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Texas Tech football: 5 best offensive players Red Raiders face in 2019

By Matthew Conner

LUBBOCK, TX - NOVEMBER 03: Trey Sermon #4 of the Oklahoma Sooners breaks free for a touchdown during the second half of the game against the Texas Tech Red Raiders on November 3, 2018 at Jones AT&T Stadium in Lubbock, Texas. Oklahoma defeated Texas Tech 51- 46. (Photo by John Weast/Getty Images)
LUBBOCK, TX - NOVEMBER 03: Trey Sermon #4 of the Oklahoma Sooners breaks free for a touchdown during the second half of the game against the Texas Tech Red Raiders on November 3, 2018 at Jones AT&T Stadium in Lubbock, Texas. Oklahoma defeated Texas Tech 51- 46. (Photo by John Weast/Getty Images) /
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(Photo by Tim Warner/Getty Images)
(Photo by Tim Warner/Getty Images) /

No. 5: WR Collin Johnson

At 6-foot-6, 220-pounds, Texas senior wide receiver Collin Johnson is the best NFL prospect at the position in the Big 12 entering this year.  In fact, many believed he might be a first-round pick in 2020 if he has a standout season.

Now, he is rated the No. 2 wide receiver prospect in the country by WalterFootball.com behind only Alabama’s Jerry Jeudy, the 2018 Biletnikoff Award Winner.  Still, there are some areas for improvement in his game.

"According to WalterFootball, “He possesses mismatch size, but he does not play as big as he should. He doesn’t bully corners or do as well as one would expect at leaping to high point the ball over receivers.”"

What’s more, Johnson does not have elite speed, running a 4.55 40-yard-dash.  Still, he is an elite talent who runs fluid routes and has excellent athleticism.

In 13 games last year, Johnson hauled in 68 passes for 985 yards and seven touchdowns.  He had 100-yard games against Baylor, TCU, and Oklahoma in the Big 12 title game.

However, he did not play against the Red Raiders, his only missed game of the season.  The two times he has faced Tech in his career, he has come up with a combined 8 receptions for 87 yards and two touchdowns (both in 2016) as Tech has kept him in check.

With Lil’Jordan Humphrey now in the NFL, Johson is set to become the primary weapon in the UT passing game.  Last year, Humphrey had 8 catches for 159 yards and two touchdowns in Lubbock, including the last-minute game-winner.

He was one of a number of standout receivers that Tormented the Red Raiders in 2018.  ISU’s Hakeem Butler had 148 yards and two touchdowns on just four receptions while Houston’s Marquez Stevenson went off for 177 yards and two scores of his own in the Cougars’ loss at Jones Stadium in September.

Hopefully, Tech will be better suited to stand up against the pass this year after ranking 128 out of 129 teams last year by allowing 288 yards per game through the air.  Whether the Red Raiders can slow elite receivers like Johnson will be a key in determining whether Matt Wells has a solid debut season.

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