What's The Worst That Could Happen? Red Raiders 2022 Season Outlook
The Texas Tech Red Raiders football program suffered through last season, and the need for change was obvious. In late October, head coach Matt Wells was fired and first-year offensive coordinator Sonnie Cumbie took the reigns for the rest of the season.
The program finished 7-6 and beat Mississippi State convincingly, 34-7, in the Liberty Bowl. Although the season finished strong with a bowl victory, Cumbie finished with a 2-4 record including the Liberty Bowl victory.
The Red Raiders hit the reset button for 2022 and hired long-time successful high school coach Joey McGuire to lead the program. McGuire had been a position coach at Baylor since 2017 and was widely considered to be the right hire for the job.
But with no real coaching experience as a coordinator or head coach at the college level, the season could go a number of ways for Texas Tech this upcoming season.
On the bright side, Tech seems to have talent at quarterback and running back, and new offensive coordinator Zach Kittley is one of the best offensive minds in college football.
On the defensive side of the ball, defensive end Tyree Wilson could be set for a breakout season, and the secondary might have more depth than it's had in a while. McGuire's link to Texas high school coaches has benefitted him during the recruiting process at Tech.
If the team can remain healthy, especially at the skill positions, the Red Raiders have an opportunity to compete in the Big 12 in McGuire's first season.
If everything clicks offensively and defensively, things can go well for McGuire and the Red Raiders.
But what if things don't go according to plan? As mentioned, McGuire has zero coaching experience at the college level. A first-time coach can struggle in a conference as competitive as the Big 12. And many of the recruits for 2022 are not his, since he was hired late in the cycle last season.
While the Red Raiders have some talent at skill positions, there are position groups that are going to need help.
The offensive line will need to play beyond their talent, and the linebackers need to be better than last season. While there are lots of things to be excited about in Lubbock this season, there are still a lot of questions.
Those question marks along with a difficult schedule could mean trouble for McGuire early. There are lots of scenarios where this team wins less than five games, and that would hardly be considered an improvement over last season.
What's the reality? That remains to be seen, but it's probably somewhere in between the good and bad. The Red Raiders will probably have some bright moments while also suffering through one or two embarrassing losses.
Such is to be expected with a first-year head coach.
But given time, McGuire might be the right man to bring Tech back to relevance in the Big 12.
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