Texas Tech is a Big 12 champion for the first time.
The No. 4 Red Raiders (12-1) ensured they'll have a bye in theCollege Football Playoffwith aconvincing 34-7 win over No. 11 BYU on Saturday. The loss guarantees that BYU won't be in the 12-team playoff field, while Texas Tech won't play its next game until New Year's Eve or New Year's Day.
Tech flipped the game in the third quarter just after it failed to get a fourth down instead of kicking a field goal for a 16-7 lead. Three plays after that fourth-down incompletion, linebacker Ben Roberts picked off BYU QB Bear Bachmeier and returned the ball to the BYU 11-yard line.
A play later, Cameron Dickey ran the ball into the end zone and the ensuing two-point conversion led to what was an insurmountable 21-7 deficit for the Cougars.
This 3-play sequence... 🔥📺 ABC |https://t.co/VKdyjwIANMpic.twitter.com/jZJVAmoKDf
— Texas Tech Football (@TexasTechFB)December 6, 2025
BYU used a lot of misdirection on its first drive to slow the Texas Tech defensive front. It worked. The Cougars scored a touchdown. But Bachmeier's left ankle was also rolled up on during the drive. He never seemed 100% after that. And BYU's offense never moved the ball with ease again.
Tech forced four turnovers total as it intercepted Bachmeier twice and also recovered two fumbles. The true freshman QB entered the game with just four interceptions all season. He now has six ... and half of them have come in two games against Texas Tech.
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Roberts' interception was the first turnover Texas Tech forced in Saturday's game. After that pick, BYU went three-and-out, fumbled, Bachmeier threw another interception, turned the ball over on downs and fumbled again on its following five drives. Over that six-drive span, BYU had 14 offensive plays for just 34 yards.
Look ma, one hand 🖐️Ben Roberts is the first player to record two INTs in a Big 12 Championship Game.📺 ABC |https://t.co/VKdyjwIANMpic.twitter.com/DCXykbUI6a
— Texas Tech Football (@TexasTechFB)December 6, 2025
Yeah, the second half was a disaster for a team that needed to beat Texas Tech to get into the playoff. BYU lost 29-7 to the Red Raiders in early November for its only loss of the season. Yet despite having one loss, the Cougars found themselves behind multiple two-loss teams in the CFP rankings.
A BYU win would have given the Big 12 two teams in the CFP, as Tech assuredly would have still made the field as an at-large.
Instead, it's the first solo conference title for the school since 1954, when Tech won the Border Intercollegiate Athletic Association with a 4-0 conference record.
Texas Tech's transfer turnaround
By now, you probably know that Texas Tech was one of the biggest NIL spenders in the transfer portal as it overhauled its defense to prepare for a run at the College Football Playoff.
Tech allowed nearly 35 points per game in 2024 and gave up 6.5 yards per play. That hamstrung a team with an offense that was fourth in the nation in scoring. This year, Tech is not only scoring more — the Red Raiders are third in the country with just under 43 points per game — but it has one of the best defenses in the country, too.
Opponents are averaging less than 11 points per game against Texas Tech and averaging four yards per play. Arizona State, which upset Texas Tech 26-22 in October, is the only team to score more than 20 points against the Red Raiders. And Kansas State, with exactly 20, is the only other school to score more than 17 points.
The defense added players like safety Cole Wisniewski (North Dakota State), star edge rusher David Bailey (Stanford), cornerback Brice Pollock (Mississippi State) and edge rusher Romello Height along with many others to bolster a unit that returned Roberts, Heisman vote-getter Jacob Rodriguez and John Curry at linebacker.
Wisniewski is the team's third-leading tackler while Bailey and Height have combined for over 20 sacks and Pollock has five interceptions. BYU had just 200 total yards of offense all game and 110 after that 90-yard drive to start the game.
The unit gives Texas Tech a legitimate chance to win the national championship — as long as the offense can get into the end zone a bit more often. Tech kicker Stone Harrington attempted six field goals on Saturday after he had five in the Red Raiders' win over BYU earlier this season.
