Texas Tech football: What went right for the Red Raiders in 2023

Texas Tech upgraded the talent in the program

Off the field, Texas Tech made some huge strides toward resurrecting this program. Specifically, Joey McGuire landed what is arguably the best recruiting class in program history, at least in terms of star rankings.

247Sports ranks the 2024 Red Raider signing class No. 24 in the nation and tops in the Big 12. That's up 12 spots from the 2023 class and a whopping 22 spots from McGuire's first signing class in 2022.

It is refreshing to see the Red Raiders begin to show life on the recruiting trail again. During the Matt Wells era, Tech's average class ranking was 55.6 and that lack of success when it comes to infusing talent into the program has been a problem in recent seasons.

Of course, landing Micah Hudson, the first 5-star high school prospect to ever sign with the Red Raiders, was arguably the biggest win of 2023 for Tech, either on or off the field. But don't overlook the fact that in 2024 McGuire and Co. signed five players rated as four or five-star signees. Wells, in three recruiting classes at Tech, signed only two four-star recruits in total.

Tech was also impressive in the transfer portal in 2023. 247sports.com ranks the current Red Raider transfer class No. 6 in the nation. What's more, that class is likely to grow as the offseason unfolds and more players hit the portal in the late spring after programs around the nation go through spring football.

For far too long, this program has recruited poorly. Kliff Kingsbury admitted that he didn't like recruiting and Wells couldn't even tell people what he liked about Lubbock, much less convince high-profile players to play there.

McGuire is lightyears ahead of those two when it comes to winning people over and that skill has made him a fantastic recruiter. In 2023, he did his best work yet on that front and it has set this program up to be a contender moving into 2024 and beyond.