The Texas Tech Red Raiders are capable of scoring a ton of points seemingly whenever they want and also they’re good at keeping opposing teams from scoring points. That’s a really good combo to have and it’s a huge reason as to why the Red Raiders are competing in the College Football Playoff.
Right now, ahead of Texas Tech’s Orange Bowl matchup with the Oregon Ducks, the Red Raiders are keeping some pretty impressive and elite defensive company. There are just two teams in the country that currently have better defenses when it comes to keeping people off the scoreboard.
That’d be the Ohio State Buckeyes and the Indiana Hoosiers. And Texas Tech isn’t all that far behind either of them.
Texas Tech ranks third in scoring defense among the remaining College Football Playoff contenders ahead of the Orange Bowl
Here’s where the remaining College Football Playoff contenders rank when it comes to scoring defense ahead of the quarterfinals:
- Ohio State Buckeyes - 8.2 points per game - No. 1 overall
- Indiana Hoosiers - 10.8 points per game - No. 2 overall
- Texas Tech Red Raiders - 10.9 points per game - No. 3 overall
- Miami Hurricanes - 13 points per game - No. 4 overall
- Georgia Bulldogs - 15.9 points per game - No. 9 overall
- Oregon Ducks - 16.3 points per game - No. 10 overall
- Alabama Crimson Tide - 17.9 points per game - No. 13 overall
- Ole Miss Rebels - 19.3 points per game - No. 23 overall
There’s a few interesting elements to this one. First and foremost, the gap between Texas Tech and Indiana is miniscule. Absolutely tiny. But the gape between the Buckeyes and the Hoosiers also isn’t all that significant. It’s less than a field goal. Just a little over two points. That’s not all that significant.
And the gap between the Red Raiders and the Oregon Ducks? I mean, that’s fewer than five points. That’s also not that large of a gap. At least not in the grand scheme of things. Now, the jump from Ohio State to Ole Miss? I mean, that feels significant here. But really, all of these defenses are pretty dang impressive. It’s not shocking that any of these teams are here at this point in the season.