Texas Tech football adds top 2019 JUCO tight end Travis Koontz

Sunday, the Texas Tech football team picked up an important commitment from 3-star JUCO tight end Travis Koontz.

Upon arriving at Texas Tech, new offensive coordinator David Yost said that his offense will differ from the typical “Air Raid” attack in one key aspect; it will feature a true tight end almost 90% of the time. But in order to do that, Yost and head coach Matt Wells first had to find a tight end physically ready to play such a huge role next year. Sunday, they got their man.

Three-star JUCO TE Travis Koontz of Ventura College has verbally committed to the Red Raiders after taking his official visit to Lubbock this weekend. The 6-foot-5, 250-pound native of Youngstown, Ohio is considered the best JUCO tight end in the 2019 class and holds offers from TCU, Pitt, Boise State, UCONN, Louisville, LSU, Maryland, Michigan State, Fresno State and San Diego State.

Texas Tech’s courtship of Koontz was rapid but intense. On December 4th, he was the first new prospect to report an offer from Wells and now he his one of the biggest pickups for the Red Raiders in this class.

To fully implement Yost’s offense, Tech needed to find a tight end capable of beige a factor in the passing game but also being physical enough to be a key run blocker. Such a player was not currently on the roster as Tech was forced to utilize converted receiver Donta Thompson as a make-shift tight end this year.

https://twitter.com/koontz101/status/1074457374058921986

But Yost wants his tight ends to be more than situational players so that he does not have to interrupt the rhythm of his high-tempo offense by substituting based on the down and distance. Utah State’s 2018 tight end, Dax Raymond was an all-Mountain West performer in 2018 and amassed 863 yards and three touchdowns on 70 career receptions in three seasons. He has already declared that he is skipping his senior season to enter next spring’s NFL Draft.

Koontz hopes to follow that same path. In two years in the JUCO ranks, he caught 27 passes for 312 yards and three touchdowns but he could be an ever bigger factor in Lubbock thanks to playing with sophomore QB Alan Bowman and along side a talented group of receivers.

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Coming out of high school in 2017, Koontz signed with Bowling Green as a top-5 tight end in the nation but he went the JUCO route. This year, he committed to Pitt in June but reopened his recruitment in October. What’s more he was in Ft. Worth on December 13th for an official visit making this victory increasingly important for the Red Raiders since they took a key recruit away from a Big 12 rival.

The Red Raiders currently have two tight ends verbally committed in this class. Magnolia, Texas 3-star prospect Simon Gonzalez is also set to sign with Tech next week but at just 220-pounds, he likely needs time to develop in the weight room before taking on a full-time role in the offense. And with Koontz in the fold, he will be afforded that time to grow.

After suffering six defections in the wake of Kliff Kingsbury’s firing, the 2019 class is regaining its footing. Tech now has 15 players committed and the class is up to No. 53 in the nation according to 247Sports.com.

Next. 3-star QB Maverick McIvor back on board with Texas Tech. dark

But Koontz was not the only prospect in town this weekend and Sunday night, Wells sent out a tweet that simply said “Wreck ‘Em x 2” which has come to be known as his way of signaling that he has received a commitment. That message came after Koontz’ announcement so Red Raider fans are on watch for possibly two more announcements. With the early signing window set to arrive on Wednesday, this week should be intriguing so keep checking in with “Wreck ’em Red” for all the latest.

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