Joey McGuire and the Texas Tech Red Raiders were able to go into Salt Lake City, Utah and absolutely smother the Utah Utes in what turned out to be a very lopsided 34-10 road win for the No. 17 team in the country.
This is a game that was close up into the fourth quarter when the Red Raiders. And it was largely due to the way Utah’s defense smothered and swarmed and responded well to Texas Tech’s offense and starting quarterback Behren Morton.
But, after Morton was dinged up and had to be sidelined with an injury, the Red Raiders offense eventually found new life thanks to the explosive and impressively dynamic play of backup quarterback Will Hammond.
No. 17 Texas Tech secures lopsided win over No. 16 Utah as Red Raiders run over Utes’ defense in 4th quarter
In front of over 52,000 fans at Rice-Eccles Stadium in Salt Lake City, Texas Tech was able to improve to 4-0 overall and 1-0 in Big 12 play thanks to Hammond’s athleticism. The Red Raiders outscored Utah 24-7 in the fourth quarter alone. That’s what delivered this 34-10 win to McGuire and Texas Tech.
And as a whole, the offensive approach ended up being pretty productive for the Red Raiders as Texas Tech ran for 173 yards and threw for 311 yards. Hammond stepped into the game and completed 13 of 16 passes for 169 yards and two touchdowns. Cameron Dickey added 67 rushing yards and two touchdowns on the ground on just 13 carries.
As a team, the Red Raiders had six plays of at least 20 yards against one of the best and most disciplined defenses in the country. Texas Tech’s offense was able to wear Utah down and the Red Raiders got a dominant win over one of the best teams in the Big 12 in the process. That’s something to celebrate.