Alan Bowman is becoming more comfortable in the offense.

That much was evident Saturday afternoon as the Texas Tech freshman quarterback not only broke a four-year old Big 12 Conference single-game freshman passing record, but also earned his second career start and victory.

The other obvious fact? Junior wideout Antoine Wesley and freshman running back Ta'Zhawn Henry have developed into go-to playmakers for the Red Raiders offense.

Bowman threw for 605 yards and five touchdowns, while Wesley ended with a career-high 261 receiving yards and three scores and Henry ended with 111 rushing yards and four touchdowns, powering Texas Tech to a 63-49 victory over Houston at Jones AT&T Stadium.

With the win, Texas Tech (2-1) has won eight of the last nine games against the Cougars (2-1) in the all-time series.

"You know, those guys stepped up," Texas Tech coach Kliff Kingsbury said of Bowman, Wesley and Henry. "We were having a hard time running the ball initially, so the passing game got going. Bowman missed a couple early that he usually doesn't miss, but settled in and protected the ball well, made a bunch of good decisions and got us rolling. It was a good game to build even more confidence going into conference as far as his progression as the QB goes."

Bowman, who completed his first six passes to begin the game and finished with 605 yards and five touchdown tosses, led the Red Raiders offense on a six-play, 75-yard drive on its first possession to take a 7-0 advantage by the 12:58 mark of the first quarter. It was a sign of positive things to come for the former Grapevine High School standout, who continued to make smart plays despite making his second collegiate start and broke a Big 12 single-game passing record held by previous Texas Tech standout Patrick Mahomes II (598 yards back in 2014).

More so, he helped Wesley and Ja'Deion High — who was celebrating his 24th birthday — enjoy career days. High, a sixth-year senior, secured all seven passes thrown his way for 120 yards. Wesley ended his day ranking first in single-game yardage leaders, shattering Joel Filani's mark of of 255 yards against Kansas State back in 2005.

"I'm just trying to make more of a presence on the offensive side, be there as a leader for everybody," High said of his performance. "I've been here six years, I've got young guys around me, so I'm trying to let them know what they need to do now in order to be successful later, giving them the answers now so they don't have to learn so much on their own so they can be successful earlier in their careers."

Texas Tech was certainly successful on the offensive side early on, but so were the Cougars.

After the Red Raiders scored on their opening possession, Houston answered thanks in part to an eight-play, 75-yard drive capped off by an 18-yard touchdown pass from D'Eriq King to Rael Singleton to even things up at 7-7.

Both teams went back-and-forth, trading scores, until the Red Raiders gained possession under the two-minute mark.

Bowman, a second-semester freshman, showed the poise of a grizzled veteran in the pocket. The 6-foot-3, 210-pound signal caller led the Texas Tech offense on an eight-play, 57-yard march — capped off by a 1-yard touchdown pass from Bowman to T.J. Vasher — to provide the Red Raiders with a 35-28 advantage at halftime.

"I think being able to take the lead at halftime, kind of flip it, we were chasing, but being able to take the lead there gave us some confidence going into the locker room, and then coming out and score that first drive out, I think we felt good about things," Kingsbury said when asked if there were any turning points in the game.

Both teams continued to score in the final two quarters before Texas Tech's defense created a stop and a bit of breathing room en route to the home victory.

"I feel like our guys fought all the way until the end," said Texas Tech senior linebacker Dakota Allen, who finished with team-high nine tackles, including one for loss. "We've been harping about finishing. And I feel like we did that today."

Player of the game

Antoine Wesley, Jr. WR, Texas Tech

After going through a grueling offseason, which included hip surgery, Wesley got to enjoy a top flight game against Houston. The 6-foot-5, 200-pound wideout caught 13 passes for 261 yards and three touchdowns. Before Saturday, Wesley's sophomore career stats were: 10 catches for 137 yards and zero touchdowns.

Notable

Heading into Saturday's contest, Texas Tech was one of 12 schools to not allow a sack. That all changed when Alan Bowman was taken down once to break the clean sheet held by the Red Raiders offensive line. ... Speaking of Bowman, the freshman ranked fifth in terms of top single-game passing performances with his 605-yard performance Saturday. He 's behind Cody Hodges, who threw for 643 yards back in 2005 ... Jah'Shawn Johnson (shoulder), Tre King (knee) and Da'Leon Ward were held out.

What's next

Texas Tech is scheduled to begin Big 12 Conference play with a 6 p.m. Sept. 22 road game against Oklahoma State.