Week 9 Texas Tech football bowl projections: An old Big 12 reunion?

The Texas Tech football team missed out on a golden opportunity to pick up the season's sixth win last Saturday in Fort Worth. Blowing a 17-point second-half lead, the Red Raiders not only fell out of the race for a Big 12 title game spot but also failed to clinch bowl eligibility.

Still, with four games remaining in the regular season, two at home and two on the road, the Red Raiders have a strong shot a at least qualifying for a bowl game. What's more, this year's new playoff format could help the Red Raiders get into a better bowl than they might have reached under the old system.

Now that the College Football Playoff has expanded from four to twelve teams, there is a reasonable possibility that two Big 12 teams could earn playoff bids. That would mean that the remaining bowl-eligible teams from the conference would all jump up a couple of spots in the bowl selection order resulting in more interesting and higher-profile postseason matchups.

So with that in mind, let's take a look at some of the latest bowl projections for Texas Tech. And we start with a possible reunion with an old Big 12 rival.

Rate Bowl vs. Nebraska

Athlon Sports projects the Red Raiders to land in the Rate Bowl in Phoenix where they would face Nebraska, a former Big 12 foe. That would be a fun game for Red Raider fans who had plenty of enjoyment at the Cornhuskers' expense during the Mike Leach era.

In fact, the Red Raiders currently hold a four-game winning streak against Nebraska. The two programs have not met since 2009, though.

Also, this matchup would be interesting because it would pit Texas Tech's head coach, Joey McGuire, against his mentor, Matt Rhule, the head coach at Nebraska. Of course, Rhule was McGuire's boss at Baylor when McGuire was on Rhule's staff and the two have remained close. What's more, McGuire's son Garrett is currently an assistant coach under Rhule at Nebraska.

Texas Bowl vs. LSU or Missouri

CBS Sports and 247Sports.com both have the Red Raiders headed to Houston for the Texas Bowl. CBS Sports foresees a matchup with LSU while 247Sports has Tech squaring off with Missouri. Either way, a matchup with an SEC team would be interesting for Red Raider fans.

Tech played LSU in the 2015 Texas Bowl when Patrick Mahomes II was a sophomore. It was his first season as Tech's starting QB. All time, the Red Raiders are 0-3 vs. the Tigers.

Meanwhile, Missouri would present another old Big 12 reunion. Tech hasn't faced those Tigers since 2011. In that all-time series, the Red Raiders are just 3-6.

Liberty Bowl vs. Vanderbilt or Missouri

Finally, Sports Illustrated, ESPN, and College Football Network all have Tech slotted for the Liberty Bowl. That would be the second time since 2021 that the Red Raiders would have played in that bowl game. Three years ago, the Tech beat Mike Leach and Mississippi State 34-7 in the Liberty Bowl, the only time Leach and Tech ever faced off as opponents.

Vanderbilt would be an interesting SEC opponent to play despite not being one of that conference's traditional powers. The Commodores are having a strong season sitting at 5-3 on the year and having just fallen out of the top 25.

Tech has played Vanderbilt only once. In 1974, the two teams played to a 6-6 tie in the Peach Bowl in Atlanta, Georgia. Hopefully, if the two teams meet in a bowl game this year, it would be a much more exciting affair.