lee Hunter
“I feel like I get to play football the easiest way possible. There’s nobody climbing to me… I barely have any time for the quarterback to get the ball off…..We were just playing cover three… He didn’t see me at all. And then, I played offense to start my college career. I’ve been telling Coach Leftwich I’m ready to go.” – Jacob Rodriguez on his interception
“His energy and his passion for the game, I can tell you he really loves this game, really loves the defense. That kind of just trickles down to all the other coaches too. Coach Ah You, Coach Z… they have love for the game, passion for the game. It’s amazing playing for this defense.” – David Bailey on Coach Wood and the defensive staff
Execution and Ceiling
“We ran for 207 yards… we had a shutout in the second half, which is good. But we had four drops, two of those four were touchdowns… that’s the frustrating thing that we’ve got to get better at.” – Joey McGuire
“There’s a next level that no one has seen…We get a false start, we get pushed back, we’re not finishing drives, but there’s a whole other level that all three phases can take.” – Behren Morton
“We had a lot of adversity tonight, and that’s going to help us in the long run. Being able to really go into this film and really find areas where we can get better: offense, defense, special teams.” – Jacob Rodriguez
“Just keep working, and we’re going to let the work speak for itself week by week. Trust the process and trust our coaches.” – Lee Hunter
Red Raider Fans Taking Over Houston
“Thank you to all the Red Raiders for showing up in Houston. We just talked in the locker room and our players were just blown away by the support. At the end being able to play the Matador Song and just everybody standing up, it was incredible.” – Joey McGuire
“Lubbock travels but I didn’t know Lubbock traveled like that. It was awesome. We were pulling in and saw tailgates of just Red Raiders, like 500 people. I never felt like it was an away game tonight.” – Behren Morton
“I think the Red Raiders over here made a huge impact on the game, no doubt. Our band and everybody that showed up to play for us was awesome too.” – Jacob Rodriguez
Texas Tech Stat Leaders
Behren Morton – 28/40, 345 yards, 1 touchdown
J’Koby Williams – 19 carries, 107 yards rushing, 2 catches, 6 yards receiving, two rushing touchdowns
Cameron Dickey – 21 carries, 98 yards rushing, 1 catch, 69 yards receiving, 1 receiving touchdown
Caleb Douglas – 7 catches, 114 yards receiving
Jacob Rodriguez – 5 tackles (4 solo), 2 tackles for loss, 1 interception
David Bailey – 3 tackles (3 solo), 2 sacks, 3 tackles for loss, forced fumble
Ben Roberts – 6 tackles (4 solo), forced fumble
Behind the Game
Read more about the big moments, calls, mistakes and everything in between with stories from RedRaiderSports.com writers:
McGuire’s silver lining to Tech’s few struggles in Houston rout
Bailey plays best game of short Texas Tech career
Jacob Rodriguez credits his success to teammates, culture
Next Up: Home Versus Kansas Saturday 10/11
Texas Tech returns home for the first time in a month to take on the Kansas Jayhawks in front of a sold out Homecoming crowd in Lubbock. The Jayhawks enter the game 4-2 overall and 2-1 in Big 12 play after beating UCF this week.
Kickoff scheduled for 6:30 PM to be broadcast on Fox.
Photo Gallery: Texas Tech vs Houston Football
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