This was only the second meeting of the teams. Although both the Red Raiders and Sun Devils were members of the Border Conference from 1932–1956, neither team faced the other until the 1999 season when both universities were members of their current athletic conferences. The Red Raiders lost to the Sun Devils 13–31, in both teams' season opener at Sun Devil Stadium in Tempe, Arizona.
The Arizona State Sun Devils won the South Division Championship of the Pac-12 Conference after they defeated the UCLA Bruins on November 23, 2013. However, they lost the Pac-12 Championship Game to the Stanford Cardinal 38–14. Earlier in the season, the Sun Devils lost to the Cardinal 28–42, and the Notre Dame Fighting Irish 34–37.
The Texas Tech Red Raiders won their first seven games this season, but lost their last five games, including the last game to Texas Longhorns, 16–41. Texas Tech, along with Arkansas, Auburn, Baylor, Missouri, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, and Stanford, are the only teams to face four ranked opponents in AP Poll in the teams' final six games.