Texas Tech fans should be watching this 2026 big man sweepstakes closely

While most Texas Tech basketball fans are mostly concerned with the program's attempts to complete its 2025-26 roster, head coach Grant McCasland and his staff are also busy trying to put together the 2026 recruiting class, which won't be on campus until over a year from now.

One player the Red Raiders appear to be in the mix for is 6-foot-10 forward William Stevens from Davidson, North Carolina. In fact, a recent social media post from On3 Sports indicates that Tech is battling such programs as Clemson, Virginia, and Creighton for his services.

Though it is still extremely early in the 2026 recruiting cycle, this is a battle for Tech fans to keep an eye on. That's because finding skilled big men is never easy, given that they are coveted by virtually every program in the country.

According to On3 and Rivals, Stevens is a 3-star prospect. In fact, Rivals ranks him as the No. 143 overall prospect in his class. While 247Sports does not yet have a ranking for him, they list teams as NC State, Virginia Tech, and West Virginia as other power-conference programs to have extended an offer.

As for Tech, the Red Raiders offered Stevens in early December. Now, the hope is that the relationship will grow. Fortunately, McCasland may have had an opportunity to make that happen this spring.

According to the USA Basketball website, Stevens was invited to participate in the 2025 USA Men's Junior National Team minicamp in San Antonio last month. There, he likely would have at least had some contact with McCasland, who is an assistant coach for the 2025 USA Basketball Men's U19 National Team.

Hopefully, the Red Raiders will benefit from the fact that both Stevens and McCasland are associated with USA Basketball. That's because bringing a player of his size and skill into the mix could help jumpstart Texas Tech's 2026 recruiting class.