Friday night saw the famous “Friday Night Lights” shine bright all across Texas for the first time in 2023. One of the stars of week one and a player that Texas Tech football fans will be following all season is Hutto quarterback Will Hammond who had a monster season debut.
Facing off with San Marcos, Hammond led his Hippos to an impressive 66-35 home win finishing the night with 510 yards of total offense and seven TDs.
410 of those yards and six of those touchdowns came through the air. It was an impressive showing both with his arm and with his legs, the latter of which isn’t instantly what he’s known for.
Hammond was efficient as well. Needing only 17 completions to get to those 410 yards through the air, he completed 73.9% of his 23 attempts.
That was not a surprise given what he showed all offseason in passing camps. In fact, he was invited the the prestigious Elite 11 Finals in California this summer where he showed out.
A nationwide event that allows QBs to compete in stages with the hope of advancing to the finals where eleven players are eventually ranked in order (around 20 are invited to the finals each year), the Elite 11 has become the premier scouting event for high school QBs.
WATCH: Hutto's offensive explosion helps lead the Hippos to a 66-35 win over San Marcos.
— Jeff Jones (@JeffJonesSports) August 26, 2023
Will Hammond finished with 7 total TDs. WR Alex Green finished with 3 total TDs.@HuttoHS_Fball @Will_Hammond13 @AlexGreen2024 @RattlersSM @BH_1_7 pic.twitter.com/VsdSlbqoRN
In June, Hammond competed with the best QBs in his class and he more than held his own. In fact, he turned some heads in Southern California.
Ranked the No. 6 performer in the event by 247Sports.com, Hammond upped his stock significantly.
"“I thought he was super clean and refined in terms of lower-body and upper-body mechanics. And people will say, ‘Alright, what does that compute to?’ Well, timing, anticipation, ball placement, accuracy. I thought that showed up throughout the week and I thought it showed up in the accuracy challenge as well,” said recruiting analyst Cooper Petanga."
That accuracy was certainly on display Friday night. It was good to see him take a step forward after he completed just 59.1% of his passes as a junior.
Another analyst, Andrew Ivnins, said that he feels Hammond is going to be ready to compete right away for the Red Raiders.
"“He is kind of ready to go,” Ivins said. “There’s been some back and forth to take you inside at 247Sports on Will Hammond. One of my questions is, what is the big trait? What is the big quality? What does he do best? And I don’t know if there is one, and maybe that makes Will Hammond, Will Hammond. He’s just solid all around.”"
Rated the 21 QB in the class of 2024 and the No. 60 player in Texas by the 247Sports composite rankings, Hammond is one of the stars of Texas Tech’s upcoming signing class. He picked the Red Raiders over offers from the likes of Auburn, Oklahoma State, Oregon, Penn State, Tennessee, Texas A&M, and others.
If he continues to play as well this season as he did on Friday night, he will only see his status as a recruit rise. Given how he’s performed throughout the summer and the way he began his senior season, there’s every reason for Texas Tech football fans to be excited about what Will Hammond will bring to campus when he arrives next fall.