Texas Tech football replaces Colorado State with Kent State on 2025 schedule

Though it comes as no surprise, Texas Tech has officially announced that it is buying out of its 2025 road game at Colorado State and replacing that game with a home contest against Kent State. And we can trace this move back to one awful night in Wyoming.

Last season, the Red Raiders opened the year against the Wyoming Cowboys in Laramie, Wyoming. In a game that was delayed by lightning, Tech spit the bit in the form of a 35-33 double-OT loss, one that spoiled the hopes and dreams for the season before the calendar even hit week two.

Make no mistake, despite what the Texas Tech administration may say about its decision to limit (or eventually eliminate) the practice of playing road games against non-Power 4 conference teams, this turnabout in scheduling strategy would not have become so important had Tech not lost to Wyoming on national television last year.

Sure, the Tech administration has said that the desire to annually have seven home games is an effort to maximize the revenue generated from Jones Stadium, specifically the new $250 million south endzone structure. However, talk about moving away from and buying out of scheduled road games at Group of 5 conference opponents didn't begin until after the loss to Wyoming.

This new philosophy could have a significant impact on Red Raider fans. For instance, in 2027, the Red Raiders are currently scheduled to play at North Texas. That season, the Red Raiders are set to host only six games so will the athletic department buy out of that game to try to add a seventh home game?

If so, Tech would be taking a game out of the Dallas-Fort Worth area where the largest group of Red Raider alumni outside of Lubbock reside. Of course, Tech might make an exception for that game given how critical the DFW market is for the university. On the other hand, the Red Raiders will also play at TCU that season to give DFW Red Raiders a chance to see their team in person.

This reactive change of course is going to be costly in the short term with Tech having to pay Colorado State $1 million to get out of next season's game. However, the long-term financial impact appears to be worth it for the administration.

One must also wonder, though, how the perception of this philosophy will be. Will it be seen as if Tech is acting like a power broker and refusing to stoop down to play road games against programs perceived as lesser than the Red Raiders?

Or, is this going to be viewed as an attempt to take the easier road by limiting as much as possible the number of road games that the program has to play, especially road games that are losable? Either way, the Red Raiders are moving forward with this new plan.

It is a change of pace that we all knew was coming. While it isn't the end of the world and while fans in Lubbock will benefit from this move, one can't help but feel like it is also a bit of a knee-jerk reaction to one bad night in the Rocky Mountains.