Texas Tech had every reason to leave Week 1 feeling fine, even if the final number didn’t exactly scream domination. The Red Raiders beat Abeline Christian 33-10 to open the 2026 season, but that result came with a little more resistance than oddsmakers expected from a team that was laying 45.5 points.
That kind of opener can nudge a few eyebrows upward, especially for a team that entered the year as the odds-on favorite to win the Big 12. Still, there’s a strong case that Texas Tech’s performance was more about an uneven score than a real warning sign. The Red Raiders piled up 471 yards of offense and averaged 8.8 yards per pass attempt, so the production was there even if the scoreboard didn’t fully reflect it.
J'Koby Williams was the clear bright spot in the backfield. He averaged 5.5 yards per carry, ran for 71 yards and a touchdown, and added eight catches for 57 receiving yards. The only real question is whether that starts pushing him into a bigger role, or whether Texas Tech keeps leaning on a split with Cameron Dickey.
Now comes a Week 2 matchup with Oregon State, and the number is pointing in Texas Tech’s direction. The Beavers were handled by Houston in Week 1, and the Cougars put up 33 points and 533 yards of offense against them. That’s part of the reason this matchup is drawing attention.
The read here is pretty straightforward: one shaky-ish opener against an FCS opponent isn’t enough to overreact to, especially when Texas Tech’s offense still moved the ball efficiently. Oregon State, meanwhile, looks like a team that could spend a lot of this season near the bottom of the national picture. With that in mind, the play is Texas Tech laying the points on Saturday.
In Other News...
Texas Tech Brings One Big Unknown Into Reser Stadium
Texas Techs trip to Reser Stadium brings a familiar kind of early-season uncertainty, and most of it starts at quarterback. Will Hammond is expected to handle the bulk of the snaps over Thomas Castellanos, giving the Red Raiders a different look as they prepare for Oregon State, while Jamond Mathis flashed enough pass-rush promise in the opener to suggest there are still some tools on that side of the ball.
Even so, Texas Tech is not arriving with a clean bill of health in every area. The Red Raiders are still being scrutinized by other Big 12 schools over the Brenden Sorsby situation, and there are lingering questions about whether their young safeties can keep building on a strong recent outing. Add in the recent road issues and the ongoing red zone troubles, and this feels like the kind of non-conference test that can reveal a lot before the league race really settles in. [Read more 🡒]
Oregon State Still Has Jaheim Patterson And Van Wells For Now
A Benton County Circuit Court judge has given Oregon State a little more breathing room in the case involving Jaheim Patterson and Van Wells, extending a temporary restraining order that blocks the NCAA from enforcing its new age-based eligibility rule against the two players. Patterson and Wells had already filed suit challenging the rule, and for now the decision keeps them available as the Beavers move through the next stretch of their schedule.
The ruling does not settle the dispute, and the judge signaled the NCAA could still come out on top once the case is fully heard. For the moment, though, the key point for Oregon State is simple: Patterson and Wells can keep participating while the legal process continues, with another hearing set for later this month. [Read more 🡒]
Oregon State Faces One Massive Test Against No. 13 Texas Tech
Oregon State gets a far stiffer measuring stick this week than it saw in its opener, with No. 13 Texas Tech coming to Corvallis for the Beavers' first home game against the Red Raiders in 2026. After putting together a strong offensive performance against Houston, Oregon State will spend this week trying to translate that momentum into something more sustainable against a ranked opponent that brings speed and proven playmakers to the field.
Will Hammond and the Beavers' offensive line will be under the spotlight again, but the bigger question may be how Oregon State handles Texas Tech through the air and whether its defense can make the Red Raiders work for everything. The Beavers showed real growth in pass protection as the Houston game wore on, and now they have to build on that against a Texas Tech group that can test a secondary in a hurry, making this one of the early season's biggest checks on where Oregon State really stands. [Read more 🡒]