Big 12 newcomers, here’s 10 THINGS that you need to know about Texas Tech and our fan base:
1. “Passionate” probably doesn’t do our fan base justice. We are loud, we protect our own, we love our school like crazy and if you piss us off we know how to hold a grudge. If you see a cactus emoji in someone’s display name, there’s a story there and it pretty well summarizes this point.
2. We throw tortillas at football games. There are differing versions of the story on how this started, but it’s a unique and spectacular tradition. You’re *technically* not allowed to bring tortillas into the stadium, so students get creative smuggling them in. Opposing players have tried to taunt our fans by eating the tortillas. We would advise against that.
3. We do not throw batteries at football games. This is something opposing fan bases say to cope with taking an L in Lubbock. They’ve been caught lying about it numerous times.
4. We have an historic live mascot entrance: the Masked Rider. It was the inspiration for Florida State’s Osceola and Renegade mascots and Oklahoma State’s Spirit Rider.
5. In football, we haven’t won “the big one”. Yet. Four Cotton Bowl appearances but four losses. Two Southwest Conference titles, both shared. If we win the Big 12 and/or a NY6 bowl at any point in the coming seasons, it will be the program’s crown jewel. We did run the Border Conference pre-1960, so there’s some fun history there with Arizona State (even though we never played them in the Border Conference era) and Arizona.
6. Patrick Mahomes is the greatest football player of all-time and he played for Texas Tech. We’re proud of that.
7. For most of our athletics history, Texas and A&M were our primary rivals although they never reciprocated the animosity to quite the same extent. A&M was more of a true rival: Texas Tech beat the Aggies more often than not during the Southwest Conference and Big 12 days. With both now gone, TCU, Oklahoma State, and Baylor would probably be our primary conference rivals with Houston (in-state) and Arizona (Border Conference revival) as secondary rivals.
8. At the turn of the 21st century, Mike Leach and Texas Tech were offensive innovators, the impact of which can be seen at all levels of football to this day. As mentioned in #5, those teams never quite won “the big one” in the postseason, but had record-setting players nearly every year: Kliff Kingsbury, BJ Symons, Taurean Henderson, Wes Welker, Graham Harrell, Michael Crabtree, and many more. The Texas Tech + Mike Leach coaching tree from that era is insane: Dana Holgorsen, Dave Aranda, Sonny Dykes, Lincoln Riley, and many, many more.
9. Lubbock is a city with nearly 300,000 people in it, but still has a college town vibe. Isolated from large metro areas and pro sports teams, the community revolves around Texas Tech. It makes for a fun gameday atmosphere. There are great BBQ joints, Tex-Mex food, and steakhouses, plus some other hidden gems. West Texas is wine country, so take your pick of wineries to visit and tour. Breweries have started popping up too, plus the traditional college bar scene and the historic Depot District where you’re sure to find live music and an underrated arts presence. Rival schools take pot shots at Lubbock either out of ignorance or because it’s perceived as an easy target in a rural area. You’ll have a good time if you visit. Great people and plenty to do and see.
10. “It’s all West Texas” means we take our fandom and passion with us wherever we go: visiting sites for games, vacation in a foreign country, or flashing a guns up hand sign from outer space. We’re proud of who we are and where we came from, and we take West Texas with us everywhere.
So, tell me @Rangers and @MLB… How am I supposed to watch games if I pay for YouTubeTV, Bally’s, and MLB app and live 120 miles from Arlington? What does it take to end blackouts? Seriously, what else am I supposed to do?
Taco Bell is the only fast food place I roll up to with no ordering game plan. I just let the menu speak to me. The Bell will tell me what I need. My mouth may be moving but I am just the instrument of a supreme design.