The Texas Tech Red Raiders’ Big 12 championship game against the BYU Cougars kicked off at noon ET on Saturday. The Red Raiders and linebacker Jacob Rodriguez are in the national spotlight as the program chases a conference crown and a College Football Playoff berth.
Rodriguez’s story is familiar now. A high-school quarterback who began at Virginia, then returned to Texas Tech and converted to linebacker. He arrived as a walk-on, slept on his brother’s apartment floor and took out a student loan, then bulked up, learned the position and earned a scholarship. The switch paid off. This season, he’s piled up 101 tackles, seven forced fumbles and four interceptions while leading Texas Tech’s defense.
Off the field, Jacob and his wife Emma announced a new philanthropic partnership with Premier Auto Group of Texas and Randon Blacklock to serve military and veteran families…