NCAAF

Cincinnati Bearcats at Texas Tech Red Raiders

· NCAA - Football
3-2, 1-1 Away
Final
41 - 44

Brooks runs for 172 yards and 2 TDs, Texas Tech wins 44-41 when Cincinnati misses FG on final play

Cincinnati Bearcats vs. Texas Tech Red Raiders: Full Highlights

"There were so many highs and lows in this game, and they just kept fighting,” Tech coach Joey McGuire said of his team.

Nathan Hawks’ game-ending kick was wide right after Cincinnati (3-2, 1-1 Big 12) had gone 58 yards from their own 10 after the Red Raiders’ only punt came right after the two-minute timeout.

“Had a hard time slowing them down, but we did what we needed to at the very end,” Cincinnati coach Scott Satterfield said. “I feel like we ran out of time. ... Some unfortunate things happened in that last drive.”

Brendan Sorsby, who finished with 426 yards and four TDs passing, had completions of 28 and 19 yards but the Bearcats lost 20 seconds because of two clock runoffs. The first came after an injury, and the other when a potential targeting penalty was reviewed but not enforced after their quarterback took a shot when he slid to give himself up at the end of a short run.

“You can’t make that stuff up,” Satterfield said. “Still, the bottom line is we didn’t make enough plays tonight to win it.”

Morton completed 19 of 29 passes for 251 yards and the Red Raiders (4-1) moved to 2-0 in the Big 12 for the first time since 2013. They have won their last six games at home, where they are 14-3 in McGuire's three seasons.

"The guys we’ve got in the locker room, they want to fight, they want to win,” Brooks said.

Brooks tied the game at 24 on a 1-yard TD run that came with 1:39 left in the first half. Tech went ahead to stay after linebacker Jacob Rodriguez recovered a fumble only 2 1/2 minutes after halftime to set up a 2-yard score by Brooks.

A.J. McCarty returned an interception 51 yards for a Tech touchdown early in the fourth quarter for a 41-27 lead. That was Sorsby's first pick this season, on his 149th attempt.

Cincinnati lost running backs Corey Kiner and Evan Pryor with unspecified injuries. Kiner only had three carries on Cincinnati’s opening drive. Pryor, who had a 1-yard TD, never returned after a 36-yard carry in the third quarter.

Freshman running back Manny Covey, the third-teamer, turned a screen pass in to a 71-yard score two plays after Sorsby's interception. Gino Garcia kicked a 27-yard field goal for the Red Raiders before Covey added a 3-yard TD catch with 3:32 left.

Hawks made field goals of 37 and 26 yards, but also missed a 42-yard attempt on the final play of the first half.

The takeaway Cincinnati: The Bearcats finished with 555 total yards, but with Kiner and Pryor both hurt and them falling behind after halftime, their offense became pretty one-dimensional. Cincinnati had trailed for only 17 seconds through their first four games, when Pittsburgh kicked a game-winning field goal Sept. 7.

Texas Tech: The Red Raiders are 9-1 in one-possession games at home under McGuire, and their last five Big 12 wins overall are by one score.

“It says a lot about this team that they’re so resilient,” McGuire said. "They’re the brand, man. If you’re tough and you work your tails off throughout the game, throughout the week, you’ve got stats like that.”

Over 100 Brooks had his 16th career 100-yard rushing game, his fourth in a row and 12th in his last 15 games — he had at least 95 yards in each of those three games in that span without breaking the century mark.

Up next Cincinnati: Has an open date before playing at UCF on Oct. 12.

Texas Tech: Plays at Big 12 newcomer Arizona next Saturday night.

How To Watch

How can I watch Cincinnati Bearcats vs. Texas Tech Red Raiders?
  • TV Channel: Bearcats at Red Raiders 2021 College Football, week 5, is broadcasted on ESPN2.
  • Online streaming: Sign up for Fubo.

Matchup Prediction

Red Raiders: 57.5%
Bearcats: 42.5%
*According to ESPN's Basketball Power Index

Scoring Summary

TTU FG 1st Period 11:33 Gino Garcia 45 Yd Field Goal
CIN TD 1st Period 7:35 Tony Johnson 15 Yd pass from Brendan Sorsby (Nathan Hawks Kick)
CIN TD 1st Period 4:59 Xzavier Henderson 42 Yd pass from Brendan Sorsby (Nathan Hawks Kick)
TTU TD 1st Period 1:25 Coy Eakin 7 Yd pass from Behren Morton (Gino Garcia Kick)
CIN FG 2nd Period 13:27 Nathan Hawks 37 Yd Field Goal
TTU TD 2nd Period 10:32 Coy Eakin 49 Yd pass from Behren Morton (Reese Burkhardt Kick)
CIN TD 2nd Period 3:47 Evan Pryor 1 Yd Run (Nathan Hawks Kick)
TTU TD 2nd Period 1:39 Tahj Brooks 1 Yd Run (Gino Garcia Kick)
TTU TD 3rd Period 12:27 Tahj Brooks 2 Yd Run (Gino Garcia Kick)
CIN FG 3rd Period 6:39 Nathan Hawks 26 Yd Field Goal
TTU FG 3rd Period 0:53 Reese Burkhardt 38 Yd Field Goal
TTU TD 4th Period 12:40 A.J. McCarty 51 Yd Interception Return (Gino Garcia Kick)
CIN TD 4th Period 12:05 Manny Covey 71 Yd pass from Brendan Sorsby (Nathan Hawks Kick)
TTU FG 4th Period 7:50 Gino Garcia 27 Yd Field Goal
CIN TD 4th Period 3:24 Manny Covey 3 Yd pass from Brendan Sorsby (Nathan Hawks Kick)

Statistics

https://a.espncdn.com/combiner/i?img=/i/teamlogos/ncaa/500/2132.png&h=100&scale=crop&w=100&location=originCIN https://a.espncdn.com/combiner/i?img=/i/teamlogos/ncaa/500/2641.png&h=100&scale=crop&w=100&location=originTTU
29 1st Downs 21
7-12 3rd down efficiency 9-14
2-2 4th down efficiency 0-1
555 Total Yards 482
426 Passing 251
31/45 Comp/Att 19/29
9.5 Yards per pass 8.7
129 Rushing 231
33 Rushing Attempts 36
3.9 Yards per rush 6.4
2-10 Penalties 5-37
2 Turnovers 1
1 Fumbles lost 1
1 Interceptions thrown 0
32:01 Possession 27:59

Game Information

Jones AT&T Stadium

Location: Lubbock, TX
Attendance: 60,229 · Capacity:
Full Standings

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