Castellanos gets start, lifts Texas Tech to win over Arizona - ESPN

LUBBOCK, Texas — A week after a disappointing loss to Cincinnati, a switch at quarterback ignited Texas Tech's struggling offense, keeping their Big 12 championship and College Football Playoff hopes alive with the No. 13 Red Raiders' 34-26 win over No. 22 Arizona.

The offense got new life and Thomas Castellanos got his first start in a Red Raiders uniform after he started 33 games in a career that included UCF, Boston College and Florida State. Castellanos got the start over Will Hammond and threw for 144 yards and two touchdowns — a 24-yarder to Terrance Carter Jr. and a 27-yarder to Kenny Johnson — and rushed for 117 and another score. And he says he's a new man in Lubbock.

«I feel like Tommy was the last four years,» he said. «I'm Thomas now. Tommy was given to me. I never asked to be Tommy. I never chose to be Tommy. People just started calling me Tommy and I just accepted it. But I want to be called Thomas now.»

Texas Tech coach Joey McGuire will call him whatever he wants after he helped Tech rebound from what McGuire said was a really difficult week.

«I'm usually always a person that can get to what's next after a loss and I couldn't this week,» McGuire said. «I felt it. We really disappointed our university. We disappointed our alumni and it was a tough week.»

Last Sunday, he and offensive coordinator Mack Leftwich met and decided to make a change at quarterback. They told Castellanos and Hammond on Monday, and McGuire said Hammond responded by saying all he wanted what was best for the team.

A week after he didn't appear at all in the game against Cincinnati, which McGuire called a «total failure» on his part, Castellanos played wire to wire. His legs opened running lanes for running back J'Koby Williams in an