When the Texas Tech Red Raiders went to Salt Lake City, Joey McGuire and his team were tasked with taking on one of the most physical defenses in the Big 12 while also having to compete in one of the most intimidating environments in the Big 12.
Either one of those things can be difficult to do. To have to do both together in the same game makes things that much more challenging.
Still, the Red Raiders were able to get a pretty impressive win over Utah in this game. Texas Tech snagged a 34-10 victory thanks to an offensive explosion in the fourth quarter against the Utes defense that steadily wore down as the game went on.
But while the Utah defense lost some steam late in the game, that doesn’t mean it wasn’t still good or that the Utah football fans didn’t also impact the game.
Texas Tech head coach Joey McGuire showed respect for Utah’s gameday atmosphere following the Red Raider win vs. Utes
During the What's Next! with Joey McGuire podcast, Texas Tech’s head coach noted how he was proud of the way the Red Raiders played on the road against Utah and also pointed to the tough adversity that they faced in Salt Lake City.
“I was so proud of the way our guys played because, you know, I understand the questions through the first three weeks of what adversity had this team faced,” McGuire said. “Man, we faced a bunch on Saturday and we just kept punching.”
The cause of that adversity? Well, there are probably a few. But one certainly is the way the fans showed up and supported their team.
“I will tell you, that was, I would say, the loudest stadium and it’s a challenge,” Texas Tech’s head coach explained. “I think there’s some things that they do when their defense takes the field that I think we definitely need to incorporate.”
The Utes have a pretty impressive home field advantage and that caused some problems for the Red Raiders offense though much of the game. Outside of an early touchdown drive, Texas Tech wasn’t able to really sustain its offense until the fourth quarter rolled around. Loud noises and false starts and a very talented opposing defense will make that a difficult thing to do.
“Man, when their defense was on the field, it was extremely loud,” McGuire said.