The college football fans must be running after to find the answer to one question: ‘Are we sleeping on Texas Tech’s Behren Morton?’ Well, Behren Morton is now carrying a heavy burden on his shoulders. The quarterback will be leading one of the highest-paid rosters in college football. As per the reports, Joey McGuire has signed a 2025 roster that costs more than $28 million this season, according to On3’s Pete Nakos. So, one misstep and it would turn the $28 million investment into a lost bet. Plus, the expectations from Morton are hitting the roof. After all, the Red Raiders did not pursue any quarterback in the transfer portal.
While the 2025 season is yet to unfold, Texas Tech underwent a serious revamp on the coaching roster. Back in December last year, Red Raiders’ former offensive coordinator Zach Kittley switched to Florida Atlantic. Was it a costly loss for McGuire? Well, we can’t claim it to be so. As even though Kittley has led some of the top passing offenses in Western Kentucky and Houston Christian, his stint was so-so at Texas Tech. Under him, the Red Raiders produced the No. 9 passing offense in the FBS last season during their run to an 8-5 season. That’s when Mack Leftwich was brought in by McGuire. Now, how is Morton going to benefit from this change? On the July 18th episode of the Locked On Texas Tech podcast, analyst Chris Level shared his take.
“Well, he should be seeing much improved protection up front.” The analyst said. “And when you have that, there’s a lot of different things you can do. Because that is the most important thing. I would say especially his left side of the offensive line should be worlds better. The bar was low. Even if they’re just okay, that’s so much better than it was at times last year. I think that if I’m hearing what you’re asking right, how much differently does Behren’s world look in this offense, and like what is his play-to-play, what is his game-to-game, look like? And I do think this scheme is it’s a bit easier on the quarterback.” Protection is something that McGuire’s offense has badly faltered over the last few seasons.
In the 2023 season, the quarterback came up with 1,757 yards and 15 touchdowns. During the 2024 season, he came up with 3,335 yards and 27 touchdowns but fell prey to a left shoulder injury while playing against TCU. So, indeed, it has been a big task for McGuire’s new coach, Leftwich, who inherited a Texas Tech offense that ranked 110th in the country for scoring average at only 21.1 points per game in 2023. However, analyst Chris Level now sounds confident.
“I think it’s meant to be okay. It’s meant to be easier on the quarterback because it’s like you either do this or that. And I think they consciously spread the field out more. I think that he’s got less on his plate. Don’t take this as the Bible here or anything but I think that this is meant to put the quarterback in an easier spot,” Level said.
Leftwich was one of the most sought-after offensive minds this offseason. He arrived at Texas Tech following two seasons at Texas State, where he developed one of the nation’s top offenses. Under his tutelage, the Bobcats led the Sun Belt Conference and finished among the top 15 nationally for total offense during the 2023-24 campaign. Plus, the coaching talent runs in his blood as he is the son of the former UTEP coach, Spencer Leftwich. He will be dealing with Morton, who has been ranked by The Athletic higher than one notable quarterback, Ohio State’s Julian Sayin. Morton is the quarterback who tossed over 3,000 yards while healing from a shoulder injury. While McGuire’s new coach has got the talent, will he have enough weapons to spread his magic?
High stakes in Joey McGuire’s Texas Tech
The bulk of McGuire’s returning production is on offense, and the unit will have plenty of weapons for Leftwich to utilize. The top returning receiver from last season, Caleb Douglas, is ready to run another lap for McGuire’s team. Last season, he came up with 60 catches, 877 yards, and six touchdowns, the majority of which came in the latter part of the season. After showing off his big-play ability as a junior, McGuire can count highly on him.
And he is already doing it. At the Big 12 Media Days, the head coach shared, “Yeah, I’m excited. Caleb Douglas, you know, I’ve known him for a long time, recruiting him out of high school. He’s really developing as a big-play guy. You know, he really came on strong in the Big 12. I think he had five 100-yard games in the Big 12 last year and, you know, had a 100-yard game against Arkansas. He had a good spring. He’s one of the guys that, you know, has an opportunity with a big year to declare early for the draft. And if he does that, it means he had a great year, and that’s good for the Red Raiders.”
The next up in line is wide receiver Coy Eakin. Even though McGuire will shift him from outside receiver to the slot position, his 2024 stats serve as a glimmer of hope for how he will help things fall in the right place. Last season, he totaled 652 yards and seven touchdowns on 49 catches. However, with huge money come huge responsibilities. As an anonymous Big 12 coach stirred the pot, “They’ve built the best team money can buy. But if they don’t win the Big 12, holy cow.” McGuire’s got $28 million riding on this—time to turn the gamble into gold.
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