30 Greatest Games in Texas Tech History
No. 1 – vs. Texas 2008
Picking the greatest game in Texas Tech history is as easy as picking the closest star to Earth. In 2008, the undefeated and 7th-ranked Red Raiders hosted No. 1 Texas coming away with a dramatic 39-33 win, the 500th in Texas Tech football history.
The madness in the air on the night after Halloween was palpable. Close to 60,000 fans packed Jones Stadium, almost all of them dressed in black for the nationally televised game.
Texas Tech jumped out to 12-0 first quarter and 22-6 halftime leads. But the Longhorns would rally to take the lead 33-32 with just 1:29 to play.
However, that was plenty of time for Graham Harrell and Michael Crabtree. Set up at its own 37 following a strong kickoff return by corner Jamar Wall, the Texas Tech offense went to work.
Six plays later, Harrell hit Crabtree along the right sideline and Crabtree spun away from a Texas defender to score the biggest touchdown in Texas Tech history. Though there was seven seconds left on the clock, the Texas Tech students stormed the field in celebration.
The field was cleared and Texas Tech was penalized 15 yards for the fans’ unsportsman-like conduct. The students, which hadn’t gone back into the stand but rather just formed a wall four or five people deep on the sidelines, stormed the field again after Matt Williams’ extra point resulting in another penalty.
As if the evening had not been odd enough, Texas Tech was forced to kick off from its own seven-yard-line after the enforcement of the two penalties. Fortunately, Texas was unable to must a return on the kickoff and the game ended giving the students a third and final time to celebrate with the team on the field of Jones Stadium the greatest moment in Texas Tech history.
Harrell passed for 474 yards and two touchdowns while Crabtree grabbed 12 balls for 127 yards and the famous score. After the game, Crabtree told the ABC television reporter that he dreamed he would score on the game’s final play to beat Texas.
Whether or not the all-American really did have that dream will never be known but for every Texas Tech Red Raider, the events of November 1, 2008 were a dream from which we never wanted to wake.