Texas Tech Red Raiders The Texas Tech Red Raiders are the athletic teams that represent Texas Tech University ( TTU ) . The women ' s basketball team uses the name Lady Raiders ; however , the school ' s other women ' s teams use the " Red Raiders " name . The university ' s athletic program fields 17 varsity teams in 11 sports . The Masked Rider and Raider Red serve as the mascots representing the teams , and the school colors are scarlet and black . Texas Tech participates in the NCAA Division I and is a founding member of the Big 12 Conference . From 1932 until 1956 , the university belonged to the Border Intercollegiate Athletic Association . Texas Tech was admitted to the Southwest Conference on May 12 , 1956 . When the Southwest Conference disbanded in 1995 , Texas Tech , along with the University of Texas at Austin , Texas A & M University , and Baylor University , joined with all eight former members of the Big Eight Conference to form the Big 12 Conference . The university ' s athletic director is Kirby Hocutt . Bob Knight , the most victorious coach in men ' s Division I basketball history , coached the Red Raiders men ' s basketball team from 2001 to 2008 . Following Bob Knight ' s retirement in 2008 , his son Pat Knight assumed head coaching duties . The Red Raiders football team , which has been coached by Mike Leach from 2000 to 2009 , is a member of the NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision and has appeared in the 19th - most bowl games of any team . Tommy Tuberville was named head coach in 2010 following the firing of Mike Leach and remained in the position until 2012 before resigning . He was replaced by former Texas Tech quarterback Kliff Kingsbury In 1993 , led by coach Marsha Sharp , the Lady Raiders basketball team won the NCAA Women ' s Basketball Championship . Following Sharp ' s retirement in 2006 , Kristy Curry was named Lady Raiders head coach . Red Raiders baseball coach Larry Hays , who is one of only four coaches in NCAA baseball history to win 1 , 500 career games , retired in 2008 . He is replaced by Dan Spencer . History . On February 24 , 1925 , an article published in the Fort Worth Star - Telegram suggested Tech ' s athletic teams be called the " Dogies " explaining that " a Dogie is a calf whose mother died and is forced to look out for itself " and " If ever anything had to rustle for itself , it was West Texas and Tech College . " Varsity sports . Texas Tech competes in the following varsity sports : Baseball . Behind football and men ' s basketball , baseball is the third oldest sport at Texas Tech . The initial team organized in 1925 and the first game , an 18 – 9 victory over West Texas State Teachers College , was played in 1926 . In the following game , the team suffered its first ever loss , 14 – 9 to the team it had previously defeated . The third game in the team ' s history — this one against Daniel Baker College — ended in a 3 – 3 tie after 11 innings . E . Y . Freeland was the first coach of the Red Raiders , though the team was known as the Matadors at the time . He remained in the position for three years before R . Grady Higginbotham took the role . Higginbotham coached for only two years . From 1930 to 1953 , Tech did not field an intercollegiate baseball team . When the program returned in 1954 , Beattie Feathers became the head coach of the Red Raiders and remained until 1960 . He was followed by Berl Huffman ( 1961 – 1967 ) , Kal Segrist ( 1968 – 1983 ) , and Gary Ashby ( 1984 – 1986 ) . Upon Ashby ' s departure , Larry Hays became the head coach of the team . Texas Tech ' s baseball team plays at Dan Law Field at Rip Griffin Park and is coached by Dan Spencer . Larry Hays had been the Red Raider ' s head coach for the previous 22 years and accumulated over 800 wins with Texas Tech . On April 2 , 2008 , Hays became just the fourth coach in NCAA baseball history to win 1 , 500 career games . The Red Raider ' s first ever win came on April 5 , 1926 against New Mexico Military Institute . During the 1990s , Tech players drew notice from 17 big league organizations . Two Red Raiders were selected in the second round , one each in the third , fourth , and fifth rounds . As of 2002 , 16 former Tech players have appeared in Major League Baseball . Larry Hays took over the Red Raiders baseball team in 1987 . Under Hays , Texas Tech endured only two losing seasons , his first and last , and enjoyed their greatest success in baseball . Hays took Tech from having a losing tradition to being a national contender . When Hays started with the Red Raiders , the team ' s overall record stood at 550 – 576 . By the time he left , he was the fourth - winningest coach is college baseball history and the team ' s record had improved to 1 , 365 – 1 , 054 – 9 . The Red Raiders reached eight straight NCAA tournaments from 1995 – 2002 and again in 2004 , three of which were held at Dan Law Field . They also won two conference championships , in 1995 ( while still in the Southwest Conference ) and 1997 , and two conference tournament championships , in 1996 and 1998 . Cross Country and Track & Field . Texas Tech ' s cross country and indoor / outdoor track & field teams are coached by Wes Kittley . Under his leadership , the program has reached new heights . At the 2005 Outdoor National Championships , Tech qualified 31 men ' s and women ' s athletes , more than any other school in the country . From 1990 to 2006 , the men ' s team garnered 91 All - America awards , 20 Big 12 championships , and one individual national title . In the same time period , the women ' s team won 32 All - America awards , 29 Big 12 championships , and five individual national titles . During the 2007 / 08 season , the women had another strong showing behind Sally Kipyego , who won four individual national titles ( cross country , indoor 3000 m and 5000 m , outdoor 10 , 000 m ) and placed second in her bid for an unprecedented fifth title in one academic year ( outdoor 5000 m ) . Kipyego added three more nation titles ( cross country , indoor 5000 m , outdoor 5000 m ) and one more second - place win ( outdoor 1500 m ) during the 2007 / 08 season . Under Kipyego ' s leadership , the women ' s team captured its first title in 2008 . Football . The Red Raiders football team is a member of the NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision ( formerly known as Division I - A ) . Texas Tech played its first intercollegiate football game on October 3 , 1925 . The contest , against McMurry University , ended in a controversial 0 – 0 tie . Tech ' s Elson Archibald seemed to have kicked a game - winning 20 - yard field goal but the referee ruled that the clock had run out before the score . It was later reported that the referee made the call to get revenge because he wanted to be the team ' s first head coach but the job was instead given to Ewing Y . Freeland . In 1932 , the program joined the Border Intercollegiate Athletic Association . Five years later , the team won its first conference championship and was invited to the Sun Bowl . The game was played on January 1 , 1938 , and resulted in a 6 – 7 loss to West Virginia . Texas Tech suffered four more bowl losses before getting their first postseason win in the 1952 Sun Bowl . Before withdrawing for the Border Intercollegiate Athletic Association in 1956 , the Red Raiders won a total of eight conference championships and one co - championship , the most titles held by a Border Conference team . In 1960 , Texas Tech was admitted to the Southwest Conference ( SWC ) . The Red Raiders won conference co - championships in 1976 and 1994 . The team remained in the SWC until the conference ceased operations 1996 . Following the dissolution of the SWC , the university became a charter member of the Big 12 Conference . In the Big 12 Conference , the Red Raiders competed in the South Division from the athletic conference ' s formation until the 2010 season . The Red Raiders , coached by Mike Leach from 2000 - 09 , earned 56 wins from the 2000 through the 2006 season . During the same period , only three other Big 12 teams had more victories — Oklahoma , Texas , and Nebraska . In fourteen of its last fifteen seasons Tech finished with a winning record , before suffering a losing season in 2011 . The Red Raiders have made 32 bowl appearances , which is 19th most of any university . Golf . 2007 saw the men ' s golf team compete in its first back - to - back National Championship tournaments since 1960 . The team , coached by Greg Sands , qualified for the tournament after finishing 7th in NCAA Central Regional . Men ' s basketball . Basketball came to Texas Tech only two years after the school was founded . The inaugural game was a 37 – 25 loss to Daniel Baker College . Tech would lose two more games before finally clinching their first ever victory — 35 – 21 at Sul Ross University . Grady Higginbotham was the first coach , earning a 14 – 18 record over two seasons . At . 438 , Higgenbotham was the only Tech basketball coach to garner an overall losing record during his stay . Following Higgenbotham ' s departure , Victor Payne led the Matadors ( as the school ' s teams were known until 1936 ) from 1927 to 1930 . His final tally stood at 32 wins and 20 losses . W . L . Golightly coached only one season , bringing in an 11 – 9 record . Dell Morgan held the head coaching job from 1931 to 1934 , chalking up 42 wins to 29 losses . He was followed by Virgil Ballard . Though Ballard coached only a single season , it was during his time that the team won their milestone 100th game , a one - point victory over House of David . Ballard left with a 15 – 9 record . Berl Huffman was twice the head basketball coach at Texas Tech — first from 1935 to 1942 and then from 1946 to 1947 . During his total of eight seasons , he garnered a record of 121 – 67 . Polk Robison was the only other person to serve two different times as the head basketball coach at the school . When Huffman left in 1942 , Robison took the job . And , when Huffman left a second time in 1947 , it was Robison who again filled the position , this time remaining until 1961 . At a total of 18 seasons , his stay is the second longest of any Red Raiders basketball coach , behind Gerald Myers . He departed after leading his teams to 254 wins , 195 losses , and the first two NCAA tournaments in school history . Gene Gibson followed Robison into the position . In his eight seasons , he chalked up the second worst record of any head basketball coach at Tech . Still , at 100 – 92 , there were eight more wins than losses . Bob Bass led the program to a 22 – 15 record over a season - and - a - half before returning to professional basketball coaching duties . Bob Knight became the men ' s basketball coach in 2001 . He retired on February 4 , 2008 . On New Year ' s Day 2007 , a 70 – 68 defeat of New Mexico by Tech marked the 880th total win for Knight , making him the winningest coach in men ' s college basketball history . Knight also has several other distinctions , including being the only coach to win the NCAA , the NIT , the Olympic Gold , and the Pan - Am Gold , and has been given several awards . Knight was succeeded by his son Pat Knight . After Pat Knight ' s termination , Billy Gillispie was named head coach on March 20 , 2011 . Softball . The Red Raiders softball program began in 1981 but the program was dropped after only five seasons . When Texas Tech joined the Big 12 Conference as a charter member , the program was resurrected in time for the inaugural 1996 season . Since 2010 , Shannon Hays , the first Lubbock Christian University head softball coach , has turned the Red Raider softball team around from a 15 - 42 season under interim head coach Amy Suiter to 80 - 34 in only two seasons . Tennis . Tim Siegel has been coaching at Tech for 15 years , helping the men ' s tennis team to numerous winning seasons . Siegel was recently honored as the 2008 Big 12 Coach of the Year . He has coached players who are now college coaches themselves . The men ' s tennis team had a very successful 2008 season being ranked as high as # 17 in the nation . The Red Raiders have faced 11 ranked teams and have only lost to two , # 31 TCU and # 11 Tulsa . Texas Tech ended the regular season ranked # 17 . The Texas Tech tennis team won the Border Conference tennis championship in 1936 , 1937 , and 1950 . Women ' s basketball . Of the varsity sports , Texas Tech has had its greatest success in women ' s basketball . Led by its star player Sheryl Swoopes and head coach Marsha Sharp , the Lady Raiders won the NCAA Women ' s Basketball Championship in 1993 . In early 2006 , Lady Raiders coach Marsha Sharp retired and was replaced on March 30 , 2006 by Kristy Curry , who had been the coach at Purdue . Volleyball . The Texas Tech volleyball program began in 1975 . Since the 2011 season , Don Flora has coached the Red Raiders . Club sports . In addition to varsity sports , the university ' s Sport Clubs Federation offers 30 recreational and competitive sport clubs , including polo , rugby union , lacrosse , fencing , and soccer . Polo . Of the clubs sports , Texas Tech ' s Polo Club team , coached by Clyde Waddell , has had the greatest success . In spite of having no previous experience , at the invitation of students , Waddell took the job in 2000 . Six year later , the team beat in - state rival Texas A & M to win the United States Polo Association National Intercollegiate Championship . Rodeo . Texas Tech ' s rodeo club team competes in the National Intercollegiate Rodeo Association and won the 1955 championship at the College National Finals Rodeo . Rugby . Texas Tech rugby plays in Division 1 - A in the Allied Rugby Conference , a conference composed primarily of schools from the Big 12 South , against its traditional rivals such as Texas and Texas A & M . For the 2011 - 12 year , Texas Tech had also fielded a side to play in Division 2 , where they won the Texas championship and qualified for the national playoffs . Facilities . Jones AT & T Stadium serves as home to the Red Raiders football team . The stadium , named for Clifford B . and Audrey Jones , opened in 1947 . In 2000 , the stadium was renamed Jones SBC Stadium after SBC Communications made a $ 30 million contribution to the university . Following SBC Communications ' acquisition of AT & T Corporation in 2006 , the stadium was renamed Jones AT & T Stadium . The stadium ' s original seating capacity was 27 , 000 , but it was expanded in 1959 , 1972 , and again in 2003 to the current capacity of 53 , 000 . On August 7 , 2008 , the Texas Tech Board of Regents announced a $ 25 million expansion project . The planned expansion will add a Spanish Renaissance themed facade to the east side of the stadium . In addition to the improvements to the exterior of the facility , the expansion with add 1 , 000 general - admission seats , 550 club seats , and 26 suites . Texas Tech has allocated a total of $ 19 million to the expansion and plans to add another $ 6 million through fund - raising initiatives . Construction is set to begin following the 2008 season . Since 1999 , home basketball games have been played at United Spirit Arena , a 15 , 020 - seat multi - purpose facility which cost $ 62 million to build . In addition to serving as home to the men ' s and women ' s basketball teams , the arena is used by the Lady Raiders volleyball team . Championships . Conference ( 61 ) . Texas Tech has won 61 conference championships : 12 Big 12 Conference titles , 23 Southwest Conference titles , and 22 Border Intercollegiate Athletic Association titles . Culture . Nickname . The Red Raiders were originally known as the " Matador s " from 1925 – 1936 . As the school was thinking of an appropriate nickname for its athletic teams in 1925 , the wife of the first football coach suggested " Matadors " to reflect the influence of the campus ' Spanish Renaissance architecture . The students followed the suggestion , and later chose red and black as the school colors to represent a matador ' s traditional garb . Coincidentally , the football team won its first game right after it had adopted the name . The nickname and school colors became official during a formal convocation on March 15 , 1926 . There are two main stories as to how the name " Red Raiders " replaced its predecessor . In one story , football coach Pete Cawthon ordered attractive scarlet uniforms to help the team ' s identity . The football team , wearing its new outfit , defeated heavily - favored Loyola Marymount in Los Angeles on October 26 , 1934 . A Los Angeles sports writer called the Matadors a " red raiding team " . Other writers who covered Tech sports caught on with the term and successfully promoted the use of " Red Raiders " . In the other tale , former " Lubbock Avalanche - Journal " sports columnist Collier Parris , reporting on a 1932 Tech football game , wrote : " The Red Raiders from Texas Tech , terror of the Southwest this year , swooped into the New Mexico University camp today . " The name soon became popular afterward and by 1936 , it officially replaced " Matadors " at the same time the Saddle Tramps came about . Spirit . Red Raider spirit is led by such organizations as the Saddle Tramps , the High Riders , and the spirit squads ( consisting of the cheer squad and the pom squad ) . In April 2010 , the Texas Tech cheer squad finished third at the National Cheerleaders Association and National Dance Association . Mascots . The Masked Rider is Texas Tech University ' s oldest mascot . The tradition began in 1936 , when " ghost riders " circled the field prior to home football games . The Masked Rider became an official mascot in 1954 , when Joe Kirk Fulton led the team onto the field at the Gator Bowl . According to reports from those present at the game , the crowd sat in stunned silence as they watched Fulton and his horse , Blackie , rush onto the football field , followed by the team . After a few moments , the silent crowd burst into cheers . Ed Danforth , a writer for the " Atlanta Journal " who witnessed the event , later wrote , " No team in any bowl game ever made a more sensational entrance . " In 2000 , The Masked Rider tradition was commemorated with the unveiling of a statue outside of the university ' s Frazier Alumni Pavilion . The sculpture , created by artist Grant Speed , is 25 percent larger than life . Today the Masked Rider , with guns up , leads the team onto the field for all home games . This mascot , adorned in a distinctive gaucho hat like the ones worn by members of the marching band , is one of the most visible figures at Texas Tech . Christi Chadwell , a sophomore agricultural communications major from Garland , will represent the university as the Masked Rider during 2010 / 11 . Texas Tech ' s other mascot , Raider Red , is a more recent creation . Beginning with the 1971 football season , the Southwest Conference forbade the inclusion of live animal mascots to away games unless the host school consented . For situations where the host school did not want to allow the Masked Rider ' s horse , an alternate mascot was needed . Jim Gaspard , a member of the Saddle Tramps student spirit organization , created the original design for the Raider Red costume , basing it on a character created by cartoonist Dirk West , a Texas Tech alumnus and former Lubbock mayor . Though the Masked Rider ' s identity is public knowledge , it has always been tradition that Raider Red ' s student alter ego is kept secret until the end of his or her tenure . The student serving as Raider Red is a member of the Saddle Tramps or High Riders . Rivalries . Texas Tech ' s main athletic rivals are the Texas Longhorns and Texas A & M Aggies . It is common for people to camp out in front of Jones AT & T Stadium a few days prior to home football games against the Aggies , the Longhorns , and the Oklahoma Sooners . In March 2009 , Texas Tech and Baylor reached an agreement to move their next two football games to the Dallas metropolitan area . The schools played November 28 , 2009 , at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington with Tech claiming the victory . The next game was scheduled for October 9 , 2010 , at the Cotton Bowl Stadium during the State Fair of Texas , with Tech emerging victorious again . There is also an option to extend the arrangement for an additional two years . People . Head coaches . Head coaches of Texas Tech teams include : Alumni . In the sports world , Texas Tech Red Raiders have gone on to play in the NFL , NBA , WNBA , Major League Baseball , and more . Current alumni standouts include NFL All - Pros Zach Thomas of the Kansas City Chiefs and Wes Welker of the New England Patriots , and Michael Crabtree of the San Francisco 49ers .