Oklahoma vs. Texas Tech: Five Closest Games in Big 12 Era

When you think of Oklahoma vs. Texas Tech, it is easy to conjure up big score numbers and wide score margins, but the truth is, not all the games have been high scoring or double-digit decisions.

The Sooners and Red Raiders met for the first time in the season opener in 1992. Oklahoma won that encounter, played at Texas Tech, by a score of 34-9. The two teams met just three times before the Big Eight Conference and the Southwest Conference joined forces to form the Big 12.

Oklahoma won the three games prior to the formation of the Big 12, and the Sooners have won 14 of the 20 games played as Big 12 opponents.

The average score of the 23 games played to date is 35.0 to 22.3 in favor of Oklahoma. The biggest victory margin by the Sooners was 45 points: a 60-15 victory in 2002. The Red Raiders biggest winning margin was 28 points (41-13 in 2009).

Here are the five closest games played by this two traditionally high-scoring teams that go at each other with guns blazing:

November 19, 2005 @ Texas Tech – Texas Tech 23, Oklahoma 21

Nov 21, 2015; Norman, OK, USA; Oklahoma Sooners sooner schooner during the game against the TCU Horned Frogs at Gaylord Family – Oklahoma Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports

It isn’t often that a Texas Tech team has a better overall record than Oklahoma late in the season, but that was the case this particular season.

The 21st-ranked Red Raiders held a 17-7 lead over the Sooners going into the fourth quarter, but two fourth-quarter scoring drives by Oklahoma, the final one a 13-yard touchdown run by Adrian Peterson, put the Sooners up 21-17 with under two minutes to go in the game.

The Red Raiders took possession of the ball at their own 35 following the kickoff, 65 yards away from the end zone with just over 90 seconds remaining in the game. Tech quarterback Cody Hodges completed three passes, gaining 51 of the needed yards and setting the Red Raiders up with a first and ten at the OU 13-yard line with 13 ticks left on the clock.

On the final play of the game, Taurean Henderson wiggled his way into the end zone for what was ruled a touchdown, although it was so close it could have gone either way were it not for the fact that it was called a TD on the field. The video review afterwards did not offer enough visual evidence to overturn the call on the field, and the Red Raiders pulled out the win, 23-21, and handed former Sooner assistant Mike Leach his first win over Bob Stoops in six tries.

November 21, 1998 @ OU – Oklahoma 20, Texas Tech 17

Dec 31, 2015; Miami Gardens, FL, USA;A general view of Oklahoma Sooners helmets in the third quarter of the 2015 CFP Semifinal at the Orange Bowl at Sun Life Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

In his final game after three disappointing seasons as Oklahoma’s head coach, John Blake and the Sooners traveled to Lubbock hoping to make it two wins in a row over Texas Tech and two out of three as members of the Big 12.

The Red Raiders outgained Oklahoma by over 120 yards (334 to 212) and had twice as many first downs (22 to 11), but the Sooners erased a 10-7 halftime deficit, scoring a touchdown in the third quarter and adding six more points in the fourth, to forge a 20-17 come-from-behind victory.

October 22, 2011 @ OU – Texas Tech 41, Oklahoma 38

In a game that won’t soon be forgotten, Texas Tech rolled into Norman and over the Sooners on a stormy October night that forced a lengthy delay before the start of the game. When the contest finally got underway, Texas Tech scored 17 points in the second quarter to break open a 7-7 game after one quarter and take a surprising 24-7 lead into the locker room at the half.

Oklahoma, ranked No. 3 in the country entering the game, trailed 31-7 at one point in the third quarter and 31-14 going into the fourth quarter.

The Sooners mounted a furious rally over the final 15 minutes, but fell just short when a 28-yard field-goal attempt late in the game by Michael Hunnicutt clanked off the right upright preserving the upset win for the Red Raiders.

Texas Tech scorched the Sooners for 572 yards of total offense, 452 of that coming through the air. Oklahoma’s Landry Jones passed for 412 yards and five touchdowns, but the Sooners couldn’t quite get out of the hole they dug for themselves in the opening 30 minutes.

The loss was OU’s first after 39 consecutive home wins, It was just the third home loss in 78 games at Gaylord Family-Oklahoma Memorial Stadium under Bob Stoops.

November 17, 2007 @ Texas Tech – Texas Tech 34, Oklahoma 27

Oct 11, 2014; Dallas, TX, USA; View of Oklahoma Sooners megaphones on the sidelines during the game against the Texas Longhorns at the Cotton Bowl. Oklahoma beat Texas 31-26. Mandatory Credit: Tim Heitman-USA TODAY Sports

Oklahoma’s Lendy Holmes returned an interception 63 yards for a touchdown on Texas Tech’s opening possession of the game to put the Sooners up 7-0, but the celebration would be short lived. The Red Raiders scored the next 27 points to post a 27-10 lead at the half.

Sooner quarterback Sam Bradford, in his first season as the starter, was injured early in the game and was replaced by backup Joey Halzle.

Halzle led the Sooners back in the second half, but OU could never get closer than six points and fell to the Red Raiders 34-27, creating a temporary speed bump in Oklahoma’s drive to a seventh Big 12 title. Halzle ended the game with close to 300 passing yards and two TD passes.

Graham Harrell, the gunslinger for Texas Tech, also threw two touchdown passes and amassed 420 yards through the air.

October 26, 2013 @ OU – Oklahoma 38, Texas Tech 30

Texas Tech entered this game at OU undefeated with a 7-0 record and ranked 10th in the nation. The Sooners were No. 17 in the Associated Press poll at the time. This was Baker Mayfield’s freshman season at Texas Tech, but he would not see action in this game.

The Red Raiders scored first to take a 7-0 lead early, but Oklahoma responded with two unanswered touchdowns, the last of which came on a 76-yard touchdown pass from Blake Bell to Jalen Saunders, which put OU up 14-7 after two quarters.

The Sooner stretched out the lead to 21-7 in the third quarter, but the Red Raiders, behind quarterback Davis Webb, roared back with 17 unanswered points of its own to briefly take a 24-21 lead.

Oklahoma regained the lead, at 28-24, on a 35-yard touchdown scamper by wide receiver Lacoltan Bester, and added 10 more points in the fourth quarter to finish off a 38-30 victory.

The Sooners collected 277 yards on the ground, led by Damian Williams’ 97 yards on 19 carries, and 249 passing yards with Bell completing 14 of 22 pass attempts.

Webb put the ball in the air 54 times, completing 34 for 388 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions.