The Texas-Texas Tech rivalry has come back to life this offseason, even without a guaranteed annual matchup on the schedule. What once lingered quietly has grown into a steady exchange, as Steve Sarkisian’s subtle shots have not gone unnoticed in Lubbock. Cody Campbell and Joey McGuire answered with a simple message: settle it on the field. The tension now runs deeper than typical offseason banter.

“That was all fun and games, I mean, Sarkisian, if he’s going to run his mouth, we’re going to fight back. That’s West Texas, right? I mean, we’re not going to take a punch and then not give one back, right? And UT loves to do that kind of thing,” Cody Campbell said on Dan Dakich’s show on June 10, when asked about any headway on playing against Longhorn.”

“Sark obviously feels like he has a good team this year. So, he’s been saying a lot of things, and honestly, when they left the conference, they told us that they were going to play us every year and have found excuse after excuse to not play.”

Campbell is a billionaire oil tycoon who is a Texas Tech alumnus. He played offensive line for the Red Raiders from 2001 to 2004 and has been one of the program’s biggest supporters. Cody has donated $25 million to stadium reconstruction and co-founded the Matador Club NIL collective, which helped secure Texas Tech’s top-ranked 2025 transfer class. He has no problem admitting that Texas could be a very good team this season.

Still, he believes that whenever the conversation turns to facing the Red Raiders, the Longhorns tend to find a way to sidestep the matchup.

The long-standing rivalry had to be split when the Longhorns changed their conference and moved to the SEC. Still, Sarkisian finds ways of tormenting their in-state rivals; the recent encounter was when he questioned their scheduling system. Sarkisian, while discussing an entirely different topic, somehow landed on Texas Tech and added fuel to a dormant rivalry that ignited last in 2023 when the Red Raiders suffered a blowout of 57-7.

“There’s a team in our state that plays in another conference that has a schedule that I would argue if I played with our twos and our threes, we could go undefeated, and they’ll probably make the CFP this year,” Sarkisian said at the Houston Touchdown Club.

Joey McGuire stood up for his team and openly called out the Longhorns to play a game, even saying he would buy out existing scheduling commitments to make the matchup happen. That is not something a head coach tosses out lightly, but he was well backed by the program’s top booster. He even offered specific dates: September 3 or September 5, at any location Texas wants.

While Sarkisian did not comment on McGuire’s statement or the possibility of a matchup at first, he later backtracked on his words. Campbell saw this as an excuse for not playing Texas Tech. Sarkisian later clarified that his wording may not have been accurate, but the feeling behind it stays the same. He said the bigger question was about CFP scheduling and that he did not mean to take jabs at his in-state rival.

“I understand why they don’t want to play us. There’s no upside in it for them, you know, and um, and we’ve gotten to be pretty good. So, I understand why they don’t want to play us. But look, they should play us. This is a traditional rivalry. It’s important to college football to preserve these rivalries,” Campbell said.

His statement pierced many Texas Tech fans, since the thought of a matchup felt like a chance for redemption after the 57-7 blowout from 2023. This is not overconfidence. It is a well-thought-out strategy.

Texas Tech and the reason for the demand for a duel

While it seems like they are challenging the Longhorns again, keeping it subtle, hiding behind the mask of preserving the rivalry. Texas Tech has nothing to lose if the game does happen; in fact, it can help them tremendously. By calling out Texas, they challenge the Longhorns to prove they are one of the best teams in the country.

Campbell made this point clear on Pat McAfee’s show on May 29, when he called out Texas:

“So you know, you and I talk a lot about Texas. But I don’t know if you know the difference between bulls and steers. Do you know the difference? Look, there’s an important physical difference, and this is a family show. So I’m not going to lay it out to you.”

“But I think a lot of your viewers know. You get maybe some of your guys to look it up. But Bevo, the Longhorns mascot, is a steer, and it’s become very clear that there are quite a few steers down in Austin and not very many, very many bulls.”

If they claim this victory, they will earn the crown of defeating a powerhouse. If they lose, it would increase their CFP ranking and help with getting better scheduling. After winning the Big 12 last season, it is worth a shot for the champions.

Longhorns have sprayed water on the situation, and the likelihood of the game is low in September.  But with the ongoing media clash between the two teams, anything can happen.