The Texas Tech football program has agreed to a three-year series with Fresno State, one that will bring the Bulldogs to Lubbock twice.
The Texas Tech football program has agreed to take on one of the more dangerous non-Power 5 programs in the nation, Fresno State, for a three-game series. Tech will be in Fresno to begin the series in 2029 before hosting the Bulldogs in 2030 and 2032.
Currently members of the Mountain West Conference, the Bulldogs have become one of the best programs from a Group of 5 conference. However, they are a program in transition.
After three very successful seasons under former Cal head coach Jeff Tedford, the Bulldogs are now under the guidance of Kalen DeBoer, who was the offensive coordinator at Indiana in 2019. Despite going just 4-8 last fall, Tedford guided Fresno to a 26-14 overall record, appearances in the MWC Championship Game in both 2017 and 2018, and the 2018 MWC Conference Title in 2018. That season concluded with an impressive 31-20 victory over Arizona State in the Las Vegas Bowl.
Like so many teams from Group of 5 conferences, Fresno is always happy to tangle with Power 5 teams. In upcoming seasons, they are set to play at Colorado and Texas A&M (2020), at Oregon and at UCLA (2021), Oregon State and at USC (2022), at Purdue and at Arizona State (2023), at Michigan and at UCLA (2024).
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Over the years, the Bulldogs have been known for knocking off some of the game’s top programs. In 2001, they won at Colorado, against No. 10 Oregon State, and at No. 23 Wisconsin climbing as high as No. 8 in the polls behind future No. 1 overall NFL Draft pick QB David Carr. They also own a win against USC, which came in the 1992 Freedom Bowl.
In 2004, Fresno took down No. 13 Kansas State on the road 45-21 in the second game of the season before ending the year with a victory over No. 18 Virginia in their bowl game. That year also saw them begin the season with a win at Washington.
As for the Red Raiders, they have their non-conference schedule filled out through the 2027 season. In every one of those years, Tech will be facing a team from a Group of 5 conference.
This fall, Tech is going to open the year at UTEP. In week three of the 2021 season, the Red Raiders will be taking on Houston on the road.
In 2022, Tech hosts Wyoming before a return trip to Laramie the following season. 2024 brings North Texas to Lubbock and in 2025, Tech will face Colorado State on the road in Fort Collins. Colorado State will be in Lubbock in 2026 and in 2027, the Red Raiders will take on North Texas in Denton.