Postgame Notes
December 29, 2006 | Football
Dec. 29, 2006
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2006 Texas Tech Football
Red Raiders vs. Minnesota (2006 Insight Bowl - Sun Devil Stadium, Tempe, Ariz.)
December 29, 2006
Postgame Notes
GETTING STARTED
• Texas Tech won the opening coin toss and elected to receive. Texas Tech finished the season with a 7-6 record on the opening coin toss.
• The Red Raiders wore decals on their helmets tonight in memory of Major Troy Gilbert, a 1993 Texas Tech graduate who was killed in action in Iraq back in November. Major Gilbert was stationed at Luke Air Force Base here in Phoenix.
• Tonight's appearance in the Insight Bowl marked Texas Tech's 30th postseason appearance and that ranks 19th nationally. This is technically Tech's second appearance in the bowl as the Red Raiders last made an appearance in the previously named Weiser Lock Copper Bowl (held in Tucson) back in 1995. Tech defeated Air Force in that game 55-41.
• Tonight's game marked the first between Texas Tech and Minnesota and just the sixth contest against a member of the Big Ten Conference.
• Tonight's attendance was 48,391.
Starters - (Offense) - (LT) Glenn January, (LG) Louis Vasquez, (C) Brandon Jones, (RT) Gabe Hall, (RG) Manny Ramirez, (QB) Graham Harrell, (F) Shannon Woods (H) Danny Amendola, (X) LA Reed, (Y) Robert Johnson (Z) Joel Filani (Defense) - (LE) Keyunta Dawson, (NT) Chris Hudler, (DT) Dek Bake, (RE) Jake Ratliff, (SAM) Paul Williams, (MIKE) Brock Stratton, (WILL) Fletcher Session, (LC) Antonio Huffman, (SS) Joe Garcia, (FS) Darcel McBath, (RC) Chris Parker
TECH'S WIN. . .
• Gives Head Coach Mike Leach a career record of 56-33. Leach is in his seventh season at the helm of the Red Raiders.
• Gives Texas Tech an all-time bowl record of 9-20-1 and 4-3 under Mike Leach.
• Gives Texas Tech a final record of 8-5.
• Gives Texas Tech an all-time record of 1-5 against teams from the Big Ten and 1-2 in bowl games.
TRLICA SETS NCAA RECORD
Junior placekicker Alex Trlica set a new NCAA record when he connected on his 162nd consecutive extra point following Tech's first touchdown late in the second quarter. Trlica has never missed an extra point in his career at Tech.
LARGEST COMEBACK IN BOWL HISTORY
After being down by as much as 31 points in the third quarter (38-7), the Red Raiders came back to tie the game at 38 after four quarters. With a Shannon Woods 3 yard touchdown in overtime, the Red Raiders took the victory, marking the largest comeback in NCAA bowl history. The 2001 GMAC Bowl featuring Marshall and East Carolina held the previous record of 30 points.
NOTING THE RED RAIDERS
• Texas Tech fell behind 21-0 at the start of second quarter and it marked Tech's largest deficit in a bowl game since trailing 34-0 against East Carolina in the 2000 Galleryfurniture.com Bowl. The Red Raiders ended up losing to ECU 40-27 in what was Mike Leach's first bowl game as Texas Tech's head coach.
• Sophomore tailback Shannon Woods broke the Tech scoring drought when he scored on a one-yard run with 4:32 remaining in the second quarter. The rushing TD was his eighth of the season.
• Quarterback Graham Harrell turned in his first multiple turnover game since committing three against Colorado in a 30-6 loss to the Buffaloes back on Oct. 14.
• Senior defensive back Antonio Huffman picked up his second interception of the season but then fumbled the ball in the endzone on the same play and it was recovered my Minnesota. By rule, the play is ruled a touchback and Minnesota took the ball on the 20-yard line. Huffman's only other interception of the season was a 54-yard INT return for a touchdown at Oklahoma.
• Texas Tech gave up 35 first half points which was the most surrendered by the Tech defensive unit since giving up 31 at top-ranked Texas on Oct. 22, 2005.
• Senior wide receiver, and Phoenix native, Joel Filani hauled in a 43-yard touchdown pass with 4:58 remaining in the third quarter to give him 13 this season and 23 in his career. The 13 touchdown passes ties the school record for most in a single season (tied with Jarrett Hicks). The catch also moved him past Lloyd Hill for first place on the school's single-season receiving yardage list.
• Senior receiver Robert Johnson hauled in his 11th touchdown catch of the season with 14:56 remaining in the game and in the process moved into fifth place on the single-season TD receiving TD list.
• Junior Alex Trlica's 52 yard field goal to tie the game at 38 was a career long and the longest in Tech history since Chris Birkholz at Texas in 1998 (53 yard field goal). The boot tied the Insight Bowl record for longest kick.
• Texas Tech's comeback victory is the largest deficit to overcome in NCAA bowl history. For Tech it was the largest since 2002 against NC State when the Red Raiders were down by 28. Tech eventually lost in overtime.
• Sophomore quarterback Graham Harrell was named the offensive player of the game, with Antonio Huffman as the defensive player of the game.
• Joel Filani finished with 162 yards on 11 receptions, marking the most in each category in Tech bowl history.
• Tech scored 24 points in the fourth quarter, making the most in a single quarter in a bowl game by Texas Tech.
