How Texas Tech fans crafted fascinating plan to upstage Texas at Erwin Center

Texas Longhorns basketball head coach Chris Beard has become public enemy No. 1 in Lubbock, Texas. After leaving the Texas Tech program in the offseason, the Red Raiders faithful welcomed Beard back to the United Supermarkets Arena in an astonishing fashion on Feb. 1 and more importantly, got the win.

However, Beard may not even be safe from Texas Tech fans in Austin. As the two once again meet up on Saturday, there may be a red and black takeover at the Frank Erwin Center.

According to Brian Davis of the Austin American-Statesman, Texas stopped the sale of public tickets for the game on Thursday, despite the game not being sold out. The Longhorns said the remaining tickets would be used by students who have “Big Ticket” athletic pass. If you want to attend Saturday afternoon’s matchup, it will cost you anywhere between $115-$1,235.

Later in his report, Davis mentioned how Texas Tech fans have bought a significant amount of tickets, possibly through season ticket holders. According to one of his sources, a Texas fan could have given out the specific code to buy public tickets, which then made its way through Red Raiders’ message boards. It’s possible a lot of season tickets were purchased by Lubbock residents as well just for Saturday’s game.

Just as this is an important game for both sets of fans, it will be an important one from a Big 12 perspective as well.

Texas is currently on a four game winning streak, defeating Iowa State, Kansas, Baylor, and Oklahoma over the past two weeks. Texas Tech has been playing well too, winning three out of their last four.

While Kansas may have a strong hold on the Big 12 regular-season championship, high seeds are still up for grabs in the NCAA Tournament. Both the Longhorns and Red Raiders will desperately want wins to improve their placement come March.

Texas Tech welcomes Chris Beard back to Lubbock

Less than a month ago, there was a crazy scene in Lubbock for the return of Beard. Students were camping out for days, wanting to get into the game to say their piece. Even before the game, some got some shots in.

Texas Tech fans decided to gather and greet the Texas bus on Feb. 1 night as the team and Beard arrived. They started out with some simple boos, before turning toward a chant — showing their displeasure with the Longhorns overall.

You can watch the full sequence here. Warning — there is strong language.

Texas Tech fans with the chant to welcome Chris Beard home. pic.twitter.com/B16HUPK8O7

— Jeff Goodman (@GoodmanHoops) February 1, 2022