5 takeaways from Texas Tech's win over Sam Houston: Pick-sixes aid Raiders' cause

The Red Raiders got on the board first at the 5:11 mark of the first quarter, when a 35-yard pass to Kenny Johnson set up Cameron Dickey for a 1-yard touchdown run on the next play. Tech's offense went quiet after that, but the defense picked up the slack. Romaine intercepted a Brett Holloway pass that got batted into the air by the Red Raiders' defensive line and ran it back for a touchdown, then scored again on the very next Sam Houston play.

Tech struggled through a rough second quarter, according to the game recap, but Romaine's two touchdowns kept Sam Houston from making it a real contest. A 49-14 final margin sounds comfortable, but it wasn't a clean 60 minutes for the Red Raiders.

For anyone watching Tech head into conference play, the takeaway is simple: leaning on defensive touchdowns to cover for a shaky offense won't hold up against tougher competition.

Two pick-sixes from the same linebacker in the same quarter is the kind of stat line that decides a game before the offense ever has to figure itself out.