Red Raiders demolish Demons 75-7
LUBBOCK, Texas - Graham Harrell threw for 338 yards and five touchdowns and Michael Crabtree tied a freshman record for touchdown receptions in a season as Texas Tech beat Northwestern State 75-7 on Saturday night.
Harrell hooked up with Crabtree for three scores, giving the receiver 14 to match a Division I freshman record in just five games. Crabtree equaled the mark set by Jabar Gaffney of Florida in 2000, Mike Williams of Southern California in 2002 and Davone Bess of Hawaii in 2005.
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Crabtree finished with eight receptions for 145 yards, 49 yards fewer than his nation-leading 194 yard average coming into the game.
Harrell, who led the nation in passing coming in, threw touchdowns of 34, 2, 11, 30 and 6 yards. He completed 26 of 40 before leaving the game late in the third quarter.
Tech's defense, which gave up 610 total yards in its 49-45 loss to Oklahoma State, limited the Demons to one trip into Red Raiders territory and only one score. Northwestern State's Germayne Edmond found Dudley Guice on a crossing pattern for an 18-yard touchdown early in the second quarter to close to 14-7.
Tech (4-1, 0-1 Big 12) held the Demons, who play in the Championship Subdivision (formerly I-AA) to 15 yards rushing and 103 passing.
An enthusiastic Ruffin McNeill, named interim defensive coordinator a day after Tech lost to the Cowboys last weekend, hugged players as they came off the field following a third-down stop.
It was the first time in 56 years that an opponent has scored 60 or more points against the Demons. Southern Mississippi beat Northwestern State 76-0 in 1951.
Northwestern State (2-2) has lost two straight.