Texas Tech heads to Corvallis this weekend with a short list of things it needs to clean up, and the trip to face 0-1 Oregon State should tell fans a lot about where this team really is.
The Red Raiders are coming off a win over Abilene Christian that left plenty of room for improvement, and now they get one more test before Big 12 play opens next week against Houston in Lubbock. That alone makes Saturday feel important. Add in the fact that Oregon State gave Houston a real fight in Week 1, and this suddenly looks a lot less like the kind of comfortable matchup Texas Tech enjoyed a year ago.
Last season in Lubbock, the Red Raiders rolled to a 45-14 win over the Beavers, a game that was already 38-0 heading into the fourth quarter. This one should demand more from Joey McGuire’s group.
Oregon State has a new coaching staff, which brings a different energy and, at least early on, a different kind of uncertainty. But it also means the Beavers aren’t walking into this one looking resigned to their fate.
That sets up a good measuring-stick game for Tech, and there are three big questions hanging over the Red Raiders.
The first centers on Tommy Castellanos and what his role actually looks like. The fifth-year senior transfer, who started at Florida State last season, played just one snap against Abilene Christian.
On that play, he handed the ball off to J'Koby Williams for a touchdown. That was it.
McGuire said this week that Tech had a package ready for Castellanos, but it was designed for deep red zone situations. The problem was simple: the Red Raiders’ three stalled red zone drives never got close enough to the goal line to use it. So the dual-threat quarterback stayed mostly on the sideline.
That leaves the obvious question heading into Saturday: is this the week Castellanos becomes more than a one-snap curiosity? Tech has already shown it needs more answers inside the 20, and Castellanos’ legs could matter there if the staff is ready to lean into that package.
Another name fans are eager to see is LaDamion Guyton. The true freshman pass rusher arrived at Texas Tech as a five-star signee in the class of 2026 and got to campus for fall camp at just 17 years old after finishing high school a year early. He did not play in the opener because of a minor injury, but he is expected to make his college debut against Oregon State.
The hype around Guyton has been loud since he got to Lubbock. He’s already 6-foot-4 and 235 pounds, and the buzz out of camp is that he’s an elite athlete whose game is ahead of his age. That kind of talk naturally gets attention, especially when it comes attached to the highest-ranked player ever to sign with the program.
The matchup also gives him a chance to step into a game plan that could put pressure on the Oregon State passing attack. Houston threw the ball 48 times against the Beavers, who finished with just 25 rushing yards on 26 carries.
That total included four sacks and three quarterback runs, leaving only 18 true rushing attempts for the offense. If Oregon State leans that heavily on the pass again, Tech’s edge rushers should have chances to make noise.
And then there’s the most important issue of all: red zone execution.
Texas Tech was only able to finish two of its five red zone trips with touchdowns last week, and another drive stalled just outside that area. That follows a season in which the Red Raiders scored touchdowns on just over 55% of their red zone chances, a number that ranked 98th nationally.
That’s not the kind of efficiency that holds up once conference play starts. If Tech wants Saturday to feel like progress, it needs to turn those long drives into points. Another week of work should help Will Hammond settle in, and there’s a sense that offensive coordinator Mack Leftwich may have more in store near the goal line than he showed against Abilene Christian.
So when Texas Tech gets inside the Oregon State 20, the whole thing gets simple fast. Seven or three? That answer may tell the story of the afternoon.
In Other News...
Texas Tech Faces Its First Real Test Away From Lubbock
Texas Tech handled Abilene Christian 33-10 and now turns to something a little more revealing, its first road game of the season against Oregon State. Joey McGuire came away encouraged by what he saw from quarterback Will Hammond and a running backs group that helped the Red Raiders control enough of the game to move on without much drama. The challenge changes quickly now, though, because this trip gives Tech its first chance to show whether that early rhythm travels.
Oregon State is coming off a loss to Houston, but the Beavers still look like a far more complete test than the one Texas Tech just cleared. Braden Atkinson and Jesse Legree give Oregon State the kind of passing-game threat that can force a defense to stay honest, and this matchup should tell Tech a lot more about where it stands away from Lubbock. For McGuire, the next step is less about what the Red Raiders did last week and more about how they handle a different kind of pressure on the road. [Read more 🡒]
Texas Techs Oregon State Trip Includes A Contract Twist Fans May Not Expect
Texas Techs trip to Oregon State this fall carries a little more than the usual non-conference plotting. The Red Raiders are set to meet the Beavers on Sept. 12, 2025, and the game is part of a two-game series contract signed back in May 2018, one of the many non-conference matchups on Techs schedule through 2034 that come with an appearance fee attached.
In this case, the arrangement includes a payment due to Texas Tech by Dec. 31, 2025, and the officiating assignments are spelled out too. Pac-12 officials are scheduled to work the 2025 game, with Big 12 officials set for the return meeting in 2026, a small but notable detail in a matchup that has a few more moving parts than the average early-season road trip. [Read more 🡒]
Texas Tech's First Road Test Puts A Few Red Raiders Under Pressure
Texas Tech heads into its first road test after opening the season with a week-one win, and the Red Raiders are already dealing with a few lineup wrinkles as they prepare for Oregon State. The trip will put added attention on players expected to carry more of the load, including Jamond Mathis, Cameron Dickey and Malik Esquerra, while the defense also adjusts without starting edge rusher Trey White.
Mathis in particular gave Texas Tech a glimpse of what he can do in his debut, flashing as a disruptive presence right away and giving the staff another option to lean on in a tougher environment. Esquerras role is also expanding with Brendan Jordan serving a suspension, which pushes the safety into a second straight start and gives Texas Tech one more spot where the margin for error is a little thinner than it was a week ago. [Read more 🡒]