The Red Raiders return to the friendly confines of Jones AT&T Stadium after suffering their first defeat of the season against Arizona State. While the home crowd will be nice to be back in front of, there will be a noticeable lack of tortillas flying in the stadium. With the worst team in the Big 12 (and possibly the worst in any P4 conference) coming to Lubbock, is there really anything special needed to secure a Texas Tech week nine victory?
Texas Tech Week Nine: Hammond Has to Let It Fly Against Cowboys
First Response To Actual Adversity
Before last week, Texas Tech had not trailed in a game through its first six games. It was outscoring its opponents a bajillion to nothing (at least that’s how it felt most of the time). In 24 quarters of football, they had run into resistance in approximately 3.5 of them. With the bitter taste of defeat in their mouth, head coach Joey McGuire will get a chance to see how his team responds. This is still an immensely talented roster. The injury bug has started to creep around, but the core of this team remains intact. For a team with Big 12 championship aspirations, this is the game to demonstrate that last week was just a bad game and nothing more.
What To Do With Morton?
Speaking of injuries, the biggest question facing the Red Raiders is the health of starting quarterback Behren Morton. Early reports from Monday stated that Morton is still considered day-to-day with a leg injury. He did practice last week, in a limited fashion, before being ruled out against Arizona State. Backup quarterback Will Hammond has seen plenty of action in 2025, appearing in all but one game this season. If Morton doesn’t play on Saturday, he will only have one half of game reps under his belt in two weeks before this team travels to Kansas State.
Unfortunately, the floor with Hammond and this offense showed up last week. Morton, who has often been criticized by much of the fan base as being limited, makes this offense run at its peak. Hammond is the future of the program, but it’s clear Morton is QB1 in 2025. So, the question becomes, does the staff wrap him in bubble wrap for the Texas Tech week nine showdown with the Pokes and preserve him for next week? Or, if he is cleared to return to action this week, Morton plays for a portion of the game before handing it over to Hammond? It is worth noting that Kansas State has won eight straight against the Red Raiders, dating back to 2016. Additionally, Texas Tech hasn’t won in the Little Apple since one astute Big 12 correspondent was just an undergrad in college (2008).
Hammond has To Regain Week Four Performance
When Hammond is at his best, he is able to orchestrate this team to victory in a very hostile road environment against Utah. Hammond went 13-for-16 for 169 yards and two touchdowns in relief. He also added eight rush attempts for 61 yards. But the last six quarters of football looked disjointed for him, particularly in the passing game. He is only completing 54.7% of his passes and has as many touchdowns as interceptions (2). Additionally, his 29 completions over that time have only amounted to 209 yards.
It’s clear Hammond has a weapon in his legs. But to truly get his confidence back, he needs to air it out on Saturday. He needs to find some rhythm on throws that aren’t a four-yard speed out. Unfortunately, the coaching staff must assume Hammond will have to play at different points for the remainder of the season because of Morton’s extensive injury history. So, the future of the program needs him to regain his passing prowess to ensure this offense can run at a high level, regardless of who the quarterback is.
Texas Tech Week Nine Prediction
One way or another, we should see Hammond in this Texas Tech week nine game. There are plenty of one-sided stats available to paint this picture. The simplest one is Oklahoma State ranks 130th in points per game and 131st in points allowed. There are only 134 FBS programs. Texas Tech ranks fourth in points per game and seventh in points allowed per game. Plenty of the twos and threes for the Red Raiders should see playing time. Vegas has the Red Raiders as a 38.5-point favorite over the visiting Cowboys. Last Word expects this Red Raider team to come out fired up and make quick work of Oklahoma State.
Texas Tech 61, Oklahoma State 7
Main Image: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images
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