Texas Tech football: WR McLane Mannix will make huge impact this fall

This weekend, the Texas Tech football team received fantastic news when McLane Mannix, an inside receiver who transferred from Nevada this offseason, was granted a waiver allowing him to play this fall.

In the two decades that the Texas Tech football team has been at the forefront of college football’s spread passing attack revolution, the Red Raider offense has almost always featured standout slot receivers. Players like Wes Welker, Danny Amendola, Jakke Grant, Eric Morris and Keke Coutee have all excelled in the slot for the Red Raiders making Texas Tech football synonymous with the position.

But heading into this offseason, there was a huge question about which member of the current roster would step up and fill that role in 2019. Having to replace the 62 receptions, 804 yards and four touchdowns produced by Ja’Deion High last season but with no logical successor on campus, head coach Matt Wells and his staff took a chance on Nevada transfer McLane Mannix, knowing that the junior-to-be might have to sit out the upcoming season.

Fortunately, this weekend Mannix was granted a hardship waiver by the NCAA allowing the Midland native to play this season. That is huge news for the Red Raiders.

https://twitter.com/TexasTechFB/status/1124819918128603137

In two seasons in Reno, Mannix has caught 107 passes for 1.653 yards and 13 touchdowns. And following a stellar freshman season, he was named a second-team freshman All-American.

Now, it is fair to pencil Mannix into the Texas Tech starting lineup this fall, especially given the lack of production of the other inside receivers in the mix. Senior Seth Collins, who caught 32 passes for 317 yards and two touchdowns from the slot last year, has moved back to his natural position on the outside meaning the only other inside receiver on the roster with any experience at the collegiate level is speedster Kesean Carter, who caught just 28 passes for 238 yards and one touchdown last season.

Given Carter’s world-class speed (he is a sprinter on the Texas Tech track team in addition to his role as a receiver on the football team), expect the new coaching staff to try to use him all over the field as they try to create matchup problems with his speed and get the ball to him in open space in a number of ways. But on a down-to-down basis, Mannix will be Tech’s go-to slot receiver.

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His ability to run routes with precision and his fantastic hands will make him a third-down weapon, which is a role that High filled quite well last fall. But do not overlook Mannix speed, which is an underrated aspect of his game and will allow him to make big plays by racking up tons of yards after the catch.

This fall, Tech fans will notice a difference in the Red Raider offense as new OC David Yost will feature only one traditional slot receiver in his base formation. The other inside receiver position will be manned by a traditional tight end, namely JUCO signee Travis Koontz and freshman signee Simon Gonzalez.

And having Mannix in the fold should help bring some stability to a Texas Tech receiving corps that was set to have only on starter this fall, junior T.J. Vasher, with any experience at the collegiate level. Along with Koontz and Mannix , Tech will likely start redshirt freshman Erik Ezukanma at the other outside receiver position meaning that had Mannix not been eligible this fall, Tech would have had only one starting pass-catcher with a season’s-worth of starting experience at a major college football level.

But now, the Red Raider offense looks to be rather formidable and the addition of Mannix provides sophomore QB Alan Bowman with another dangerous weapon. Only time will tell, but this West Texas native has all the attributes necessary to become the next Red Raider slot receiver to cause nightmares for Big 12 defenses.