LUBBOCK - Texas Tech's season was on the line as Thomas Castellanos' looping pass over the middle hung in the air, seemingly heading toward two teammates at the same time.

An incompletion would've put the ball back in the hands of West Virginia, which had surged to a second-half comeback.

READ MORE: Texas Tech QB Thomas Castellanos Building Trust with New-Look Offense

A potential loss, the second of the season for the Red Raiders, would likely have dropped their odds of returning to the Big 12 Championship game and the College Football Playoff to insurmountable lows.

But wide receiver Micah Hudson leapt through the air to corral the crucial fourth-down conversion, a pick-up of 26 yards to extend a drive that put the Red Raiders ahead for good on Castellanos' 5-yard touchdown to Kenny Johnson.

Castellanos explained the growing trust between himself and Hudson after their clutch connection last weekend.

"It's kinda crazy, right before the drive, Micah actually told me - and I'm not lying - 'Bro, if nothing's open, I got you with a scramble,'" the quarterback said.

"And that's what happened. Fourth down, game on the line - season on the line. Gotta have it. He's one of our best receivers and my job's to try to get him involved more, and so he can display plays like that."

Hudson finished with just one other catch in the game, a 50-yard gain. Though his 5-star recruitment hasn't lived up to many of the expectations he began his college career with, this chemistry with Texas Tech's new starter will bode well for the Red Raiders.

Johnson had been Will Hammond's favorite target until Castellanos took over behind center two games ago, both electric offensive wins by Texas Tech.

The fifth-year transfer provides a unique blend of decision-making and versatility in extending plays with his legs, like he did to evade pressure and find Hudson on the game-winning series.

"It's cool to have a quarterback that can run the ball and just make stuff happen," lineman Sheridan Wilson said. "He's really, really shifty and he's very, very fast."

Joining Castellanos in the backfield was J'Koby Williams, whose 160 rushing yards made for his third game of 100 or more yards in the ground over the last four weeks.

But through the air, Texas Tech will be without receiver captain Coy Eakin after the senior broke his hand against the Mountaineers.

As Castellanos finds his footing more and more in the offense, his rapport with playmakers like Hudson will bode well for the Red Raiders chances the rest of the way.

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"Every week we're getting better," Hudson said about playing with Castellanos. "So, that's all we can ask for."

No. 12 Texas Tech visits another pass-heavy team in No. 25 Oklahoma State on Saturday night in Stillwater.

Source: Yahoo Sports