Kingsbury served as quarterback for the Texas Tech Red Raiders under coaches Spike Dykes and Mike Leach from 1998 to 1999 and 2000 to 2002, respectively. During his 43 games at Texas Tech, Kingsbury completed 1,229 of 1,881 passes for 12,423 yards, 95 touchdowns and 40 interceptions. Kingsbury held 39 school records, 13 Big 12 Conference records, and 7 NCAA FBS records after his college playing days.
Kingsbury played six games as a redshirt rookie in 1999, starting the final game of the season against Oklahoma. In his freshman season, he completed 25 57 passes for 492 yards, four touchdowns and one interception.
He reclaimed the starting position in 2000, completing 362 of 585 passes for 3,418 yards, 21 touchdowns and 17 interceptions. Out of 78 carries, he added two more scores. With a final score of 40-27 against the East Carolina Pirates in the Gallery-Furniture.com Bowl, his season came to an end.
As a junior in 2001, Kingsbury’s efforts earned him first-team All-District and second-team All-Big 12 Conference selections. For 3,502 yards, 25 touchdowns and just nine interceptions, he threw 365 of 528.
