Texas Tech’s trench dominance is drawing national attention again. The Football Writers Association of America (FWAA) unveiled its preseason watch list for the 2026 Outland Trophy. The Outland Trophy honors the nation’s top interior linemen.
The Red Raiders landed three players on the watch list. Texas Tech’s three representatives tied for the most representatives of any program on the 68-man list.
Center Sheridan Wilson and offensive tackle Howard Sampson represent Texas Tech’s offensive line. Defensive tackle A.J. Holmes Jr. gives the Red Raiders a nominee on both sides of the ball. Holmes arrives already on the Bronko Nagurski Trophy Watch List and has been voted the Big 12’s Preseason Defensive Player of the Year. The trio’s inclusion underscores just how loaded Tech’s line play was last season.
The Outland Trophy, entering its 81st year, is the third-oldest major college football award. It was established in 1946 by Dr. John Outland to give interior linemen the recognition they rarely receive. This year’s watch list covers 49 programs and all 10 FBS conferences plus Independents. The nominees by position look like this:
Tech’s three-player group puts the program in select company. Only Oregon (Iapani Laloulu, Bear Alexander, A’Mauri Washington) and Ohio State (Carson Hinzman, Luke Montgomery, Austin Siereveld) matched the Red Raiders’ total. Other national heavyweights like Indiana, Texas, and Notre Dame each had two.
The road to crown the best linemen starts to narrow later as the season marches on. The FWAA will announce Outland Trophy semifinalists on Nov. 18, followed by a three-player finalist group revealed jointly with ESPN on Nov. 24.
The winner will be announced during The Home Depot College Football Awards on ESPN in December.The trophy formally will be presented at the Outland Trophy Awards Dinner in Omaha, Nebraska, on Jan. 27, 2027.
Like other watch lists, it isn’t set in stone. The FWAA will name a weekly Outland Trophy National Player of the Week throughout the season. For Texas Tech, though, the early message is clear: the offensive and defensive lines remain a program strength heading into 2026.
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This article originally appeared on Red Raiders Wire: Red Raiders tie for team lead on 2026 Outland Trophy Watch List
Reporting by Andrew McCleary, Red Raiders Wire / Red Raiders Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Andrew McCleary, Red Raiders Wire | USA TODAY Network
