No. 22 Baylor plays Texas Tech with 1st ranking under Rhule
Texas Tech (3-2, 1-1 Big 12) at No. 22 Baylor (5-0, 2-0), Saturday at 4 p.m. EDT (FS1).
Line: Baylor by 11 1/2.
Series record: Tied 38-38-1.
WHAT’S AT STAKE
Baylor plays its first game as a ranked team under third-year coach Matt Rhule. Texas Tech last week knocked off then-No. 21 Oklahoma State, which had just gotten into the AP poll. The Bears have a seven-game winning streak that is the longest in the Big 12. A win keeps them tied atop the Big 12 standings with either No. 6 Oklahoma or No. 11 Texas, both also 2-0 in conference play going into their game Saturday at the State Fair of Texas.
KEY MATCHUP
Baylor’s defensive line against Texas Tech’s offensive line with three senior starters that has allowed only four sacks on 228 passing plays — 36 more pass attempts than any other Big 12 team. The Bears had 15 tackles for loss against Kansas State, and lead the league with 18 sacks after a Baylor record-tying six against the Wildcats.
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Texas Tech: LB Jordyn Brooks had a career-high 19 tackles with three sacks and a forced fumble against Oklahoma State. He’s the Big 12 leader in tackles (12 per game) and tackles for loss (2.1 per game). The Red Raiders had 14 TFLs and seven sacks against the Cowboys.
Baylor: DE James Lynch (three sacks, forced fumble) and 333-pound NT Bravvion Roy became the first Baylor teammates ever to have at least 3 ½ TFLs in the same Big 12 game, when the Bears faced Kansas State.
FACTS & FIGURES
Baylor QB Charlie Brewer has 11 TD passes without an interception. The only other FBS quarterbacks with that many TDs and no picks are Alabama’s Tua Tagovailoa (23 TDs) and Oregon State’s Jake Luton (14). … This game is back on campus for the first time since 2008, and will mark Texas Tech’s first visit to Baylor’s stadium on the banks of the Brazos River that opened in 2014. The last 10 games were played in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex, nine at home stadium of the NFL’s Dallas Cowboys, and the other at Cotton Bowl Stadium.
