McGuire Dares Texas to Play, Offers to Buy Out Two Games
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- Steve Sarkisian told a crowd earlier this month that Texas' schedule was markedly tougher than Texas Tech's, arguing the Longhorns' "twos and threes" could go undefeated against it and that the Red Raiders would "probably make the CFP this year" despite playing in a weaker conference.
- Joey McGuire fired back with an open invitation at the Big 12's spring meetings, saying "We would love to play Texas" and offering to buy out Texas Tech's scheduled games against Texas State and Abilene Christian to clear a Week 1 slot — in Lubbock or at AT&T Stadium.
- Cody Campbell, a Texas Tech board of regents member, publicly escalated on social media, writing that "@TechAthletics will pay the buyout for both the ACU and Texas State games" and tagging Sarkisian and Texas AD Chris Del Conte directly.
- McGuire floated AT&T Stadium as an alternative venue, noting that Campbell has already had conversations with Dallas Cowboys CEO Stephen Jones about hosting a Texas-Texas Tech game at the NFL venue.
- McGuire closed his response with a direct challenge: "We'll find out if their twos and threes can win in this conference," putting the burden on Sarkisian to either schedule the game or stand by the claim.
- Sarkisian drew a separate controversy in the same press cycle by suggesting Ole Miss had an easier time luring transfers because of lax academic standards, quipping that transfers could "major in basket weaving."
Why it matters: Texas Tech's offer to pay buyouts for two scheduled non-conference games transforms a public spat into a concrete scheduling proposition with real money on the table. The challenge forces Texas to either accept a marquee non-conference game — with CFP-stakes implications given Sarkisian's own framing — or leave his claim that backups could go undefeated against that slate untested, all while a regent and the Dallas Cowboys' CEO are already in the loop on a potential venue.
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