We’ve reached the dog days of summer, but that means we aren’t too far away from the return of college football. In fact, the countdown to kickoff is officially under 100 days. For Texas Tech fans, there is anticipation about what will follow last season’s Big 12 championship run. The first outright conference title since 1994, when the Red Raiders won the Southwest Conference. Two seasons later, they would join the Big 12.
For Tech, this is a level of success that has been lacking since Mike Leach left. But even the Pirate didn’t win the Big 12 outright; his best season ended in a three-way tie for first in 2008, which left the Red Raiders out of the title game due to tiebreakers. In just four seasons at the helm, head coach Joey McGuire has proven to be the right hire after the failed Matt Wells experiment. All four seasons resulted in a bowl game, and this past year led the Red Raiders to the College Football Playoff. It didn’t go in the favor of the Red and Black, but Rome wasn’t built in a day. Fans are seeing the fruits of consistency year in and year out. For that reason, McGuire soared up the head coach rankings for CBS this year.
So I guess if you finish 12-2, win your conference, and get to the CFP after putting together an incredible transfer class, our voters will reward you for it. Yeah, I was not surprised to see McGuire climb 27 spots to No. 21 in our rankings this season, and you shouldn’t be either. This is a Texas Tech program poised to be a Big 12 powerhouse for a while. 2025 rank 48 (+27), High 15, Low 29 – CBS Sports
Ironically enough, even with how he performed in 2025, McGuire wasn’t high enough to be ranked as one of the top two coaches in the Big 12. Houston’s Willie Fritz landed at No. 18, and BYU’s Kalani Sitake sits firmly at No. 12. These two coaches are a combined 1-3 against Joey McGuire. All three losses came in 2025 by a combined 98-25 margin. I can respect the rankings, but I just can’t agree with them given the head-to-head data. Regardless of agreeing on the rankings, Texas Tech and head coach Joey McGuire will have to go out and prove it once again.
The 2026 season kicks off on Saturday, Sept. 5, in Lubbock when the Red Raiders host the ACU Wildcats. Big 12 play will open under the Friday night lights when Fritz and the Houston Cougars come to Jones AT&T Stadium on Sept. 18 in Week 3. If the Red Raiders face BYU again this year, it will have to come in the conference title game or the postseason.
This article originally appeared on Red Raiders Wire: Joey McGuire ranks among the top 25 coaches according to one outlet
Reporting by Patrick Conn, Red Raiders Wire / Red Raiders Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
