Texas Tech president touts record enrollment, research growth in State of the University address - KCBD

That number reflects 13% growth over the last two years, and Schovanec says the pipeline keeps filling. The university received nearly 73,000 applications this past fall, more than double what it saw a decade ago. Schovanec's speech also touched on research initiatives and athletic achievements, though enrollment numbers carried the address.

For a campus that anchors so much of Lubbock's economy and identity, from the Depot District bars packed on football Saturdays to the rental market around Tech Terrace, that kind of growth ripples outward fast. More students means more demand for housing, more traffic on Broadway and University, and more pressure on a city that has watched Tech expand year after year. Landlords, restaurant owners and anyone renting a room near campus will feel it before city planners catch up.

For families in Lubbock, it's a signal that Tech isn't just holding steady, it's becoming harder to get into. More applications mean more competition for local kids hoping to walk across campus on a hometown scholarship.

Less than half of Lubbock's entire population wanted a spot on this campus.