Joey McGuire had his moment at Big 12 Media Days on Tuesday. The yearly tradition indicates the approach of college football, and McGuire was naturally eager for the new campaign to begin.
“Seeing everyone here is wonderful,” McGuire remarked. It simply indicates that college football is getting closer. I’m really excited, man. Welcome to the Big 12 with the Colorado Buffaloes, Arizona, Arizona State, Utah, and my good friend Deion Sanders.
“I’ve known Deion for a long time, excited that he’s in the conference. It’s an exciting time to be in the Big 12, I think this conference is as good as anywhere in the country. From top to bottom, I think every single week you’re gonna have to play well.
“You’re gonna have to have your team ready to go. It’s an exciting time to be a Red Raider, fixing to finish up a 250 million dollar facility build. I think you guys that have come to Texas Tech before who’ve been in our stadium are going to be blown away with the South Endzone. Then with the adidas partnership, with adidas and Patrick Mahomes, it is a really good time to be a Red Raider. Excited about this football team. I’m proud of our guys in the offseason in the summer and what they’ve done, so far.”
McGuire was asked about melding the cultuer of his program with the players of previous eras. He said that one of the newest Ring of Honor inductees recently came and spoke to the team.
“The former students have been outstanding,” he remarked. This year, Wes Welker visited our team and gave a speech at our coaches’ clinic. Zach Thomas emerged and addressed the group. Thus, former players and alumni are aware that the door is always open.
Regarding the roster, you inquired about it. As we enter our third year, this is the lowest we’ve ever been. Our offensive line has 142 college starts under its belt. We had three defensive tackles in my first year. Compared to everyone else in the nation, my two defensive tackles played the most snaps. We believe we have seven defensive tackles available for the contest. The roster has definitely changed, in my opinion; we now have more talent and depth. We’ve embraced West Texas and Texas Tech in our play style and values, and I think the alumni really enjoy that.
The question about McGuire’s program’s practice of launching the season slowly was then posed.
We’ve been pondering that subject all summer since we’ve performed well both at home and in the late innings, he said. We need to keep up our 8-2 record in November and December games since we still have some extremely difficult road games left in the season.
“I believe our culture is the main factor that contributes to our ability to play and play throughout the season. Our lads love and care for each other, so we now have a really healthy locker room. They will really step up and continue playing for each other.
That, in my opinion, is the main component. The good news is that five of our first seven games are in Lubbock, Texas, which is a terrific spot to start quickly since everyone knows Jones AT&T Stadium is a very difficult place to play. We have a fantastic opportunity to get going right away. In order to move forward this year, we must take that action.
Given Texas Tech’s recent partnership with Adidas, Patrick Mahomes is a subject that comes up frequently. Regarding the program’s ties with the NFL standout and former Red Raider, McGuire was questioned.
The best quarterback in the world, McGuire declared, “I don’t think anybody in here can come up with a guy at the level that he’s playing at, and he’s going to continue to do that whenever it comes to the university.”
“I usually remind everyone that last year, when we were playing in Lawrence, Kansas, he was on the sidelines watching us play the Jayhawks while most players in the NFL were probably heading somewhere for a rest during their bye week. The man simply adores Texas.
“It’s wonderful that Patrick Mahomes and Adidas can collaborate because it allows him to wear the Double T every day without having to cover it up with another brand. I genuinely give him credit for his accomplishments, and he’s one of the individuals that actually texted me, asking, “Coach, what do you need?” after changing his phone number. He’s just one of those men who is there for us no matter what.
Following a few more queries, one from right guard Caleb Rogers, who is starting this game, McGuire spoke about his standout running back, Tahj Brooks, to wrap out his media conference. McGuire also did not hold back when he declared his intention to assist Brooks in shattering the Texas Tech record for career rushing yards.
“No doubt, I’m on the side that he’s the best running back in the country,” McGuire said. “I’ll argue that. Tahj Brooks, somebody asked me earlier, it’s gonna sound kinda funny but he’s kind of the security blanket. Whenever chaos is going on in the game and we’ve been through some injuries at quarterback, he’s the guy that is there and is steady.
He’s the same guy every day, he’s an absolutely incredible teammate. We’re 1,167 yards away from tying (Byron) Hanspard’s record, but we’re 1,168 away from breaking it. Our plan is to break it. I love Hanspard, he’s one of my favorite guys, I actually recruited and coached his son when we were in Waco, I love that family but we wanna break his record. It’s important.
“Tahj brings a lot to the table, he’s an every down back, he’s got great hands, one of the most physical kids I’ve ever been around when it comes to pass protection. He’s a complete back, I’m just happy, when he came into my office and told me he was coming back, there wasn’t anybody more happy than I was to have Tahj back. If you wanna check out anything TahjTime.com, we’re promoting him and he deserves it. He’s not only one of the best running backs in the country, but he’s one of the best players in the country and you’re gonna see that week in and week out.”
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