Morton was hit in his helmet early in the third quarter when he was scrambling on a second-and-long from the Red Raiders' own 7-yard line and was taken to the locker room after colliding with Utah linebacker Johnathan Hall. Officials reviewed the play and determined there was no targeting foul.

Morton, a senior who entered this season as one of the school's top passing quarterbacks, also left the game in the first half for two plays after a hard hit and was replaced by redshirt freshman Will Hammond. He played in four games last year with one start, completing 35-of-57 passes (61.4%) for 471 yards and two touchdowns.

Texas Tech led 10-3 at the half of the Big 12 opener for both teams.