Texas Tech Football 2026 Preview: Is Will Hammond Enough To Lead A College Football Playoff Charge?

Texas Tech proved their model could work last season, winning the Big 12 and reaching the College Football Playoff before getting shut out by Oregon. Now the Red Raiders enter 2026 with arguably the best roster and easiest schedule in the conference, but also with one enormous question at quarterback. Will Hammond is coming back from an ACL injury and has flashed major upside, yet outside of a huge performance against Utah, we still haven’t seen him prove he can consistently lead this offense as a full-time starter.

Fortunately, Texas Tech has plenty around him, including a loaded running back room, an intriguing group of pass catchers and enough talent on defense to remain the conference favorite despite losing several stars. The bigger question is whether Joey McGuire’s program can graduate from dominating the Big 12 to actually winning games in the playoff, and whether this offense can develop the kind of lethal identity it lacked against Oregon.

.

*☝️ SUPPORT THE SHOW:* verballers.com

*👉 FOLLOW ON YOUR FAVORITE PODCAST APPS:

🍎 Apple Podcasts: apple.co/3r2iQcY
🟢 Spotify: spoti.fi/45NCifc
🟡 Amazon Music: amzn.to/49irJmD
🟧 Overcast: bit.ly/SVOvercast
🎧 Pocket Casts: bit.ly/SVonPocketCasts
📱 Podcast Addict: bit.ly/SVPodcastAddict
📻 CastBox: castbox.fm/vc/2233040

*👉 .ly/46ckydQ

*👕 New Merch:* merch.solidverbal.com