The Texas Tech Red Raiders are heading into the 2025 college football season with huge expectations after an off-season of massive spending for some of the top players in the transfer portal.
But after Texas Tech’s huge spending binge, the question is, how do the other Big 12 coaches feel about it.
In an outstanding piece in The Athletic by David Ubben, several anonymous Big 12 football coaches expressed jealousy at how much money Joey McGuire had to spend this offseason.
What Big 12 Coaches Told The Athletic
Coach 1: “It’s awesome if you got it,” said one coach. “I wish I had it, oh, my gosh.”
Coach 2: “Good for them. I’m jealous.”
Coach 3: “Ridiculous. …They’re not just outbidding, they’re outbidding (other teams) by 3X. Wild, but it will be interesting. If the players are good kids, about the right things and about winning, I think it’ll go great. If they’re about themselves, the first time adversity hits will define them.”
Coach 4: Another suggested that “the pressure that’s going to come with all the money Texas Tech spent is going to be tough.”
Coach 5: “Asinine.”
Coach 6: “I don’t know what to believe. I don’t even know how it’s possible. Those are big numbers. There will be a lot of young men taking pay cuts when they get done playing college football.”
Texas Tech athletes will earn roughly $55 million in NIL across all sports in 2025-26, including $20.5 million in direct revenue sharing under the recently approved House settlement.
Texas Tech’s Football History
The Texas Tech Red Raiders wrapped up their 2024 football season with an 8–5 record, including a 6–3 mark in Big 12 play under third-year head coach Joey McGuire. The Red Raiders boasted one of the most explosive offenses in the country, averaging 37.6 points per game — fourth-best in the FBS — led by quarterback Behren Morton and standout running back Tahj Brooks, who rushed for over 1,500 yards and 17 touchdowns. However, defensive struggles, particularly in the secondary, plagued the team, culminating in a 39–26 loss to Arkansas in the Liberty Bowl.
Texas Tech is still trying to win its first-ever Big 12 Championship. Texas Tech football last won a conference championship in 1994, when they were co-champions of the Southwest Conference (SWC)
That title came just two years before the SWC dissolved and Texas Tech joined the newly formed Big 12 Conference in 1996.
