Joey McGuire and the Texas Tech Red Raiders football team had one impressive season. The Red Raiders went out and got a dozen wins, won the Big 12 championship, and then made the College Football Playoff.
The season ended pretty horribly with a frustrating blowout, shutout loss at the hands of the Oregon Ducks, but the Red Raiders were really impressive for so much of this season. From a dominant defense to a consistently high scoring offense that was among the best in the country statistically, so much of this season was so great for the Red Raiders.
And ESPN’s Football Power Index seems to reflect that. The Red Raiders are ranked among the best teams in the country in the final FPI rankings for 2025-2026.
The Texas Tech Red Raiders are finishing the 2025-2026 college football season ahead of some powerhouse programs
Here’s what the final ESPN FPI college football rankings look like for the top 25 teams in the country:
- No. 1 Indiana Hoosiers - Big Ten
- No. 2 Ohio State Buckeyes - Big Ten
- No. 3 Notre Dame Fighting Irish - Independent
- No. 4 Oregon Ducks - Big Ten
- No. 5 Miami Hurricanes - ACC
- No. 6 Texas Tech Red Raiders - Big 12
- No. 7 Georgia Bulldogs - SEC
- No. 8 Utah Utes - Big 12
- No. 9 Ole Miss Rebels - SEC
- No. 10 Alabama Crimson Tide - SEC
- No. 11 Texas Longhorns - SEC
- No. 12 Texas A&M Aggies - SEC
- No. 13 USC Trojans - Big Ten
- No. 14 Vanderbilt Commodores - SEC
- No. 15 Oklahoma Sooners - SEC
- No. 16 Penn State Nittany Lions - Big Ten
- No. 17 BYU Cougars - Big 12
- No. 18 Iowa Hawkeyes - Big Ten
- No. 19 Tennessee Volunteers - SEC
- No. 20 Michigan Wolverines - Big Ten
- No. 21 Washington Huskies - Big Ten
- No. 22 Missouri Tigers - SEC
- No. 23 SMU Mustangs - ACC
- No. 24 Auburn Tigers- SEC
- No. 25 South Florida Bulls - American
Obviously being in the top 10 is a great spot to be for the Red Raiders, but it’s absolutely worth noting that Texas Tech is ranked ahead of a number of elite programs that get attention and headlines, such as the Georgia Bulldogs, Alabama Crimson Tide, Texas Longhorns, USC Trojans, and Oklahoma Sooners.
With everything that the Red Raiders were able to accomplish all throughout the season, it feels good to see Texas Tech’s effort rewarded. Getting a dozen wins (all of which were by at least 20 points) and winning the Big 12 championship shows just how good this program can be. The ceiling is pretty high.
Now Texas Tech needs to show that it can compete with those elite programs once the Red Raiders get back into the College Football Playoff.