The Big 12 Conference has some of the best returning quarterbacks for the 2025 season, and the Texas Tech football team will see almost all of them.
The Red Raiders have a solid returning quarterback of their own in Behren Morton, but in what will be a challenging conference slate, Joey McGuire and his staff will have to contend with the best gunslingers the Big 12 has to offer.
To make things more interesting, the Red Raiders will see five of the best in a six-game slate to open up league play.
Here are the five best quarterbacks Texas Tech will face this season, in order of when the Red Raiders will see them. Hint: Four of them will be road games for Tech.
Devon Dampier, Utah
Part of the reason pundits see Utah having a turnaround campaign is the quarterback position, which was a muddled mess in 2024. The Utes brought in Devon Dampier from New Mexico to plug that hole. While the Lobos were a mediocre 5-7 last season, Dampier rushed for 1,166 yards and 19 scores and added another 2,768 yards and 12 touchdowns passing.
That’s a difficult scout for the Red Raiders when they open Big 12 play in Salt Lake City on Sept. 20.
Connor Weigman, Houston
Former Red Raider Donovan Smith has departed (and was benched midway through Houston’s 4-8 season) and the Cougars brought in former Texas A&M starter Connor Weigman, who also lost his starting job last season. Weigman has experience, having passed for 1,864 yards and 15 touchdowns last season, but will be a first-time matchup with Texas Tech on Oct. 4 in Houston.
Sam Leavitt, Arizona State
Texas Tech was the only team to hand Arizona State a loss in Big 12 play last year, and it was the only conference game where Sam Leavitt went without a passing touchdown. Leavitt completed just 22 of his 38 pass attempts in that Sept. 21 meeting, after which he and the Sun Devils went on a tear to the College Football Playoff.
The rematch is set for Oct. 18 in Tempe with two of the Big 12 Conference’s favorites jockeying for position.
Jalon Daniels, Kansas
Jalon Daniels is another dual-threat option that could create some chaos for the Red Raider defense. Daniels totaled 447 rushing yards to go with his 2,454 passing yards, something Tech will try to diminish when the Jayhawks visit Lubbock on Oct. 11.
Avery Johnson, Kansas State
Avery Johnson may not have had the best sophomore season, but he destroyed Texas Tech as a freshman in Lubbock, rushing for 90 yards and five touchdowns. That game helped put Johnson on the map, and his running ability is something the Red Raiders will have to contain on Nov. 1 in Manhattan.
This article originally appeared on Lubbock Avalanche-Journal: Arizona State’s Sam Leavitt leads top quarterbacks Texas Tech football will face in 2025
Reporting by Nathan Giese, Lubbock Avalanche-Journal / Lubbock Avalanche-Journal
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
