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Texas Tech football: Why the new 2020 schedule is an upgrade

By Matthew Conner

LUBBOCK, TEXAS - NOVEMBER 23: Wide receiver McLane Mannix #13 of the Texas Tech Red Raiders runs the ball past safety Wayne Jones III #4 of the Kansas State Wildcats during the first half of the college football game on November 23, 2019 at Jones AT&T Stadium in Lubbock, Texas. (Photo by John E. Moore III/Getty Images)
LUBBOCK, TEXAS - NOVEMBER 23: Wide receiver McLane Mannix #13 of the Texas Tech Red Raiders runs the ball past safety Wayne Jones III #4 of the Kansas State Wildcats during the first half of the college football game on November 23, 2019 at Jones AT&T Stadium in Lubbock, Texas. (Photo by John E. Moore III/Getty Images) /
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WACO, TEXAS – OCTOBER 12: Charlie Brewer #12 of the Baylor Bears is pursued by Adrian Frye #7 of the Texas Tech Red Raiders. (Photo by Richard Rodriguez/Getty Images)
WACO, TEXAS – OCTOBER 12: Charlie Brewer #12 of the Baylor Bears is pursued by Adrian Frye #7 of the Texas Tech Red Raiders. (Photo by Richard Rodriguez/Getty Images) /

There is only one set of back-to-back road games

Following that opener against Texas, the Raiders will be at Kansas State and at Iowa State in consecutive weeks.  After that, the Red Raiders will not have another set of back-to-back goad games for the remainder of the year.

Interestingly though, playing on the road in recent years has been something Tech has done better than playing at home.  Since 2015, the Red Raiders have won eight Big 12 road games and only five Big 12 home games.

While playing away from home is never easy, even in this strange season, it might be more manageable with limited stadium capacities around the conference.  However, the bigger benefit to less travel this year may be health-related.

As we all know, flying on an airplane is about the worst environment for trying to avoid catching the coronavirus.  Thus, traveling to road games brings about a certain level of risk that playing at home may not.

For what it’s worth, Tech was only set to have one pair of back-to-back road games on the original schedule as well, at Oklahoma State and Kansas State.  However, that could have changed with the reworked schedule but fortunately, it did not.

When Tech plays KSU and ISU in the second and third weeks of Big 12 play respectively, it will mean that the team will take four different flights over the course of eight days.  That’s quite a bit of time spent in what is essentially a tube in which recycled air is continually pumped.  Thankfully, that happens only once this year and it is early in the season meaning that if there are a few positive tests afterward, there will be plenty of time left in the season for those players to return to action.

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