Texas Tech football: Candidates to fill void left by Antoine Wesley

The Texas Tech football team’s leading receiver, Antoine Wesley, has decided to enter the 2019 NFL Draft leaving a huge hole in the Red Raider offense.  Let’s look at some of the candidates to replace the most productive receiver in the Big 12.

At his introductory press conference, Texas Tech football head coach Matt Wells said that in 2019, the Red Raiders would reload rather than rebuild.  But whatever one’s perspective on the task facing the new coaching staff may be, there is no question that Wells’ first year became significantly more difficult Monday when star receiver Antoine Wesley announced that he will enter the NFL Draft and forego his senior season.

The junior from Las Vegas is banking on his stellar 2018 season to propel him to the next level.  He caught 88 passes for 1,410 yards and and nine touchdowns on his way to becoming a semifinalist for the Biletnikoff Award.

Wesley was second in the nation in yards per game with 117.5 per game and finished with the third-most single-season receiving yards in Texas Tech history.  But 2018 was his only season as a starter as he caught just 10 passes for 137 yards in his first two years on campus.

This is the second year that a Texas Tech receiver is trying to parlay a breakout junior season into an NFL career.  Last offseason, Keke Coutee also skipped his senior campaign to enter the NFL Draft after putting up 1,429 yards (second-most in a single season in school history) and 10 touchdowns on 93 catches.

But unlike Wesley, Coutee had a solid sophomore campaign on his resume with 890 yards and seven touchdowns on 55 receptions.  He was selected in the 4th round by the Houston Texans and has 28 catches for 287 yards and a touchdown in six games so far as a rookie.

Wesley will need to prove to NFL teams that he is strong enough to beat press coverage at the line of scrimmage and that his 6-foot-5, 200-pound frame can withstand the rigors of life at the next level.  Still, his height and ability to make big plays will be intriguing to teams looking to stretch the field.

But while Red Raider fans wish Wesley the best, we can’t help but be concerned about replacing the team’s most dangerous weapon.  What’s more, Tech will now have to replace its top two receivers as Ja’Deion High has exhausted his eligibility.

Fortunately, the Red Raiders will have T.J. Vasher returning for his junior season.  He was third on the team in receptions (54) and yards (687) while hauling in seven touchdowns.  But Vasher will need to be far more consistent next year and must also stay healthy after missing two games this season with nagging injuries.

The good news is that Wesley proved this year that a player with no considerable history of leading the offensive attack can step into a starring role.   With that in mind, let’s look at some of the candidates that could step forward next year to be the Red Raiders’ next star wide out.