In the modern era of college athletics, where many players earn more per season than the coaches they play for, some fans wonder if egos and entitlement will turn the sports we love into something unrecognizable. Fortunately, it appears that the Texas Tech basketball program is not in danger of that, especially because of the humility of one of its star players, Darrion Williams.
Monday, while meeting with the media, head coach Grant McCasland talked about what led Williams to return to Texas Tech, where he hopes to play his fifth season of college basketball after spending last season at NC State. McCasland shared an interesting tidbit about Williams actually reaching out to him last season to apologize.
"It's one of the most unique things I've ever been a part of," McCasland said, "because I was really close with Darrion Williams throughout the whole process. And I think his encouragement for our team last year he reached out to me and just said he was watching our team, and he apologized during the middle of their season to me.
"And he just said, as a man, he messed it up. So I'll let him communicate a lot of those things, but he and I were really close, and at the end of the season, he wanted to come back here to rehab, and he enrolled in classes himself."
This is exactly what Texas Tech fans should hope to hear about Williams. That's because his departure from the program following the 2024-25 season left many wondering about his character.
During that season, it seemed as if there was a bit of tension between Williams and the coaching staff. On more than one occasion, Williams surprised everyone by not playing in important games despite not appearing to have any noticeable injuries. When asked about that, McCasland indicated that he trusted his players to be honest about their health and the condition of their bodies.
Then, when Williams declared for the NBA Draft that spring, Tech moved on quickly to find his replacement. That seemed to be an indication that both parties were ready to move on from one another.
Of course, fans were happy to see that Williams wanted to return to the South Plains for one last season of college basketball. However, some may have still been leery of his motives. Was he enticed back only because of a lucrative NIL offer? Is he going to be more invested this season than he appeared to be in 2024-25? McCasland seemed to put those concerns to bed.
"I think there's a faith component to this and believing in the people you're around every day," McCasland said. "And that's what Darrion had for us, because he knew we had his best interests. Mike Neal helped him rehab. He wanted to get his degree from here. He came back here because he loved being a Red Raider.
"And then ultimately, I think that's the way it works. You get rewarded for investing in people that you love, not because it's for money or for fame or whatever reason you may have. It's because you love the people around you. So give Darrion all the credit for all that. He had a bigger plan for what he wanted, and ultimately it worked out to where, now, he's practicing with us, and whether he ends up playing or not, I love being out here with him every day."
Texas Tech appears to have great chemisty thanks to its leadership
The fact that Williams sought greener pastures only to then return to Lubbock reveals quite a bit about the culture that McCasland has developed within his program. What's more, that Williams apologized for his role in the split shows that he has matured and grown as a man. That's exactly what you want from one of your leaders.
"It's not a business for the guys that play," McCasland said. "It is for a lot of the people around them....When you step into a locker room and coach a team, it's not a business. In college, I want them to be here because they still need to grow as people, and how do you give to other people, and how do you not look at it, 'What can I get out of this?'"
McCasland is the perfect head coach for Texas Tech because of his ability to create a positive and winning culture in an era when money threatens to overturn everything we once thought we knew about building a healthy program. Now, it appears that one of his star players is of the right mindset to help lead the 2026-27 team, and that should have fans more excited than ever to root for Darrion Williams.
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