Texas A&M–Texas Tech football rivalry

Texas A&M–Texas Tech football rivalry
Texas A&M Aggies Texas Tech Red Raiders
Total meetings	70
Series record	Texas A&M leads, 37–32–1
First meeting	October 27, 1927 Texas A&M 47, Texas Tech 6
Last meeting	October 8, 2011 Texas A&M 45, Texas Tech 40
Largest win	Texas A&M, 47-6 (1927)
Longest win streak	Texas A&M, 6 (1927–45) Texas Tech, 6 (1968–73)
Current win streak	Texas A&M, 3

The Texas A&M–Texas Tech football rivalry was an American college football rivalry between the Texas A&M Aggies football team of Texas A&M University and Texas Tech Red Raiders football team of Texas Tech University. The series began as a non-conference rivalry when the first game was played in 1927. The rivalry had continued uninterrupted since 1957 when the two schools became conference rivals.^[1] Texas A&M leads the series 37–32–1. Texas A&M started the series with a 12–3 advantage while the two teams played each other as non-conference opponents from 1927–1955. Texas Tech took a 2–1 record during its probationary membership in the Southwest Conference from 1957–59. Texas A&M led the series during the Southwest Conference years (1960–95) with an 18–17–1 record. Texas Tech led the series during the Big 12 Conference years (1996–2011) with a 10–6 record. Both teams are tied with six games each for the longest winning streak. Texas Tech holds the longest uninterrupted winning streak of the series, six games between 1968 and 1973, while Texas A&M has the longest nonconsecutive winning streak, six games in 1927, 1932 and 1942 through 1945. Texas A&M currently holds a three game winning streak but with their departure from the Big 12 Conference in 2012, it is uncertain if the rivalry will continue in the future.

Venues

When both Texas A&M and Texas Tech were members of the Southwest Conference (SWC) from 1960 to 1995, and the Big 12 Conference from 1996 to 2011, the match-up was exclusively a home-and-home series in College Station and Lubbock. In all, 29 games were played in Lubbock and 28 in College Station. Both teams held a 3 game home field advantage as the Red Raiders record was 16–13 in Lubbock while the Aggies record in College Station was 15–12–1.

Prior to Texas Tech joining the SWC for football in 1960, 13 games of the rivalry were held at a neutral site in Amarillo, Dallas, and San Antonio. Only one game was held in Amarillo, a 7–0 Texas A&M victory in 1932. From 1943–50, the series was held at second neutral site, Alamo Stadium in San Antonio. Texas A&M held a 6–2 record over Texas Tech at Alamo Stadium. The 1951, 1955, 1958, and 1959 games were held at the Cotton Bowl in Dallas and the series at Fair Park was split 2–2. In the early 2000s, an effort was made to move the series back to the Cotton Bowl during the State Fair of Texas but ultimately the rivalry game remained a home-and-home series.

Caption: "Texas A&M came to Lubbock"
Riding Into the Sunset after being vandalized in 1969.

Will Rogers & Soapsuds statue

One of the most well-known landmarks on the campus of Texas Tech University is the statue of Will Rogers on his horse Soapsuds: Riding Into the Sunset. A campus legend holds that the statue was originally intended to be positioned with Will Rogers facing due west, so that it would appear he was riding into the sunset. However, that position would cause Soapsuds' posterior to face due east, towards downtown Lubbock, Texas, potentially insulting the Lubbock business community. To address this issue, the statue was turned 23 degrees to the east, causing Soapsuds' rear to face in the direction of the campus of Texas A&M University in College Station, Texas.^[2]

The campus legend led to Riding Into the Sunset becoming involved in the rivalry off the field. In 1969, the statue was vandalized after being covered in maroon paint, Texas A&M's primary color, after the Aggies lost to the Red Raiders 13–9.^[3] Following the vandalism in 1969, the Saddle Tramps, a Texas Tech student organization, wrap the statue in red crepe paper prior to every home football game.^[4] After upsetting the #5 Aggies 21–19 in 1999, Texas Tech students tore down and carried a goal post from Jones Stadium to the base of the statue.^[5]

Game results

References