Texas Tech can win out and still miss the Big 12 Championship Game. Fresh off Saturday's 34–26 comeback win over No. 22 Arizona, the 7-1 Red Raiders need help from Utah on Nov. 7, because Tech plays neither BYU nor Utah and a tie at the top would be settled by the conference's tiebreaker rules.
Where things stand
Tech is 7-1 overall and 4-1 in Big 12 play. BYU is also 7-1 and 4-1, and Utah leads the league at 8-0 and 5-0. BYU visits Utah on Saturday, Nov. 7.
The top two teams meet Friday, Dec. 4, at 7 p.m. on ABC at AT&T Stadium in Arlington. The winner earns the Big 12's automatic bid to the College Football Playoff.
If BYU beats Utah and all three finish 11-1
BYU and Utah would play for the title, and Texas Tech would stay home.
BYU's only loss would be the 39–31 double-overtime defeat at UCF on Oct. 24. Tech's would be the 37–24 loss at Cincinnati the same day. Utah's would be to BYU. All three would finish 8-1 in league play, tied for first.
Games among the tied teams. This step settles nothing. Tech plays neither BYU nor Utah. BYU would have beaten Utah, but it did not beat every team in the tie, so the rules move on.
Record against common conference opponents. All three teams play only three of the same league opponents: Arizona, TCU and Cincinnati. BYU and Utah would each be 3-0 against that group. Tech would be 2-1 because of the loss to Cincinnati.
Seeding the final two. With BYU and Utah ahead, the two-team rules decide who is No. 1. BYU won the head-to-head game, so BYU would be the top seed and Utah No. 2.
The Cincinnati loss is the difference. Had Tech lost to a team BYU and Utah don’t share, the outcome could change.
If Utah beats BYU and goes undefeated and Tech wins out
Texas Tech would return to Arlington to face Utah, and no tiebreaker would be needed.
A 12-0 Utah team would finish 9-0 in league play and claim the outright No. 1 seed. Tech would finish 11-1 and 8-1, while BYU would finish 10-2 and 7-2 after losses to UCF and Utah. Tech's better league record would give the Red Raiders the No. 2 spot outright.
Tech and Utah do not meet in the regular season, so Dec. 4 would be their first game of the year.
Tech's remaining regular-season opponents are West Virginia, Oklahoma State, Baylor and TCU. None of this really matters if Texas Tech doesn’t win the rest of its games.
What's next
Next game: Texas Tech hosts West Virginia on Saturday, November 7, at Galaxy Stadium in Lubbock, the same day BYU plays at Utah. Check the Texas Tech football schedule for kickoff times.
The tiebreaker steps above come from the Big 12's policy adopted for the 2024 season, the most recent version the conference has posted; a 2026 update could change the math.
