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Texas Tech continues soft early-season slate

Sep 20, 2008 - 10:07 AM Massachusetts (2-1) at No. 10 Texas Tech (3-0), 8:00 pm EDT

LUBBOCK, Texas (Ticker) -- No. 10 Texas Tech completes a month of feasting on cupcakes Saturday when it hosts Massachusetts of the Football Championship Subdivision in its final non-conference contest.

The Red Raiders (3-0) have cracked the top 10 of the coaches' poll for the first time since October 2005, but it is difficult to get a gauge on how good they are.

In its first three games, Texas Tech has beaten Eastern Washington - another school from the FCS - Nevada and Southern Methodist.

In last week's 43-7 win over SMU, Graham Harrell passed for 418 yards and five touchdowns. Michael Crabtree, one of the top wide receivers in the country, had his best game of the season with three TD receptions.

Coming off a sub-par game against Nevada, Harrell set a school record for career touchdowns with 97, surpassing Kliff Kingsbury's previous school mark of 95.

The Red Raiders' defense chipped in with five interceptions, including three by safety Daniel Charbonnet, which established a single-game school record.

"Defensively, I couldn't be happier," Texas Tech coach Mike Leach said. "We talked about seeing how good we can be and we are going to take some things from this game and learn and improve defensively. We're going to see where our efforts take us."

The Red Raiders will find out how good they are when they begin Big 12 Conference play against Kansas State on October 4. They have a bye week next week.

For now, Texas Tech can feast on what appears to be another overmatched opponent. The Red Raiders are facing a foe from the Bay State for the first time since hosting Boston College in 1971.

Massachusetts (2-1), a member of the Colonial Athletic Association, is coming off a 52-38 loss to James Madison.