Here’s the easiest way to recap the New Year’s Day matchup between No. 4 Texas Tech and No. 5 Oregon State, one of the best offenses and defenses in the country. They have met only three times before in 1991, 1992 and 2023.
Here’s a look at how the Red Raiders and Ducks’ seasons unfolded, and Oregon’s first-round win.
🔴⚫️ Texas Tech (12-1)
When describing Texas Tech, the phrase “defense wins championships” should come to mind first, and not just because the Red Raiders won the Big 12 Championship.
TTU has arguably the best defense in college football this year. Against every offense they’ve faced before, they rank first in the nation in both rushing yards allowed per game (68.5) and turnover margin (31), and third in points allowed per game (10.92) and yards allowed per game (254.4). Other than the loss at Arizona State, no team has scored more than 20 points, totaling 24 points in three straight games.
It was no surprise that the group earned 5 All-Big 12 honors just a few weeks ago, but if there’s one name to know, it’s quarterback Jacob Rodriguez. The man in the middle was named defender of the year and won international awards. Rodriguez finished fifth in the Heisman Trophy voting.
Now the offense is not that far behind and is torching the defense on a weekly basis. Second in the nation in points per game (42.5), they have averaged 32.3 points in their three contests, most recently falling to BYU by 34 points in the Big 12 championship game.
Texas Tech hasn’t faced much of a push this season, going through most of the season like a freight train. However, Oregon State’s strong offense and defense pose a tough challenge.
🦆 Oregon (12-1)
Oregon State, the CFP’s top-rated team, launched a high-octane offense against James Madison in the first round, posting 51 points and 514 yards in a 51-34 win.
Although the six-hit performance was impressive, it’s not surprising for the Ducks. Crime is their bread and butter. Quarterback Dante Moore, who finished with five touchdowns against the Dukes, and Dacorien Moore, who missed the previous four games with a knee injury, are the core of depth and talented wide receivers returning from injury. Let’s not forget tight end Kenyon Sadik, who is averaging 217.1 rushing yards per game along with leading the team in rushing.
Oregon scored 39.2 points per game this season, but after a midseason loss to the Hoosiers, fell behind Indiana and Ohio State in the Big Ten’s “best team” race and eliminated any Big Ten title game chances, even with three straight wins, two against then-No. 3 Penn State in double overtime, then-No. 20 Iowa, 18-16. Still, the Ducks’ win over James Madison should have been a reminder of just how scary they can be on offense.
Coach Dan Lanning called the 17-point victory “bittersweet,” and Oregon’s momentum slowed as the game wore on. They led 34-6 at halftime and were outscored 28-17 in the second quarter, which could be attributed to the fact that the Ducks rank in the top ten in scoring defense, allowing just 16.31 points per game.
It will be interesting to see how Oregon fares against another strong opponent like Texas Tech.
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