LUBBOCK, Texas (AP) — Behren Morton threw four touchdown passes and ran 10 yards for another score as Texas Tech tied a school record with 52 points in the first half of a 66-21 victory over North Texas on Saturday.
Bralyn Lux returned an interception 44 yards for a touchdown and Coy Eakin had a 70-yard TD catch as the Red Raiders (2-1) scored seven touchdowns in a span of 13 minutes starting late in the first quarter.
The first-half blitz came after Texas Tech barely survived for an overtime victory in the opener at home against FCS member Abilene Christian and lost handily last week at Washington State.
After giving up 506 yards passing to ACU, the Red Raiders intercepted Chandler Morris three times in the second quarter, including the throw after Lux’s pick-6 when the ball went through receiver Kyle Koch’s hands.
“The stuff that we asked our guys to do, they did today,” coach Joey McGuire said. “They did a good job of responding, especially on the defensive side of the ball. I’m confident from the standpoint that if we continue to take care of the football on the offensive side of the ball, cut down on the penalties and play good defense, we’re going to be a good football team.”
The Mean Green (2-1) pulled within 10-7 when Wyatt Young took a screen pass 75 yards for a score. But Tahj Brooks, who had 109 yards rushing after missing Texas Tech’s loss to the Cougars with an injury, started the 42-0 surge with a 21-yard scoring run on fourth-and-1.
The Red Raiders went up 52-7 and tied their scoring record for any half on Jalin Conyers’ 10-yard catch 3:08 before halftime. Texas Tech scored 52 before the break in a 63-7 victory over Indiana State in 2005.
“I think from this week until next week, we’ve got to do a lot of soul searching, and that starts with me,” said UNT coach Eric Morris, who played and coached for the Red Raiders. “I thought that honestly, we went out and put up about as poor of a performance collectively as you can.”
Morton didn’t play after halftime, finishing 15 of 19 for 273 yards without an interception after his two picks were among four Texas Tech turnovers in a 37-16 loss to the Cougars.
Morris, who also had three interceptions in last week’s 35-20 win over Stephen F. Austin, didn’t play the fourth quarter and finished 15 of 27 for 162 yards and two touchdowns.
Texas Tech won its 47th consecutive game against an unranked opponent from a non-power conference. The streak started after a loss to North Texas in 1999, two years before their most recent meeting.
The takeaway
North Texas: It was a rough return to Lubbock for Morris, who is in his second year at UNT. The Mean Green were 2-0 for the first time since 2018 and had a four-game winning streak. They expected to be more competitive after Texas Tech opened the season with two sub-par showings.
Texas Tech: Fans left the stadium feeling much better than two weeks earlier when the Red Raiders won after stopping ACU’s 2-point conversion try in a 52-51 win. The heat on third-year coach Joey McGuire figures to ease a bit for now, but the Red Raiders need to keep it up in Big 12 play.
Up next
North Texas: The final nonconference game against Wyoming at home next Saturday.
Texas Tech: Arizona State’s first Big 12 game next Saturday is the second of three consecutive home games for the Red Raiders.
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