In a rivalry that spans back to 1928, the Texas Longhorns and Texas Tech Red Raiders will battle on Saturday for the Chancellor’s Spurs, a symbolic set of spurs with the logos of both universities engraved in them.

The rivalry has intensified in recent years, after former Texas Tech Basketball coach Chris Beard took the head coaching job at Texas, his alma mater. Beard’s departure angered many Texas Tech fans, and their dislike of Texas intensified. 

The yearly matchup between two of the Big 12’s staple programs has happened 67 times, with the Longhorns winning in 52 of the matchups. The Longhorns look to take their fifth straight win over the Red Raiders. Texas Tech last won against Texas in Austin in 2017, when Nic Shimonek led a fourth quarter comeback victory for the Red Raiders.

Last year’s battle in Austin was a success for a Texas squad that didn’t see many. The Longhorns dominated in a 70-35 win over the Red Raiders, which featured 303 passing yards and five touchdowns from quarterback Casey Thompson, as well as nearly 350 combined rushing yards from the offense. The Texas Tech game was also one of Xavier Worthy’s best in a dominant freshman campaign, as he hauled in five catches for 100 yards and three touchdowns. Quarterbacks Henry Colombi and Tyler Shough both threw interceptions for the Red Raiders.

The 2020 matchup saw the two offenses trading touchdowns all the way to a 56-56 tie at the end of regulation. Wide receiver Joshua Moore and quarterback Sam Ehlinger were the heroes for the Longhorns, as Moore caught both the game-tying touchdown with 40 seconds left in regulation and the overtime game winner from Ehlinger. Ehlinger and Texas Tech quarterback Alan Bowman both threw for five touchdowns, and Texas Tech running back SaRodorick Thompson had over 100 yards rushing and two touchdowns.  

When talking about this rivalry, it’s impossible to ignore the 2008 matchup in Lubbock, when No. 1 Texas, led by Heisman finalist Colt McCoy, and No. 7 Texas Tech faced off in what turned out to be one of Texas Tech’s greatest victories. At halftime, the Red Raiders led by 16 points, but after back and forth scoring, the Red Raiders found themselves down one point with 1:29 left in the fourth quarter. On the final play of the game, Texas Tech wide receiver Michael Crabtree caught the ball on the 6-yard line and was swamped by two Longhorn defenders. The future NFL wideout spun past both players and ran into the endzone, scoring with just one second left. The play solidified Crabtree as a Texas Tech legend and left the No. 1 Longhorns stunned.

This year’s matchup will likely be another entertaining battle between two schools with big play offensive systems. With a completely sold-out crowd in Lubbock, the Longhorns are in for quite the ride.