Joey McGuire is a delighted man right now. The Red Raiders got a reality check against Arizona State, but they showed everyone why they are real contenders when BYU visited Lubbock in Week 11. Even then, that lone defeat in their 9-1 record still hurts the team.

Texas Tech has a Heisman contender in Jacob Rodriguez. He got the hype when College GameDay featured him before their game against the Cougars. As one of the team’s leaders, the linebacker remains grounded despite his success on the field. He appeared on David Pollack’s show, and the discussion moved to the Big 12 championship. With two games remaining, the Red Raiders have a foot in the conference championship game. But who do they want to play?

“I mean, I would love to play Arizona State again. I’d love to do whatever I can to win that game. But it’s really just whoever shows up.“ Jacob told David Pollack in a November 14th interview.  WR Raleek Brown’s touchdown with 34 seconds left was enough to hand Texas Tech its first defeat of the season. The Week 8 setback gave BYU and Cincinnati a clear path to the top of the conference, and it wasn’t until Week 11 that Texas Tech recovered its place.

It’s highly likely that the two teams will face off in that game. That has nothing to do with Texas Tech. Arizona State hasn’t been able to reach the highs of its 2024 season this year. They are 4-2 in conference play. That places them in 5th place. Even though their remaining schedule is easier, the Sun Devils have to pray for BYU, Houston and Cincinnati’s downfall.

Kenny Dillingham’s ASU is on the verge of losing its championship to Texas Tech, despite defeating them in Week 8.On the surface, Texas Tech is right to feel that on another day, they would have beaten Arizona State. Thir QB1 Behren Morton missed the game due to injury. We saw how he led the offense against BYU. And as Rodriguez said, the Red Raiders are ready to face any team they get.

Only two games remain in the regular season. This is a huge deal for the Red Raiders, who haven’t won the championship since 1955. And it feels like Rodriguez and co. are on the right path to achieve that.

Can any team shatter Joey McGuire’s dream of a Big 12 championship?

The top of the Big 12 is still crowded. With 6-1 in conference play, Texas Tech is in first place. However, BYU and Cincinnati are not far behind with 5-1 records. Then comes Houston (5-2). Interestingly, BYU won’t be able to surpass Joey McGuire’s team even if both have identical records.

With the current standings, the Week 13 game between Cincinnati and BYU will determine who’ll play Texas Tech for the conference championship. Rather than the Red Raiders getting a chance to avenge their loss, maybe Kalani Sitake’s team will get the same opportunity. The other games on these three teams’ schedules are interesting because we have seen top dogs fall this season.

Scott Satterfield’s Bearcats go up against the 7th-placed Arizona Wildcats on Saturday. BYU will play TCU. If both win their games, we’re in for a hell of a showdown in Week 13.