Texas Tech Red Raiders football The Texas Tech Red Raiders football program is a college football team that represents Texas Tech University ( variously " Tech " or " TTU " ) . The team competes , as a member of the Big 12 Conference , which is a Division I Bowl Subdivision ( formerly Division I - A ) of the National Collegiate Athletic Association ( NCAA ) . The program began in 1925 and has an overall winning record , including a total of eleven conference titles and one division title . On December 12 , 2012 , former Red Raider quarterback Kliff Kingsbury became the team ' s 15th head coach , following the resignation of Tommy Tuberville . Home games are played at Jones AT & T Stadium in Lubbock , Texas . History . Texas Tech ( then known as Texas Technological College ) fielded its first intercollegiate football team during the 1925 season . The team was known as the " Matador s " from 1925 to 1936 , a name suggested by the wife of E . Y . Freeland , the first football coach , to reflect the influence of the Spanish Renaissance architecture on campus . In 1932 , Texas Tech joined the Border Intercollegiate Athletic Association , also known as the Border Conference . The school ' s short - lived Matadors moniker was replaced officially in 1937 with " Red Raiders " , a nickname bestowed upon them by a sportswriter impressed by their bright Scarlet uniforms that remains to this day . That same year , 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 7 – 6 loss to the West Virginia Mountaineers . Texas Tech suffered four more bowl losses before their first postseason win in the 1952 Sun Bowl . Before withdrawing from the Border Conference in 1956 , the Red Raiders won eight conference championships and one co - championship , the most held by a Border Conference member . In 1956 , Texas Tech was admitted to the Southwest Conference ( SWC ) but was ineligible for any title during a four - year probationary period . It gained full SWC membership and began official conference play in 1960 . The Red Raiders won conference co - championships in 1976 and 1994 . The team remained in the SWC until the conference dissolved in 1996 . The university was invited and became a charter member in the South Division of the Big 12 Conference . Texas Tech was the only member in the history of the Big 12 to boast a winning record every year since the conference ' s formation , until suffering their first losing season in 2011 . In 2008 , the Red Raiders were one of three football teams involved in the first three way conference division tie . Stadium . The Red Raiders play their home games on campus at Jones AT & T Stadium . The stadium opened in 1947 as Clifford B . and Audrey Jones Stadium . In 2000 , Jones Stadium was renamed , Jones SBC Stadium , in recognition of a $ 30 million donation from SBC Communications . Reflecting SBC Communications ' rebranding as AT & T , Inc . , the stadium ' s name was renamed in 2005 as Jones AT & T Stadium . Then known as the Matadors , Texas Tech ' s first home field was a makeshift stadium at the South Plains Fairgrounds in Lubbock , for the 1925 season and first game of the 1926 season . In 1926 , Tech Stadium , a wooden horseshoe shaped 12 , 000 seat stadium , was built on campus . Twenty - years later , Jones Stadium as was completed for the 1947 season . Two years prior to the stadium ' s opening , Clifford B . Jones , former Texas Tech University president , established a $ 100 , 000 trust toward construction for a new football stadium . The Texas Tech Board of Directors voted to name the new facility in honor of the former president and his wife ' s contribution . Since opening with a seating capacity of 18 , 000 , the stadium has been continuously expanded and renovated . In 1960 , the addition of a lower bowl doubled the seating capacity to 41 , 500 , an expansion in 1972 added over 10 , 000 seats , during the 1990s , 2 , 000 seats were added , and additions in the 2000s brought the current seating capacity to 60 , 454 . In 2003 , a seven - story building including 47 suites , a club seat level and new press box replaced the former press box constructed in 1959 . In 2010 , expansion to the east side of the stadium included a five - story addition that includes 1 , 000 general - admission seats , 542 club seats , 30 suites , a dining club , and pro shop . Also , ticket and athletic offices are expected to relocate to the East Side Building . When Jones AT & T Stadium opened in 1947 , the playing surface was originally natural grass . However , at the beginning of the 1972 season , the stadium ' s natural grass was replaced with AstroTurf . Jones AT & T Stadium has had a FieldTurf playing surface since 2006 . Jones AT & T Stadium set an attendance record of 60 , 800 spectators October 6 , 2012 , when the Red Raiders hosted the Oklahoma Sooners . Culture . Goin ' Band from Raiderland . The Goin ' Band from Raiderland , originally known as The Matador Band , is as old as Texas Tech itself . The band performed at the team ' s first game in October 1925 , fielding between 21 and 25 members . The following year the band earned its name when it became the first collegiate band to travel to an away game . American humorist Will Rogers once aided in financing a trip to Fort Worth , Texas , so the band could perform at a game against the TCU Horned Frogs . Today , in keeping with the campus ' Spanish Renaissance architecture , the uniforms of the Goin ' Band are styled after the " trajes " of matador s , complete with cape and a flat - brimmed " gaucho " hat . The 450 - member band , which was awarded the Sudler Trophy in 1999 , performs at all home football games and at various other events . Mascots . The Masked Rider is Texas Tech University ' s oldest mascot . The tradition began in 1936 , when " ghost riders " were dared to circle 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 . 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 first played Texas during the 1928 season and have played annually since 1960 when Texas Tech began participating in the Southwest Conference . Since the 1996 season , the Chancellor ' s Spurs , a traveling trophy , has been exchanged between the two university system chancellors , in honor of the two universities ' rivalry . The 2008 game was one of three games that led to a three - way tie controversy in the Big 12 Conference South Division , the first three - way tie in a collegiate conference division . The Texas Longhorns lead the all - time series record with 46 wins of the 61 games played and have won 12 of 16 games since the Chancellor ' s Spurs were first exchanged . The Texas Tech Red Raiders have played more games against the Texas A & M Aggies and Baylor Bears than any other opponents . Texas Tech first played the Aggies in 1927 and the teams have played annually since 1957 . The Texas A & M – Texas Tech football rivalry has experienced multiple altercations off the playing field between coaches , players and fans . The Texas A & M Aggies lead the all - time series with thirty - six wins of the sixty - nine games played . Since both teams joined the Big 12 Conference in 1996 , Texas Tech has won 10 , while Texas A & M has won 6 , of the these last 16 meetings . Texas A & M currently has a three game winning streak against Texas Tech following their 2011 victory against Texas Tech in Lubbock . Prior to Texas Tech joining the SWC , a traveling trophy was exchanged between the TCU Horned Frogs and Red Raiders . The trophy was of a miniature saddle and the game between the teams was dubbed " The West Texas Championship . " Uniforms . Texas Tech ' s football team was originally known as the " Matador s " from 1925 to 1936 , a name suggested by the wife of E . Y . Freeland , the first football coach , to reflect the Spanish Renaissance architecture on campus . The students followed the suggestion , and later chose scarlet and black as the school colors inspired by a matador ' s traditional red cape and black outfit . In 1934 , head coach Pete Cawthon ordered scarlet satin uniforms for the football team . He said that if the team did not attract attention by their playing , they would at least be noticed because of the flashy uniforms . 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 " , coining the moniker Texas Tech ' s athletics teams use today . Texas Tech ' s uniform consists of any combination of scarlet , black , and white . Since 2006 , Under Armour has been the team ' s outfitter . The 2010 team was the first to wear white helmets since 1974 . The white helmets were similar in design to the ones worn during the Jim Carlen era from 1970 – 1974 featuring a one inch scarlet stripe in the middle bordered by two half inch black stripes . The helmets used in 2010 feature a black face mask instead of scarlet and the current version of the Double T . The helmets were worn for away games against the New Mexico Lobos , Iowa State Cyclones , and Oklahoma Sooners . Individual honors . Many of Texas Tech ' s players have been recognized for their accomplishments while with the program . Five Red Raiders , Donny Anderson , Hub Bechtol , E . J . Holub , Dave Parks , and Gabriel Rivera have been inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame . Anderson , Holub , and Parks are the only three players at Texas Tech to have had their numbers retired . Two Red Raiders , Donny Anderson in 1965 and Graham Harrell in 2008 , have named Sporting News College Football Player of the Year , which is bestowed upon the most outstanding college football player of that season by " Sporting News " . While no Texas Tech player has ever received the Heisman Trophy , seven Red Raiders have received votes by the award ' s selection committee . Donny Anderson and Graham Harrell both finished fourth in the voting in 1965 and 2008 respectively , the highest ranking any Red Raider has received from voters . Additionally , Michael Crabtree , Byron Hanspard , E . J . Holub , Kliff Kingsbury , and B . J . Symons were Heisman candidates , receiving enough votes to finish in the top ten . Texas Tech football players have won several individual awards based on their position . At the end of the 1993 season , Bam Morris received the Doak Walker Award , and in 1996 , Byron Hanspard became the second Red Raider to receive the award . Michael Crabtree became the first two - time winner of the both the Fred Biletnikoff Award and Paul Warfield Trophy in back - to - back seasons . While three Texas Tech quarterbacks , Kliff Kingsbury , B . J . Symons , and Graham Harrell , have been awarded the Sammy Baugh Trophy , only Harrell has received the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award . In 2003 , Wes Welker won the Mosi Tatupu Award , given annually to the best special teams player . In 1935 , Herschel Ramsey was the first football player from Texas Tech to be named an All - American . Since then , a total of forty - seven players have been named to an All - American team , twenty - nine were selected as first team All - Americans . Ten Red Raiders have been named consensus All - Americans , players who were awarded a majority of votes at their positions by the selectors . Michael Crabtree was named as a consensus All - Americans in 2007 and 2008 , and is the only Red Raider to receive the honor twice . Ten Red Raiders have been named academic All - Americans . Team achievements . Post - season bowl games . Texas Tech has played in 34 post - season bowl games with an all - time record of 12 wins , 21 losses , and 1 tie . The Red Raiders rank fourth among current Big 12 Conference programs in bowl game appearances , and also boasted the distinction of being the only program in the conference to be bowl eligible every season since its formation in 1996 , until the 2011 season . Along with the Miami Hurricanes and Ole Miss Rebels , the 33 bowl game appearances by the Red Raiders rank the program 17th all - time in bowl games played . Texas Tech ' s first bowl game was at the conclusion of the 1937 season , only 13 years after the program was established . The Red Raiders played in the 1938 Sun Bowl in El Paso , Texas , against the West Virginia Mountaineers on New Year ' s Day . Nine of Texas Tech ' s 33 bowl game bids have been to the Sun Bowl . , the most appearances by any team to the second - oldest college football bowl game . Texas Tech ' s most recent bowl game appearance , the 2011 TicketCity Bowl , occurred on January 1 , 2011 , when the Red Raiders won , 45 – 38 , against the Northwestern Wildcats . The game was the team ' s eleventh consecutive bowl appearance that began with the 2000 Galleryfurniture . com Bowl , in former head coach Mike Leach ' s first season . In 10 seasons , Mike Leach ' s 9 bowl game appearances and 5 wins are the most of any the program ' s head coaches . Only 4 head coaches , E . Y . Freeland , Grady Higginbotham , Rex Dockery , and Jerry Moore , did not lead Texas Tech to a postseason bowl game . In the 1952 Sun Bowl , DeWitt Weaver was the first head coach to led the Red Raiders to a bowl game victory . Although both Pete Cawthon and Dell Morgan had led the program to previous bowl games , neither posted wins in their 5 combined appearances . The Red Raiders ' fans have set attendance records at 10 bowl games , including the team ' s first bowl game appearance in the 1938 Sun Bowl . Although 8 of the 10 attendance records were eventually broken , attendance records from 2 bowl game appearances , the 2004 Pacific Life Holiday Bowl and 2009 AT & T Cotton Bowl Classic , remain unbroken . The 2009 AT & T Cotton Bowl Classic ' s attendance record of 88 , 175 was the second - most attended bowl game of the 2008 – 09 bowl game season . Coaches and staff . Head coaches . Texas Tech has had 15 head coaches , and two - interim head coaches . Four coaches have won conference championships with the Red Raiders : Pete Cawthon , Dell Morgan , DeWitt Weaver , Steve Sloan , and Spike Dykes . Mike Leach is the only head Texas Tech football coach to win a division title . Dykes is the all - time leader in games and years coached , while Leach is the all - time leader in overall wins . Higginbotham is , in terms of winning percentage , the worst coach the Red Raiders have had ; winning only one game while losing seven , and tying two , giving him a . 200 winning percentage . Cawthon ' s . 693 winning percent ranks as the highest among the coaches . Morgan , Weaver , Dykes , and Leach have each received Coach of the Year honors from at least one organization . Morgan was named Border Conference Coach of the Year in 1949 . Twice — in 1951 and 1953 — Weaver was named the Border Conference ' s Coach of the Year . Dykes was named Southwest Conference Coach of the Year in 1989 and two other years . Dykes was also named the first Big 12 Conference Coach of the Year in 1996 . In 2008 , Leach was the second Texas Tech head coach to be named Big 12 Conference Coach of the Year . The same season , Leach was also named the FieldTurf / Howie Long Coach of the Year and was awarded the Woody Hayes Trophy and George Munger Award ; all three awards recognize the top collegiate coach of the season .