Tech Very Close... But No Upset Over UT

Lubbock, TX (Sports Network) - Colt McCoy threw for 256 yards and four touchdowns as fifth-ranked Texas roared back to beat intrastate rival Texas Tech, 35-31. Jamaal Charles ran for 85 yards for the Longhorns (8-1, 5-0 Big 12), who have won a league-record 20 straight Big 12 games. Quan Cosby caught seven balls for 79 yards and a touchdown while Nate Jones, Jordan Shipley and Limas Sweed also caught TD passes for Texas. "We played hard, but we didn`t play well at times," said Texas coach Mack Brown. "I want to congratulate Texas Tech, I thought they played as well as I`ve ever seen them. A lot of times we were covering them and they were sticking it in there, then we were hitting them and they were hanging on to the ball. That first half was about as masterful as I`ve ever seen." Meanwhile, the Longhorns defense was hurt through the air but gave up minus- one rushing yards on the day. The dynamic Graham Harrell completed 42-of-62 passes for 519 yards with three touchdowns and an interception for the Red Raiders (5-4, 2-3), who have lost three of their past four games. "There were some things that happened in the game, in particular the second half, that were very detrimental to our effort," said Red Raiders coach Mike Leach. "I was very proud of how our guys played. That was the best game that we played this year." Jarrett Hicks had nine receptions for 156 yards and a touchdown for Texas Tech, while Shannon Woods and Eric Morris also caught TD passes from Harrell. Down, 21-0 Texas finally awoke in the second quarter when McCoy found a wide- open Jones in the back of the end zone for a 16-yard touchdown with 11:18 left before intermission. Texas Tech did not panic, however, and pushed the lead back to 17, 24-7, on Alex Trlicka`s 20-yard field goal But, the Longhorns got right back into it with consecutive touchdown passes from McCoy. First, the redshirt freshman hooked-up with Shipley for a 27-yard touchdown and then he went deep to find Sweed for a 45-yard score. The Red Raiders bounced back to cap the scoring in the run-and-gun first half. Hicks made a beautiful catch on a long fade from Harrell to give Texas Tech a 31-21 edge at intermission. Texas kept pressing and drew within a field goal midway through the third quarter when Selvin Young plunged in from a yard out. The Longhorns then took their first lead when McCoy capped a quick five-play, 63-yard march by finding Cosby for a 28-yard score. Things settled down from there but the Red Raiders got a gift late in the game. Antwan Cobb went up the middle for Texas and fumbled. Jake Ratliff recovered the miscue at the Texas 24-yard line but Texas Tech failed to take advantage. After Joel Filani set up at 4th-and short with a nine-yard gain on a screen pass, Harrell failed to get the rest on a quarterback sneak and the ball reverted back to Texas with 4:24 on the clock. The Longhorns were able to run out the clock from there and secure the victory. The Red Raiders shocked Texas with three touchdowns in the opening quarter. On their first possession of the game, Harrell capped a quick eight-play drive by finding Shannon Woods for an 18-yard TD. Then, after forcing a fumble, Texas Tech went right back to work. Harrell continued to gash the Longhorns through the air and Morris capped the drive by taking it in from two yards out to give the Red Raiders a 14-0 edge with 6:31 left in the opening quarter. Fletcher Session finished the onslaught by intercepting an ill-advised McCoy pass and taking it back 19 yards for a score with just over a minute left in the frame. Game Notes Texas has lost only four road games in its last 108 bouts, two of those setbacks have come in Lubbock (1998, 2002)...The `Horns have won a school- record 17 straight and 29 of their last 30 true road games. 10/29 01:26:24 ET