Why is Texas Tech's tortilla toss tradition banned? - ESPN

When No. 8 Texas Tech takes the field this Saturday against No. 7BYU (12 p.m. ET, ABC), the on-field action between the two top-10 Big 12 teams may seem familiar, but something will be missing from the game's opening kickoff aesthetic: tortillas won't be flying in Jones AT&T Stadium.

The signature sign a Red Raiders football game is taking place has been around since the late 1980s — home or away. It reached its peak during the 1990s and has since become cemented in college football lore.

While meant for Texas Tech fans, even some players have taken part in the tradition.

Most recently, during Colorado's 2024 matchup against the Red Raiders in Lubbock, former two-way Heisman Trophy winner and current Jacksonville Jaguars WR/CB Travis Hunter snagged a tortilla that landed a few inches in front of him on the field seconds before a Texas Tech snap and stuffed it in his pants.

Midgame snack? Perhaps.

But the tradition seems to be over after the Big 12 doubled down on a cancellation.

Here is everything you need to know about Texas Tech's tortilla tradition.

When and why did the tortilla toss begin?

In the late 1980s, Texas Tech fans would throw the lids of their 44-ounce Cokes onto the field, according to the Lubbock Avalanche Journal. Concessions discontinued the sales of the large sodas, resulting in fans resorting to a cheaper and easily accessible item: tortillas.

One theory traces the tradition back to 1992, when Texas Tech faced then-No. 5 Texas A&M in College Station and an announcer said there was «nothing but Tech football and a tortilla factory in Lubbock,» leading up to the game, prompting fans to toss tortillas in response.

When did the tortilla toss get banned?

Texas Tech officially announced the change to its