No. 13 Texas Tech leaned on its ground game and a new starting quarterback to beat No. 22 Arizona 34-26 on Halloween at Galaxy Stadium, bouncing back from its first loss of the season and keeping its home winning streak alive.
The Red Raiders ran for 328 yards as a team, according to ESPN’s box score. Quarterback Thomas Castellanos and running back J’Koby Williams each topped 100 rushing yards.
A new quarterback gets the start
The big pregame news was under center. Castellanos, the Florida State transfer, started in place of Will Hammond, the Associated Press reported. Before Saturday he had mostly been used near the goal line as a running threat, and he didn’t take a snap in last week’s 37-24 loss at Cincinnati.
He made the most of the chance. Castellanos led a 13-play, 75-yard touchdown drive on Tech’s first possession, finishing it with a 24-yard pass to tight end Terrance Carter Jr., per the AP. By the end of the day he had completed 11 of 24 passes for 144 yards and two touchdowns, and ran for 117 yards and another score.
How the game turned
Arizona had its moments. Quarterback Noah Fifita hit Isaiah Mizell for a 94-yard touchdown in the second quarter, and a pass interference call on fourth down helped set up a Kedrick Reescano touchdown run. The Wildcats led 17-10 at halftime after a Tech field goal.
Tech tied it early in the third quarter on an 8-yard Castellanos run. After Arizona went back ahead 23-17 (Tech blocked the extra point), Castellanos found Kenny Johnson for a 27-yard touchdown on fourth-and-2 to give the Red Raiders a 24-23 lead heading into the fourth.
Stone Harrington added a 42-yard field goal for a 27-23 lead. Arizona got new life when Cam Dickey fumbled in Tech territory, but the Tech defense forced a three-and-out. A.J. Holmes Jr. then sacked Fifita on a key late possession, his 6.5th sack of the season, to force a punt.
With just over two minutes left, Williams broke a 64-yard touchdown run to make it 34-23. He finished with 175 rushing yards. Arizona kicked a 22-yard field goal with 22 seconds left, but Tech recovered the onside kick to close it out.
One somber note: Arizona receiver R.J. Mosley was carted off in the third quarter with a left leg injury, Roundtable reported. We wish him a full recovery.
What it means for Tech’s season
Texas Tech is now 7-1 overall and 4-1 in Big 12 play. Arizona falls to 6-2 and 3-2, and its five-game winning streak is over. The two teams came in with identical records, so Saturday’s result separates them in the conference race.
Arizona’s Desert Swarm preview described this as close to an elimination game, since the Big 12 isn’t guaranteed more than one College Football Playoff spot. Tech survived it. The new AP poll comes out Sunday.
The win also stretched Tech’s home winning streak to 13 games, matching the program record set from 1939 to 1942, according to Roundtable and Texas Tech’s game notes. And it gives the coaching staff a real decision about who starts at quarterback the rest of the way.
What’s next
Tech stays home next Saturday, Nov. 7, against West Virginia at Galaxy Stadium. Kickoff time and TV were still to be announced, according to the Texas Tech football schedule. Texas Tech won last year’s meeting 49-0, per the Big 12 preview page.
After that, the Red Raiders go on the road to Oklahoma State on Nov. 14 and Baylor on Nov. 21, then come home for TCU on Thanksgiving night, Nov. 26, at 7 p.m. CT.
Sources
- ESPN box score: Arizona at Texas Tech
- Texas Tech Athletics game notes: Arizona
- Roundtable live blog, Nathan Karseno
- Associated Press: Castellanos starts at QB over Hammond
- On3 Red Raider Sports postgame column, Jarrett Ramirez
- Arizona Desert Swarm game preview
- Texas Tech Athletics 2026 football schedule
- Big 12 preview: West Virginia at Texas Tech
