Today, the Texas Tech football team will look to get back on track when it hosts North Texas of the American Athletic Conference. The Red Raiders will be looking to avoid losing a game to a Group of 5 team for the second consecutive year after losing to Wyoming in last year’s season opener.

North Texas comes into this game with momentum. With a 2-0 score for the first time since 2018, the Mean Green must come to Lubbock with confidence.

However, the two wins UNT has had this year have come against fairly unspectacular opponents. Beating South Alabama and Stephen F. Austin isn’t quite the same as beating a Big 12 team on the road.

Still, this is a dangerous UNT team, especially on offense under head coach Eric Morris (former Texas Tech player). The Mean Green rank third in the NCAA in total offense with 384.0 yards per game. In addition, they are also 14th nationally in total offense, averaging 527.0 yards per game.

That’s not good news for the Red Raiders defense, which has been one of the worst in the country over the last two games. In fact, the Red Raiders rank 128th in the country in total defense.

So let’s take a closer look at the numbers to see what the Red Raiders need to do to emerge victorious. And we’ll start with an issue that has been a major problem for Tech this year.

Unless the Red Raiders find a way to put pressure on UNT quarterback Chandler Morris, it will be another long day for the defense. The former TCU starting quarterback has put up great numbers for the Eagles so far and won’t be intimidated by a Lubbock assignment.

He plays UNT’s version of the “Air Raid” offense and averages 368.5 passing yards per game while throwing seven touchdowns, although he has also been intercepted three times this year.

Much like Abilene Christian, UNT gets rid of the ball quickly. The Eagles have attempted 86 passes this year and have allowed just three sacks. That’s one sack per 28.6 attempts. That’s excellent.

However, the Red Raiders should be physically stronger and more talented than the teams UNT has played so far. However, Tech has only recorded one sack in two games. That has to change today because the Red Raiders will not like the results if Morris is allowed to pick apart the secondary.

Last week, Texas Tech had no real chance to establish the run as Washington State built a double-digit lead in the second quarter, and the Red Raiders managed just 78 rushing yards with the game still hanging in the balance (backup QB Cam Brown ran for another 70 yards in garbage time).

We don’t know if star running back Tahj Brooks will play today. He missed last week’s game with an arm injury, and in his place the Red Raiders’ running backs rushed for 59 yards.

Running the ball will be important against North Texas. Their defensive coordinator comes from Iowa State’s defense, meaning they will stay behind with as many as eight defensive backs and challenge teams to run the ball.

That’s why Tech needs to establish a running game whether Brooks is available or not. UNT has given up an average of 108.5 yards per game on the ground, which ranks 53rd nationally.

However, we must again remember that both of their opponents so far have been the poor sisters and not the caliber of a Big 12 opponent. This is an area of ​​the game that Tech should control, even with left guard Vinny Sciury out for the rest of the season.

Remember, it’s going to be hot in Lubbock today, so UNT’s defense could be prone to fatigue if Tech matches them up, so see if the Red Raiders can put the ball down the Eagles’ throat in this one.

In a roster comparison, Texas Tech has a clear advantage over UNT, but this game could come down to which team plays the cleanest game.

As you know, Tech is atrocious when it comes to self-inflicted injuries. The Red Raiders rank 123rd out of 133 teams in penalties per game with 10.5 penalties per game.

They now rank 106th in the country with 4 lost turnovers. Those are two areas where Tech needs to improve today.

There can’t be too many mental errors, like pre-snap penalties for a false start or having too many players on the field. Those are easy to fix and now that two games are complete, those errors should be less common.

Fortunately, UNT is also a team that gets penalized heavily. They rank 127th nationally in flags per game, which is actually worse than Texas Tech.

And like the Red Raiders, the Mean Green have suffered four turnovers in two games, so this game between two sloppy teams will likely come down to which team can improve its performance the most.