The Texas Tech football program has been one of the most active programs in the country in the transfer portal so let’s look at three position groups where we are likely to see some additions this offseason.
Love it or hate it, we know that Texas Tech football head coach Matt Wells believes in his strategy of using the transfer portal to add talent to his roster. And given that he’s going to enter the 2021 season on the hottest of seats, we can be certain that he’s going to do more than dip his toes in that pool again this offseason, he’s going to to a cannonball dive into it.
In fact, not only has he already jumped into that pool this offseason, he’s swum a few laps to boot. Despite spending part of the month since Tech’s season came to an end battling a case of COVID-19, Wells has already seen his program add two key defensive players through the portal.
He’s seen N.C. State defensive back Malik Dunlap and Duke safety Marquis Waters commit to his program and while that will likely do it for additions in the secondary, there’s reason to believe that other position groups will also get an influx of talent via the portal. After all, Wells loves to fish for transfers.
In 2019, he brought seven players into the mix to help supplement his first recruiting class. The two most successful were corner Zech McPhearson, who earned first-team All-Big 12 honors for his work this past fall, and wide receiver R.J. Turner, who was second on the team in 2019 in receiving yards.
This past offseason, he surpassed that number by adding nine players through the portal. That included the likes of safety Eric Monroe (who was third on the team in tackles), tackle Josh Burger (who started every game at right tackle), linebacker Colin Schooler (who was second on the team in tackles), QB Henry Colombi (who made four starts), and linebacker Jacob Morgenstern (who was seventh on the team in tackles).
Will Wells top that number in 2021 and go whole-hog with transfers? That seems possible given that this year’s recruiting class currently contains only 10 signees. However, the return of several key seniors could mean that there is less of a need to add extra talent at their positions.
But we do know there are at least three position groups where Tech will more than likely be in the mix for some key transfers. So let’s look at where Wells will probably be active in the portal this year.