Texas Tech football: Red Raiders add All-Big 12 OL transfer from TCU

Friday, T.J. Storment, an All-Big 12 offensive lineman who played last year at TCU, announced his intention to transfer to the Texas Tech football program.

One of the most important undertakings facing the Texas Tech football program this offseason is going to be rebuilding the offensive line after that unit failed to meet expectations in 2020.  Friday, Tech took a huge step towards accomplishing that goal by adding TCU transfer T.J. Storment to the program.

At 6-foot-7, 325 pounds, the offensive tackle is certainly an imposing figure.  And he figures to enter the upcoming spring period as a projected starter for the Red Raiders.

Just a two-star prospect coming out of high school, he was the No. 45 offensive tackle in the nation when he committed to Old Dominion in the class of 2015.   By 2018, he would transfer to Fullerton College before starting 12 games for Colorado State in 2019.

This past year, at TCU, the well-traveled North Carolina native started seven games and earned second-team All-Big 12 honors.  A graduate transfer, he will be immediately eligible this fall and his addition likely completes the program’s offseason transformation of the offensive line.

We already know that Dawson Deaton and Weston Wright are penciled in as the starters at center and one of the guard spots respectively after each started every game in 2020.  We can also pencil in sophomore Caleb Rogers in as the starter at one of the tackles after he took over the starting left tackle spot from JUCO transfer Ethan Carde in the middle of this past season.

More from Wreck'Em Red

• Texas Tech football: Red Raider fans need to know about these Mountaineers
• Texas Tech football: Red Raiders land first commit for class of 2025
• Texas Tech football: Why have the Red Raiders struggled on the road under McGuire?
• Texas Tech football: Why the Red Raiders can compete for a Big 12 title
• Texas Tech football: Plenty of questions remain as conference play arrives

Now that Storment is in the mix, we can also assume that last year’s starter at right tackle, Josh Burger, will move inside to guard.  It is believed that the Wofford transfer is better suited to play in the interior of the line, rather than at tackle, given that while at Wofford, he played in a triple-option offense.

Also helping remodel the offensive line is the addition of JUCO prospect Matt Keeler, who committed to the Red Raiders two weeks ago.  He figures to battle for a backup spot in the two-deep, a position that is now open to be filled given the recent defection of Will Farrar, who has entered the transfer portal after appearing in every game for the Red Raiders this past fall.

It will be important for Tech to have a solid front five in 2021 given that the program is likely to start a freshman at QB in either true freshman Behren Morton or redshirt freshman Donovan Smith.  Right now, those two players seem to be the odds-on favorites to be the QB next fall and they will remain so unless Matt Wells and Co. add a veteran QB in the upcoming months.

Now it appears that the Red Raiders have done their best to help solidify the unit that will be protecting whoever takes the snaps in 2021.  And adding a player of Storment’s caliber is perhaps the biggest move that Tech has made this offseason on either side of the ball.