Texas Tech takes the belt, 49–14, at home over West Virginia.
AP poll, week 7: West Virginia No. 5 at Texas Tech unranked · No. 1 that week: Rutgers. The belt vs. the polls →
Where this game sits in the lineage
Texas Tech took the belt here, ending West Virginia’s run of 283 days and 5 defenses (reign #282) and starting reign #283. It lasted 14 days and 1 defense, until Kansas State took it on October 27, 2012.
For Texas Tech this was its 9th shot at the belt; it had held the belt twice before — and it took it back here.
This is the only time Texas Tech and West Virginia have met with the belt on the line.
Recap
Texas Tech dominated West Virginia from start to finish in this Big 12 contest, establishing control early with two touchdown passes from Seth Doege in the first quarter—a 39-yarder to Jace Amaro and a 19-yarder to Eric Ward—to jump out to a 14-7 lead despite West Virginia's quick response with a Geno Smith touchdown pass to Stedman Bailey. The Red Raiders' offense continued its onslaught in the second quarter, scoring four times in less than ten minutes: Marcus Kennard caught a 16-yard TD, Darrin Moore hauled in a 2-yard score, and SaDale Foster ripped off a 53-yard rushing touchdown to build a commanding 42-7 halftime advantage. West Virginia's defense had no answer for Doege and the Tech passing attack, and though Doege threw an interception to Karl Joseph late in the first quarter, it was one of only two turnovers for the Red Raiders on a night when they controlled the line of scrimmage and converted just enough third downs to sustain drives. Texas Tech's dominance was complete, adding another Doege-to-Moore TD in the third quarter to secure the lineal championship with a 49-14 rout.
- Doege's first-quarter TD passes to Amaro and Ward established immediate momentum and set the tone for Texas Tech's offensive explosion
- The second-quarter scoring barrage—four TDs in under ten minutes including the Foster 53-yard rushing TD—built an insurmountable 35-point halftime lead
- West Virginia's inability to generate offensive consistency despite holding the ball longer (30:18 vs 29:42) showed they couldn't match Tech's efficiency
- Doege's 508 passing yards and multiple TD connections to receivers like Amaro, Moore, and Kennard overwhelmed WVU's secondary throughout the game
Written by Claude from the box score and play-by-play on this page — a plain-English recap of the numbers below, not a substitute for them.
Team stats
CFBD box scoreFull team box score from CFBD’s /games/teams data. This section only appears for belt games from 2003 onward — CFBD doesn’t have team-level stats that far back.
Key plays
CFBD play-by-play| When | Team | Yards | Play |
|---|---|---|---|
| Q1 13:04 | Texas Tech | +39 yd | Seth Doege pass complete to Jace Amaro for 39 yards for a TOUCHDOWN. |
| Q1 13:04 | Texas Tech | +0 yd | Ryan Bustin extra point GOOD. |
| Q1 13:45 | Texas Tech | +23 yd | Seth Doege rush for 23 yards to the WVirg 39 for a 1ST down. |
| Q1 6:00 | Texas Tech | +19 yd | Seth Doege pass complete to Eric Ward for 19 yards for a TOUCHDOWN. |
| Q1 6:00 | Texas Tech | +0 yd | Ryan Bustin extra point GOOD. |
| Q1 4:21 | West Virginia | +30 yd | Corey Smith kickoff for 65 yards returned by SaDale Foster for 30 yards to the TexTc 30. |
| Q1 4:21 | West Virginia | +7 yd | Geno Smith pass complete to Stedman Bailey for 7 yards for a TOUCHDOWN. |
| Q1 5:00 | West Virginia | +38 yd | Geno Smith pass complete to Tavon Austin for 38 yards to the TexTc 2 for a 1ST down. |
| Q1 4:21 | West Virginia | +0 yd | Tyler Bitancurt extra point GOOD. |
| Q1 4:21 | Texas Tech | +30 yd | Seth Doege pass complete to Alex Torres for 30 yards to the WVirg 40 for a 1ST down. |
| Q1 1:38 | Texas Tech | +0 yd | Seth Doege pass intercepted by Karl Joseph at the WVirg 16, returned for no gain to the WVirg 16. |
| Q1 3:00 | Texas Tech | +21 yd | Seth Doege pass complete to Jace Amaro for 21 yards to the WVirg 34. |
| Q2 9:02 | Texas Tech | +16 yd | Seth Doege pass complete to Marcus Kennard for 16 yards for a TOUCHDOWN. |
| Q2 9:54 | Texas Tech | +61 yd | Seth Doege pass complete to Jace Amaro for 61 yards to the WVirg 21 for a 1ST down. |
| Q2 9:02 | Texas Tech | +0 yd | Ryan Bustin extra point GOOD. |
| Q2 4:40 | Texas Tech | +24 yd | Seth Doege pass complete to Kenny Williams for 24 yards to the TexTc 49 for a 1ST down. |
| Q2 2:04 | Texas Tech | +2 yd | Seth Doege pass complete to Darrin Moore for 2 yards for a TOUCHDOWN. |
| Q2 2:04 | Texas Tech | +0 yd | Ryan Bustin extra point GOOD. |
| Q2 0:35 | Texas Tech | +53 yd | SaDale Foster rush for 53 yards for a TOUCHDOWN. |
| Q2 0:35 | Texas Tech | +0 yd | Ryan Bustin extra point GOOD. |
| Q2 0:35 | Texas Tech | +47 yd | Kramer Fyfe kickoff for 62 yards returned by Tavon Austin for 47 yards to the 50 yard line. |
| Q3 11:46 | Texas Tech | +35 yd | Seth Doege pass complete to Tyson Williams for 35 yards to the WVirg 28 for a 1ST down. |
| Q3 6:33 | Texas Tech | +41 yd | Ryan Bustin 41 yard field goal MISSED. |
| Q3 3:30 | Texas Tech | +29 yd | Seth Doege pass complete to Darrin Moore for 29 yards for a TOUCHDOWN. |
| Q3 5:01 | Texas Tech | +27 yd | Seth Doege pass complete to Jace Amaro for 27 yards to the WVirg 42 for a 1ST down. |
| Q3 3:30 | Texas Tech | +0 yd | Ryan Bustin extra point GOOD. |
| Q4 5:37 | Texas Tech | +7 yd | Seth Doege pass complete to Darrin Moore for 7 yards for a TOUCHDOWN. |
| Q4 5:37 | Texas Tech | +0 yd | Ryan Bustin extra point GOOD. |
| Q4 3:45 | West Virginia | +20 yd | Geno Smith pass complete to J.D. Woods for 20 yards to the TexTc 7 for a 1ST down. |
| Q4 2:41 | West Virginia | +2 yd | Dustin Garrison rush for 2 yards for a TOUCHDOWN. |
| Q4 2:41 | West Virginia | +0 yd | Tyler Bitancurt extra point GOOD. |
Scoring plays, turnovers, and gains of 20+ yards, pulled from CFBD’s play-by-play. This section only appears for belt games with play-by-play on file (2003 onward).
Player stats
CFBD player statsPassing
Texas Tech
| Player | C/ATT | YDS | AVG | TD | INT | QBR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Seth Doege | 32/42 | 499 | 11.9 | 6 | 1 | 91.4 |
| Michael Brewer | 1/1 | 9 | 9.0 | 0 | 0 | 96.4 |
West Virginia
| Player | C/ATT | YDS | AVG | TD | INT | QBR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Geno Smith | 30/56 | 278 | 5.0 | 1 | 0 | 42.0 |
Rushing
Texas Tech
| Player | CAR | YDS | AVG | TD | LONG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sadale Foster | 10 | 82 | 8.2 | 1 | 53 |
| Kenny Williams | 6 | 31 | 5.2 | 0 | 15 |
| Seth Doege | 5 | 28 | 5.6 | 0 | 23 |
| Eric Stephens Jr. | 8 | 27 | 3.4 | 0 | 6 |
West Virginia
| Player | CAR | YDS | AVG | TD | LONG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Andrew Buie | 21 | 71 | 3.4 | 0 | 12 |
| Dustin Garrison | 9 | 42 | 4.7 | 1 | 15 |
| Ryan Clarke | 2 | 12 | 6.0 | 0 | 11 |
| Geno Smith | 2 | 5 | 2.5 | 0 | 3 |
| Tavon Austin | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 |
Receiving
Texas Tech
| Player | REC | YDS | AVG | TD | LONG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jace Amaro | 5 | 156 | 31.2 | 1 | 61 |
| Darrin Moore | 9 | 92 | 10.2 | 3 | 29 |
| Alex Torres | 2 | 46 | 23.0 | 0 | 30 |
| Marcus Kennard | 3 | 43 | 14.3 | 1 | 18 |
| Eric Ward | 4 | 37 | 9.3 | 1 | 19 |
| Jakeem Grant | 4 | 37 | 9.3 | 0 | 19 |
| Tyson Williams | 1 | 35 | 35.0 | 0 | 35 |
| Kenny Williams | 2 | 33 | 16.5 | 0 | 24 |
| Austin Zouzalik | 1 | 16 | 16.0 | 0 | 16 |
| Bradley Marquez | 1 | 7 | 7.0 | 0 | 7 |
| Eric Stephens Jr. | 1 | 6 | 6.0 | 0 | 6 |
West Virginia
| Player | REC | YDS | AVG | TD | LONG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tavon Austin | 10 | 92 | 9.2 | 0 | 38 |
| J.D. Woods | 7 | 79 | 11.3 | 0 | 20 |
| Stedman Bailey | 6 | 56 | 9.3 | 1 | 16 |
| Jordan Thompson | 3 | 37 | 12.3 | 0 | 15 |
| Dante Campbell | 1 | 9 | 9.0 | 0 | 9 |
| Travares Copeland | 1 | 5 | 5.0 | 0 | 5 |
| Andrew Buie | 2 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 |
Show more stats (5 more categories)
Interceptions
Texas Tech
No recorded stats in this category.
West Virginia
| Player | INT | YDS | TD |
|---|---|---|---|
| Karl Joseph | 1 | 0 | 0 |
Kick Returns
Texas Tech
| Player | NO | YDS | AVG | LONG | TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sadale Foster | 1 | 30 | 30.0 | 30 | 0 |
West Virginia
| Player | NO | YDS | AVG | LONG | TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tavon Austin | 1 | 47 | 47.0 | 47 | 0 |
| Nana Kyeremeh | 1 | 5 | 5.0 | 5 | 0 |
| J.D. Woods | 1 | 4 | 4.0 | 4 | 0 |
| Jordan Thompson | 1 | 3 | 3.0 | 3 | 0 |
Kicking
Texas Tech
| Player | FG | PCT | LONG | XP | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ryan Bustin | 0/1 | 0.0 | 0 | 7/7 | 7 |
West Virginia
| Player | FG | PCT | LONG | XP | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tyler Bitancurt | 0/0 | 0.0 | 0 | 2/2 | 2 |
Punt Returns
Texas Tech
| Player | NO | YDS | AVG | LONG | TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Austin Zouzalik | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 |
West Virginia
| Player | NO | YDS | AVG | LONG | TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tavon Austin | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 |
Punting
Texas Tech
| Player | NO | YDS | AVG | TB | In 20 | LONG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ryan Erxleben | 1 | 54 | 54.0 | 0 | 0 | 54 |
West Virginia
| Player | NO | YDS | AVG | TB | In 20 | LONG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tyler Bitancurt | 4 | 155 | 38.8 | 0 | 0 | 48 |
Full player stats from CFBD’s /games/players data, split out by team. This section only appears for belt games from 2003 onward — CFBD doesn’t have player-level stats that far back. Linked player names go to that player’s stat line in every other belt game they’ve appeared in.
Sources Box score at ESPN · Game record: College Football Data (id 322872641) · This game in the downloadable dataset