Texas Tech National Signing Day: The Wins Keep Coming For The Red Raiders

There has been plenty of talk this week about the college football calendar being cattywampus. Even Joey McGuire offered his solution to the calendar this week in an appearance on “The Pat McAfee Show.” But McGuire’s and Texas Tech’s stock has never been higher. They are playing in the Big 12 championship game on Saturday for the first time in program history. McGuire signed a new extension to keep him in Lubbock until 2032. If all of that wasn’t enough music for Red Raider fans’ ears, the Texas Tech national signing day festivities went without any surprises.

As of Thursday morning, Texas Tech’s 2026 high school recruiting class ranks 19th in the nation according to 247’s Composite rankings. It ranks as the best class in the Big 12 for 2026. It is a class that includes two five-star and five four-star rated recruits.  Prior to the 2025 class, Texas Tech had never signed a five-star recruit out of high school. The class total 20 signees, with 13 three-star recruits rounding out the class. The average ranking of each player in the class is 89.42.

This metric helps contextualize how good, on average, the players each program has signed are. Class rankings are determined by composite scores. By the metric of average player ranking, Texas Tech would rank 17th nationally. For context, the top three classes nationally currently have 35 (USC), 21 (Oregon), and 27 (Notre Dame) commitments. The average player rankings for each of those classes are 91.80, 93.29, and 92.67.

Texas Tech General Manager James Blanchard has overseen a complete transformation of how this program acquires talent. Yes, the prominent influence of mega-booster Cody Campbell, as well as tremendous support from the Matador Club (Texas Tech’s NIL collective), has been well-documented. But for a program with a long reputation for lacking game-changing players in the trenches, Blanchard and McGuire have changed that drastically. Look no further than this year’s defensive line as proof. Names like David Bailey, Romello Height, Lee Hunter, Skyler Gill-Howard, and A.J. Holmes Jr. have completely transformed the identity of this program.

While the names listed were all transfers, the focus on getting the best high school players in the trenches on both lines of scrimmage remains the priority. The class is headlined by two linemen on opposite sides of the ball. The first name is offensive tackle Felix Ojo. The five-star recruit is from Mansfield, Texas, and is rated as the 13th best overall player in 2026. The 6’6’ 275-pounder will no doubt fill out his frame and looks like an anchor on the offensive line for years. The other five-star recruit is EDGE LaDamion Guyton. Coming from Savannah, Georgia, Guyton is rated as the 15th best overall player, and this staff hopes they can transform him into the next Bailey.

Under Matt Wells, Texas Tech’s national signing day brought very little excitement. His three high school recruiting classes averaged 55th nationally. Programs in that 53-57 range this year are Purdue, Northwestern, Cal, Arkansas, and UNLV. The average player ranking for those classes is around 86. The late Mike Leach had an average class ranked 46th. In Senator Tommy Tuberville’s brief time in Lubbock, he brought in classes that averaged 28th. Kliff Kingsbury’s seven classes averaged out to 49th. While the class isn’t officially completed yet for McGuire, his four classes have ranked 28, 24, 48, and now 19 nationally (average ranking of 29.75).

If this class doesn’t get passed with late additions by other programs/continues to sign players, McGuire will be the first coach in the modern recruiting era for Texas Tech to sign three classes ranked in the top 30 nationally. They have already made big splashes in the 2027 class. Texas Tech has received verbal commitments from two four-star and two five-star recruits. That includes a commitment from the number one-ranked quarterback, Kavian Bryant. The on-field results of 2025 are proof of concept for the next players to join this program. The alignment of the athletic department, coaching staff, and boosters is showing up on the recruiting trail. Red Raider fans should expect continued climbs up the national rankings in the years ahead, with the next Texas Tech national signing day in 2027 and beyond.

Main Photo: Michael C. Johnson-Imagn Images