Look, I think it’s more than fair to acknowledge that the Texas Tech Red Raiders haven’t exactly been known for any sort of alleged defensive prowess. That’s something that goes back *checks notes* more than a few years. And it’s something that TTU really needs to address to take a step forward as a program.
Now, as the Red Raiders are rolling into 2025 with an improved roster (shoutout to the impressive success that Texas Tech’s NIL efforts have had) and a brand new defensive coordinator (shoutout to the Houston Cougars for getting Shiel Wood into the Big 12), there’s a chance that things improve.
Or, well, there’s certainly a hope that the defensive efforts can be something other than frustrating to keep up with.
It looks like at least one Big 12 coach (anonymously) is wondering about this same sort of thing. How much can the Red Raiders improve their defense from the disaster that it was last season with the getting Wood to the coaching staff and the various new additions on the roster?
Big 12 coach anonymously wonders about the improvements that Texas Tech can make on defense under Shiel Wood’s guidance
When talking to Athlon Sports (in an anonymous fashion) one Big 12 coach took the opportunity to ponder and wonder about the impact that Wood and Texas Tech’s NIL efforts can have on the lackluster defense from a season ago.
“Can [Shiel] Wood come in and flip the defense with all that free-agency spending? They were a classic Texas Tech defense last year, and that’s not a compliment,” one coach anonymously told Athlon Sports.
And folks, that one anonymous Big 12 coach is without a doubt absolutely, positively correct. We’re talking about a defense that yielded 34.85 points per game to opposing teams. This is a defense that let Abilene Christian put up 51 points on them.
Opposing quarterbacks threw for OVER 4000 yards against Texas Tech last season. This was a flat out bad defense. And maybe Wood and the new roster additions via NIL can help change that a bit. I don’t know. We’ll see soon enough.