Field Level Media
Oct 11, 2018
Role reversal and field position were two prominent themes Thursday when Texas Tech and host TCU matched up in a crossroads game for both teams in the Big 12 Conference.
Red Raiders quarterback Jett Duffey darted 38 yards to the end zone on a draw play with 7:02 remaining to propel Texas Tech to a 17-14 triumph at Fort Worth, Texas.
The Raiders' defense preserved the victory by holding off three Horned Frogs possessions in the fourth quarter -- the last when Adrian Frye intercepted quarterback Shawn Robinson on a fourth-and-1 play with 43 seconds to play.
Duffey's touchdown came on the first snap after a short TCU punt, one of several occasions when the Raiders' defense buckled down.
Texas Tech entered the game ranked last in the Big 12 in total defense, allowing 447.6 total yards a contest. And TCU (3-3, 1-2 Big 12) managed to move the ball at times, producing 411 total yards.
But the Red Raiders (4-2, 2-1) didn't break, forcing the Frogs to punt seven times, twice in the final quarter after they had taken the lead. Two timely takeaways before the final interception also helped Tech's defense, which got blistered for 489 yards in a 42-27 loss to West Virginia on Sept. 29.
As big as the defense was, Raiders punter Dominic Panazzolo and the coverage team were just as vital. On Texas Tech's two punts in the final 8:02, TCU was pinned at the 1- and 2-yard lines.
Duffey engineered an offense that did just enough to gain the upper hand. Besides his long TD scamper, he passed for 190 yards and a score -- most of those on 62- and 57-yard completions. Ja'Deion High hauled in a 62-yard TD when he split the seams and two defenders to give Texas Tech a 10-7 lead with 8:54 left in the third quarter.
Each team managed a second-half touchdown to cap long drives.
The Horned Frogs grabbed a 14-10 lead with 10:59 left in the game when Robinson zipped a 31-yard touchdown pass to KaVontae Turpin, the last play of an 80-yard scoring drive.
The Red Raiders erased a 7-3 halftime deficit on the Duffey-to-High pass play that accounted for more passing yards than Texas Tech had at that point.
--Field Level Media