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Texas Tech gets much more fan-friendly kickoff time for game 11 in Waco against Baylor

The Texas Tech football team will kick off against Baylor at a time that will allow tons of Red Raiders to make the easy trip to Waco.
ByMatthew Conner
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Nov 14, 2026; Stillwater, Oklahoma, USA; Texas Tech Red Raiders defensive back Malik Esquerra (24) and linebacker Jamond Mathis (8) celebrate behiond Oklahoma State Cowboys wide receiver Chris Barnes (2) afer an incompletion during a college football game between the Oklahoma State Cowboys (OSU) and the Texas Tech Red Raiders at Boone Pickens Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Bryan Terry-USA TODAY Network via Imagn Images
Nov 14, 2026; Stillwater, Oklahoma, USA; Texas Tech Red Raiders defensive back Malik Esquerra (24) and linebacker Jamond Mathis (8) celebrate behiond Oklahoma State Cowboys wide receiver Chris Barnes (2) afer an incompletion during a college football game between the Oklahoma State Cowboys (OSU) and the Texas Tech Red Raiders at Boone Pickens Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Bryan Terry-USA TODAY Network via Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

This coming Saturday, Waco, Texas, might look like Lubbock south. That's because the Big 12 has finally given the Texas Tech football team a decent kickoff time, one that will allow tons of Red Raiders along the I-35 corridor to get to McLane Stadium.

Sunday, the conference announced that the matchup between Texas Tech and Baylor will kick at 2:30 p.m. Central. That's refreshing after the Red Raiders had to kick off at 8:30 p.m. Central each of the past two weeks.

Of course, the Red Raiders made the most of their recent late-night starts by beating West Virginia in Lubbock and Oklahoma State in Stillwater. Now, they will try to pick up an afternoon win over the school they have played more than any other.

This will be the 84th meeting between the two programs. The series dates back to 1929, and it was played every year from 1956 to 2024.

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All-time, Baylor has a 42-40-1 advantage. What's more, the Bears have won five of the last seven meetings.

This season, Baylor has had quite a bit to overcome, though. On October 25, the school fired head coach Dave Aranda, who was in his seventh season in charge.

That decision came with Baylor sitting at 4-3 overall following back-to-back losses to TCU and Kansas. Since then, interim head coach Joe Klanderman has guided his team to a 2-1 record with wins over UCF and Iowa State and a loss this weekend at BYU.

Though the Bears are out of the running to win the Big 12, they are going to be motivated to spoil the Red Raiders' title hopes. They are going to put their best foot forward in their home finale to try to close out the regular season 5-1 in their own stadium.

However, it could feel more like a neutral-site contest. With tens of thousands of Red Raiders living in the nearby Dallas-Fort Worth area and all along I-35, there should be a ton of scarlet and black in the stands on Saturday.

Hopefully, the Red Raiders will continue their march toward a Big 12 title game spot by handling a Baylor team that has nothing to play for but pride. Thankfully, Tech fans won't have to stay up past midnight to find out if that happens.

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