BYU-Texas Tech
Saturday, Nov. 8
12:05 p.m. Eastern, 9:05 a.m. Pacific
ABC
BYU-Texas Tech is the best game on the board this weekend. The Big 12 gets its moment in the spotlight in Week 11 of the 2025 college football season.
The College Football Playoff’s initial rankings put these two teams in the top eight. The winner will take a big step toward the playoff, while the loser will move to the periphery of the race. It’s a huge moment for a Texas Tech program which made massive investments in the transfer portal and is making a very clear effort to make itself a major player on the national stage. ESPN College GameDay will be on hand. A carnival atmosphere will come to Lubbock, a sign of Tech’s dramatically increased prominence in the college football world. There was a lot of hype surrounding this Texas Tech team and program coming into the season. Now is the time for the Red Raiders to validate that level of national attention.
BYU-Texas Tech is the Big 12 game of the year
Texas Tech tries to create a photo finish in the Big 12
BYU-Texas Tech is huge in the Big 12 title race and the battle for the two spots in the Big 12 Championship Game in December. It’s pretty simple: A BYU victory nearly guarantees the Cougars a spot in the Big 12 title game. It also means BYU could go 12-1 and maybe sneak in the playoff field even if it loses the Big 12 Championship Game. BYU has a lot to gain from a win, but if the Cougars do lose, they are still in the thick of the Big 12 race and will have every opportunity to still play for the Big 12 title and a spot in the playoff. BYU is trying to seal its place in the field, but it can afford a loss. BYU winning would also deal Texas Tech a huge blow to its playoff hopes. Tech would have to get help to make the Big 12 title game if it falls to BYU in this spot.
If Texas Tech wins, then we have a three-team scramble to the finish line in the Big 12: BYU, Tech, and Cincinnati, with Arizona State and Houston not being completely out of the hunt but needing a ton of help to get across the finish line. Texas Tech, though, would have the head-to-head tiebreaker over BYU and would control its fate in the Big 12. Texas Tech cannot afford a loss here but would be sitting pretty with a win. It’s a huge high-stakes game. BYU has more to gain, Tech more to lose, but both teams will hugely benefit from a victory.
BYU Cougars-Texas Tech Red Raiders Odds
Hear TJ Rives and Jason Powers break down this game on the 3Dog Thursday Podcast by clicking Play below:
Spread: BYU +10 (-115), Texas Tech -10 (-105)
Total: 52.5 (Over -110, Under -110)
Underdog moneyline: BYU +280
BYU has completed comebacks from double-digit deficits three times in road games this season: at Arizona, at Iowa State, at Colorado. Texas Tech is clearly better than those three other teams, so the 10-point spread feels like Vegas baiting people into thinking that Tech will get a 10- or 14-point lead midway through this game. The question is whether Texas Tech can maintain a lead whereas other BYU opponents could not do the same. The spread is therefore a tricky thing to bet on here. An easier bet is the total at only 52.5. Tech seems likely to hit at least 30, and BYU — even if it loses the game — will probably score at least 20. Take the over. That’s the best angle for this game.