Texas Tech football: Three must-win games on the 2022 schedule

Jul 14, 2022; Arlington, TX, USA; A view of the Texas Tech Red Raiders helmet logo during the Big 12 Media Day at AT&T Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports
Jul 14, 2022; Arlington, TX, USA; A view of the Texas Tech Red Raiders helmet logo during the Big 12 Media Day at AT&T Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports
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Oct 2, 2021; Morgantown, West Virginia, USA; Texas Tech Red Raiders running back SaRodorick Thompson (4) runs the ball during the first quarter against the West Virginia Mountaineers at Mountaineer Field at Milan Puskar Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Ben Queen-USA TODAY Sports
Oct 2, 2021; Morgantown, West Virginia, USA; Texas Tech Red Raiders running back SaRodorick Thompson (4) runs the ball during the first quarter against the West Virginia Mountaineers at Mountaineer Field at Milan Puskar Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Ben Queen-USA TODAY Sports

Game 7 vs. West Virginia

After facing Houston in week two, the next game in which Tech may be favored might not come until game seven when West Virginia comes to Lubbock.  That matchup is the beginning of an important three-game stretch, all of which are winnable games but all of which will be tossups at best.

After the Mountaineers come to Lubbock, Tech then hosts No. 10 Baylor before traveling to TCU.  Those three games could tell the tale of this season and Tech has to get that stretch off to a good start by beating West Virginia.

That October 22nd game comes after Tech’s daunting three-game gauntlet to open Big 12 play.  So it is entirely possible that Joey McGuire’s team may be looking to end a skid when the Mountaineers come to the high plains.

Tech has won the last three games against WVU.  That comes on the heels of a five-game losing streak in the series from 2014-18.

Last year, Tech eeked out a 23-20 win in Morgantown, and the year prior, it was a fourth-quarter fumble return for a TD by Zech McPhearson that proved to be the difference in Lubbock.  In other words, the games between these two teams have been nip and tuck in recent years.

Expect the same this year as both Tech and WVU appear to be on the same level as programs entering 2022.  But when the Mountaineers come to Lubbock, they may encounter a desperate Red Raider team looking at that game as a must-win.