Wreck'Em Red
Fansided

Texas Tech football: Red Raiders battling elite programs for 2020 tight end

By Matthew Conner

LUBBOCK, TEXAS - OCTOBER 19: Four F-16 Viper Jets perform a flyover while the Goin' Band from Raiderland performs the National Anthem before the college football game Between the Texas Tech Red Raiders and the Iowa State Cyclones on October 19, 2019 at Jones AT&T Stadium in Lubbock, Texas. (Photo by John E. Moore III/Getty Images)
LUBBOCK, TEXAS - OCTOBER 19: Four F-16 Viper Jets perform a flyover while the Goin' Band from Raiderland performs the National Anthem before the college football game Between the Texas Tech Red Raiders and the Iowa State Cyclones on October 19, 2019 at Jones AT&T Stadium in Lubbock, Texas. (Photo by John E. Moore III/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit

The Texas Tech football program has made the cut for Brandon Frazier, a highly-coveted 2020 tight end who is being recruited by some elite programs.

Texas Tech football fans may still be getting used to the idea of having a tight end on the field every down but the coaching staff clearly values that position.  After bringing that role back to the offense in Lubbock in his first year on the job, head coach Matt Wells is continuing his efforts to upgrade at a position that was non-existent at Tech for the better part of the last decade outside of Jace Amaro by pursuing one of the nation’s top prospects.

Thursday, McKinney, Texas tight end Brandon Frazier included the Red Raiders in his final four schools, which is the good news.  The bad news is that Tech will have to beat out Alabama and Auburn as well as Arkansas if they want to land the 6-foot-7, 245-pound monster.

Rated by 247sports’ composite rankings as a 3-star player and the No. 24 tight end in the nation, he’s the No. 80 overall player in Texas.  Including the 2020 class, Tech has signed only five top-80 players in the state in the last three classes combined so he would immediately become one of the foundations of this program’s future.

It is also worth noting that Frazier’s younger brother Dylan is a 2022 defensive end who already holds an offer from Wells and the Red Raiders.  He too is a large human at 6-foot-5, 250-pounds making us all happy we don’t have to pay the grocery bill at the Frazier residence.

As far as big brother goes, his list of offers is impressive, to say the least.  In addition to his top four choices, he’s been offered by Baylor, Florida State, Colorado, Iowa State, Kansas State, LSU, Maryland, Minnesota, Nebraska, Oklahoma State, Ole Miss, TCU, USC, Utah, Virginia Tech, Wisconsin and others. Thus, the fact that Tech is in the top four is in itself a nice win for Wells.

According to Max Preps, Frazier caught 40 passes for 879 yards and 7 touchdowns this fall.  That’s an average of 22 yards per catch…unreal for a tight end.

Though this is a player Tech would desperately love to add and one that Wells and Co. will likely sell out for, the TE position is in pretty good shape these days in Lubbock.  Tech has already signed 3-star TE John Holcomb from Wellington, Texas in the current class and added Simon Gonzalez, a nice 3-star player, last year.

More from Wreck'Em Red

We enter this offseason expecting JUCO transfer Travis Koontz to be the leader for the starting job this fall.  Set to be a senior, he caught 10 passes for 152 yards in 2019 playing behind senior Donta Thompson.

But don’t think that Koontz’s role is set in stone, especially if Tech can add a stud the likes of Frazier to the mix.  It will be nice for Wells and his brother and tight ends coach Luke Wells to have a full complement of actual tight ends on the roster this year after having to piecemeal that position together this fall.

Thompson led the way with 26 receptions for 311 yards but the converted wide receiver didn’t find the endzone.  It was a bit a disappointing season at that position for Red Raider fans who were looking for more productivity from the TE spot after so much was made of its return under Wells and OC David Yost.

But when Koontz, the No. 2 JUCO TE in the nation in the 2019 class, proved to be in need of some development, the focus turned to using the TE primarily as a blocker and only throwing the ball that way on occasion.  Expect that to change this fall, regardless of whether Frazier comes on board.

dark. Next. Texas Tech football all-decade offensive line

Still, this is an important recruiting battle to watch because it is an example of Wells playing with the big boys for an in-state recruit.  If Tech can beat our three SEC West teams in this fight, it will be a huge boost for the head coach in terms of the perception of his ability to recruit elite talent.  And changing perception has to be a huge concern for Wells after a disappointing debut.

Home/Texas Tech Football