Freshman DT Jayden Cofield turning heads in Texas Tech fall camp

There will be a ton of new names for Texas Tech football fans to learn this season, especially on defense. One player that it would be wise to get to know is redshirt freshman defensive tackle Jayden Cofield who has earned the praise of his head coach.

In fact, when Joey McGuire spoke to the media on Tuesday, he said that Cofield is in the mix to earn a starting job.

"He made a huge play today," McGuire said. "And actually, he made a huge play in our first team compete [session], very first play, he tackled Tahj Brooks in the backfield...I told [defensive line coach Zarnell Fitch], if we were playing a game today, he'd be one of the starters, like, he would go out with the first group."

If McGuire is being honest and not speaking in hyperbole as he is sometimes prone to do, then the fact that Cofield has worked himself into a starting role is big news. That's because he was behind senior DT Quincy Ledet on the post-spring depth chart.

For most of this offseason, it has been assumed that Ledet would be Tech's starting nose tackle. After all, he was the primary backup to Jaylon Hutchings in 2023 and he amassed 20 tackles while appearing in all 13 games.

Meanwhile, a season ago, Cofield saw action in only three games registering only one tackle. However, the Manor, Texas product seems to have impressed the coaching staff in fall camp to the point that there is strong competition brewing at the nose tackle spot. What's more, McGuire also loves Cofield's attitude and work ethic.

"I just love that kid. He's always smiling. If you want to feel good, he makes you feel good because he's so appreciative. Like he appreciates everything we do in this program from the way we treat him to the way we eat, especially for a 300-pound-plus guy, he really likes the way we eat...

"I think him being a mid-year [enrollee}, him coming on at the end of the year [in 2023], being able to play in the bowl game, and he had a great spring, he's doing a really good job."

Of course, being a starter along the defensive line is not as big of a responsibility as being the starting quarterback. That's because defensive linemen rotate throughout the game while only one quarterback plays at a time.

Thus, even if Cofield wins the starting job, Ledet and senior Nevada transfer James Hansen will also receive playing time this fall. Still, to see Cofield put himself in a position to be a starter in just his second season on campus is impressive.

As a recruit in the class of 2023, he was just a three-star player. Listed as just the No. 112 defensive tackle in America and just the No. 174 player in Texas, he wasn't expected to make an impact this early in his career.

However, it appears that he is opening eyes with his work in fall camp and he's on the cusp of being an important piece in this Red Raider defensive line. Therefore, Texas Tech football fans need to start learning about Cofield because he could be one of the surprise breakout players of 2024.