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Texas Tech Coach Pleads for Fans to Stop Throwing Tortillas on Field vs. Colorado

Joey McGuire grabbed a microphone and directly addressed the crowd at Jones AT&T Stadium.

Tom Dierberger

McGuire is in his third season on the Red Raiders' sidelines.
McGuire is in his third season on the Red Raiders' sidelines. / James Snook-Imagn Images

In the middle of the fourth quarter in a tightly contested game against Colorado, Texas Tech coach Joey McGuire grabbed a microphone and directly addressed the crowd at Jones AT&T Stadium on Saturday night.

His request was pretty simple.

"Stop throwing stuff on the field," McGuire said over the loudspeakers. "Students, stop throwing stuff on the field! Please!"

Texas Tech fans had been throwing tortillas and other garbage onto the field throughout the game. At one point, Colorado star two-way player Travis Hunter grabbed a tortilla that fell onto the field and stuffed it inside his pants right before a snap.

Although it's unclear how the tradition started, Texas Tech fans have thrown tortillas around since the late 1980s or early 1990s. One theory suggests it began when an ESPN announcer joked that Lubbock, Texas, had "nothing but Texas Tech football and a tortilla factory."

Regardless, McGuire would greatly prefer if the tortillas were used to make celebratory postgame burritos instead of ending up in the field of play.

McGuire's Red Raiders jumped out to a 13–0 lead over Colorado on Saturday only to see the Buffaloes storm back and take the lead for good early in the third quarter.

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Tom Dierberger
TOM DIERBERGER

Tom Dierberger is a staff writer and editor on the Breaking and Trending News team at Sports Illustrated. He joined SI in November 2023 after stints at FOX Sports, Bally Sports and NBC Sports. Dierberger has a bachelor's in communication from St. John's University. In his spare time, he can be seen throwing out his arm while playing fetch with his dog, Walter B. Boy.

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