Big 12 Breakdown and The Big Question For Each School : #1 Texas Tech
By Cade Welty and Sean A Dillon
We’re breaking down the Big 12 as we get closer to the 2026 season. We’re breaking down each team getting closer and closer to #1. Today we look at Texas Tech.
#16 – Iowa State #15 – Colorado #14 – Kansas #13 – cincinnati #12 – Oklahoma State #11 West Virginia #10 UCF #9 Baylor
#8 – TCU #7 – Arizona State #6 – Arizona #5 – Houston #4 – Kansas State #3 – Utah #2 – BYU # 1 – Texas Tech
Texas Tech: Repeat Big 12 Champs?
Following their best season in program history the Red Raiders with a 12-2 record and disappointing loss in the CFP semi finals to Oregon in the Orange Bowl. They look to accomplish a feat that has not been done since the 2019 and 2020 seasons. Winning back to back conference titles in Arlington. If those are able to win it again they would join Oklahoma as the only teams to accomplish it.
To add some context The Big 12 had a conference title game from 1996-2010 and then it was brought back in 2017 where OU dominated all the way until 2020. But since then nobody has had repeated appearances either. So for the Texas Tech Red Raiders they are battling history in 2026 after breaking it in 2025.
Can you beat history?
This moves us into the 2026 season and their expectation to repeat as conference champs. There is a vibe around the program that the 2026 team is deeper and more talented. The backing on this is the fact nobody had J-Rod or David Bailey as top players in college football.
Head coach Joey McGuire during local media days echoed terms of depth that he hasn’t had in the past. McGuire spoke on the defensive line depth stating there are 6 players who have played college football. He also stated this is the deepest team he has had since taking over as head coach in 2022. After the spring game he also said “I do think that this offensive line has a chance to be really good.. What is exciting is there is real depth behind it”
In a media scrum on August 13th, 2026, WR coach Juice Johnson also preached the depth of the WR room and how they plan on rotating almost 7 players each game.
So depth is the common wording around the 2026 Texas Tech football team with guys who could be game breakers coming in for the “starters” with names such as Malcom Simmons and Jalen Jones for the WRs.
A dive into the 2026 roster.
Texas Tech returns 13 productive starters from their 2025 team. 7 on the offense and 6 on the defense and there are easy reasons to believe they will be back in Arlington come December. The Red Raiders added 22 transfers to that group in the portal with the top class in the Big 12 and 4th overall according to On3.
After being shutout in the Orange Bowl the Red Raiders had some question marks on offense heading into the 2025-26 offseason. Well now it is August and those remarks have since been quieter outside of QB talk as Sophomore Will Hammond will take the reins to lead the offense for week one against ACU. Hammond was viewed as the starter for 2026 before and after the ACL tear. With 12 total touchdowns and a great ability to create plays with his legs there is a reason to believe he can win them a playoff game during the 2026 season.
WRU?:
Heading over to the WR room that is headlined by Junior WR Micah Hudson and Senior Coy Eakin. Both of those WRs are the known guys for the offense but the additions of Pitt transfer Kenny Johnson, Liberty WR Donte Lee, Alabama State Hornets Jalen Jones and Auburn WR Malcom Simmons. All of those guys who were added were starters at their previous school in 2025 or before. The TE room returns a top 3 TE in Terrance Carter Jr and a voted top 10 TE Jett Carpenter who transferred in from Nevada. Carter and Carpenter had a combined 90 catches with 998 yards and 7 touchdowns.
Best RB Room in Country?
Throw in returning 3 offensive lineman and one in the portal who has seen a lot of football and 4 out of 5 are veteran guys. That 5th guy is Hunter Zambrano who missed most of 2025 battling a foot injury and was a top OL transfer during the 2024-25 portal cycle. The offense has so much depth but what if we told you the defense could have more. That line will get to block for the best RB room in the entire country according to PFF with Dickey, Williams and Joyner all returning for the 2026 season.
Defense:
The 2026 defense returns Big 12 Preseason Defensive Player of the Year AJ Holmes. The DT has been a major development at Texas Tech as he went from the 2 deep interior guy to an outright star by the end of the season. Remember the quote about 6 guys who can all play for Tech at that position? Well throw in Mateen Ibirogba a huge 6 ‘4 300lb transfer from Wake Forest it is scary times for opposing offensive lines. Depth pieces of Washington Transfer Bryce Butler, Akron’s Julien Laventure, Jojo Johnson and returner Jayden Cofield round out the deepest DL room in the Big 12. Oh and don’t forget about the edge rush duo of Adam Trick and Trey White both who transferred in together this past portal cycle. Both of those players are in the top 15 for most productive rushers since joining college football.
To keep things short the Red Raiders also returned Brice Pollock who was 7th in the nation with 5 INTs and Amier Boyd who is ready for a huge jump in year 2 at Texas Tech. The Safety Room returns Brenden Jordan to complete the secondary.
And thennnnn:
Oh how could we forget a top 3 LB room in the country with Big 12 conference game MVP Ben Roberts, STAR John Curry and the best LB in the Big 12 besides J-Rod in transfer Austin Romaine and it is pretty clear to see how that unit is one of the best in the country. They also have solid depth with Corey Platt reuniting with his former DC Shiel Wood.
A full page worth of roster breakdown and it is no shock to see why the buzz around Lubbock is team depth. From WR Kenny Johson saying their 3’s are better than some starters he played with to head coach Joey McGuire saying this is the deepest team he has had. It is no shock to none that this could be the team to OU as the only back to back conference champ.
Texas Tech 2026 Football Schedule :
Conference Games *
9/5/2026, ACU : 6:00 P.M. CT
9/12/2026, at Oregon State, Time : 6:30 P.M. CT
9/18/2026, Houston * : 7:00 P.M. CT
9/26/2026, Sam Houston , Time : TBA
10/3/2026, at Colorado*, Time : TBA
10/17/2026, Arizona State * , Time : TBA
10/24/2026, at Cincinnati * , Time : TBA
10/31/2026, Arizona *, Time : TBA
11/7/2026, West Virgina *, Time : TBA
11/14/2026, at Oklahoma State * , Time : TBA
11/21/2026, at Baylor * , Time : TBA
11/26/2026, TCU * Time : 7:00 P.M CT
Sean’s Thoughts:
Well, well, well. Some of you are shocked that I, a Texas Tech reporter, would put Texas Tech at #1.
Get off Centennial Champion’s ass while you’re at it. So he didn’t gallop fast like Fearless Champion or Midnight Matador, but he did what he had to do. If you’re complaining about a mascot horse’s top-end speed, you’re missing the forest for the trees. The horse paced himself, just like Joey McGuire is pacing this program. Maintain what they did last year and win another Big 12 Championship.
People ask why the future non-conference slate isn’t loaded with blue bloods. It’s simple: Joey McGuire and James Blanchard have turned Lubbock into an absolute death trap, and the rest of college football knows it. Nobody wants to put their precious playoff hopes on the line against us. To paraphrase A Few Good Men:
“You don’t want to play the Red Raiders. Deep down, in places you don’t talk about at booster dinners, you want us on that TV screen, but you sure as hell don’t want us on your schedule.”
The cowardice is loud, friends. But the tape doesn’t lie.
QB1:
Like Cade and many others have said, the depth of this team is extraordinary. So they gambled and tried to get the best non-injured QB in the portal for even more depth. Sometimes even the biggest favorites lose. I mean, Texas A&M was an 18.5-point favorite over Appalachian State before losing in 2022. Texas was a 31-point favorite before losing by 1 to Kansas in 2021. People think that Brendan Sorsby was destined to lead the Red Raiders, but to all reasonable people, he was a pick for the glue factory in the end.
Everyone spent all spring lamenting the portal quarterback carousel like Will Hammond wasn’t sitting right there in Lubbock with a repaired ACL and a chip on his shoulder the size of the South Plains. If you don’t think he had every article pinned up in his house ready for revenge, then son:
“Those of you lucky enough to still have your lives, take them with you! However, leave the limbs you’ve lost! They belong to me, now!”
Recruiting:
So some pundits will knock Will Hammond. Some will knock the defense after losing Bailey and Rodriguez. But James Blanchard has built a juggernaut. This will be his magnum opus, and the fat lady hasn’t even gotten dressed yet. Recruiting is the lifeblood of any program, and the Red Raiders’ belief in real relationships is why they win. Blanchard is out here playing 4D chess in the portal while the rest of the Big 12 is still trying to figure out how NIL works. 22 transfers in, 4th-ranked class nationally, it’s not a rebuild, it’s a hostile takeover.
Taking back a player who actually LEFT the program because they knew they could help him get where he needed to be is why this team is different. Blanchard is out there like Gordon Gekko:
“I create nothing. I own. We make the rules, pal. The news, war, peace, famine, upheaval, the price per paper clip. We pick that rabbit out of the hat while everybody sits out there wondering how the hell we did it. Now you’re not naive enough to think we’re living in a democracy, are you buddy? It’s the free market. And you’re a part of it. You’ve got that killer instinct. Stick around pal, I’ve still got a lot to teach you.”
The attitude and culture Joey McGuire has built, Cody Campbell, the Matador Club, and the fans of the Red Raiders have supported have put this team in a place where few fans have ever imagined.
Final Thoughts:
So as I cover the team from halfway across the state, I’ll put it in words Wyatt Earp and Doc Holliday would understand:
“Go grab that CFP appearance and make her your own. Take that Championship from it, don’t look back. Live every second. Live right on to the end. Live for Red Raiders. Make history again. Joey McGuire, if you were ever my friend—if ya ever had even the slightest of feelin’ for giving it to Aggies, Longhorns, and the rest of the haters, win it now. Win it now… Please.”
So the Red Raiders will win the Big 12. Everyone is going to knock you and hate you, but all it takes now is 13 football games and a bit of luck. So put on the black hat, Red Raiders.
You’re a daisy if you do!