Texas Tech may be getting a much faster answer on Will Hammond than anyone expected.
On Day 1 of Big 12 media days, Joey McGuire told ESPN’s Pete Thamel that the sophomore quarterback is still in the conversation to start Week 1 in 2026, even while working back from a torn ACL he suffered last season. That is a meaningful change from the outlook McGuire gave during spring practice, when Hammond’s return for the opener looked far less certain.
“I think he could be, I really do,” McGuire said when asked whether Will Hammond could ultimately emerge as Texas Tech’s starting quarterback for the opener.
That’s the kind of line that turns heads around the Big 12.
Hammond had entered last season as one of the most promising young quarterbacks on the roster before the injury stopped his momentum and put his immediate future in question. Texas Tech handled the rehab carefully in the spring, keeping the focus on patience and long-term health rather than forcing a quick comeback.
Now the picture sounds different. With Brendan Sorsby gone, McGuire’s latest update suggests Hammond’s recovery is moving well enough that Week 1 is no longer a stretch.
Before these comments, the target had been Week 3 against Houston, a Friday, Sept. 18 game that doubles as the Big 12 opener for both teams. Getting him ready earlier, possibly for the season opener against ACU on Sept. 5, would be a major development for the Red Raiders.
And it would matter. Texas Tech enters the season with big expectations after recruiting aggressively, pouring resources into the roster and trying to plant itself firmly in the middle of a Big 12 race that feels wide open.
There’s still a long way to go before kickoff, and a torn ACL recovery doesn’t move in a straight line. Texas Tech will keep watching Hammond closely through fall camp. But McGuire’s confidence is hard to miss.
A few months ago, Hammond starting the opener sounded doubtful. Now it sounds like a real possibility.
If he’s ready in Week 1, Texas Tech won’t just be in the mix. The Red Raiders would have a strong case to enter 2026 as solid favorites.
In Other News...
BYU Star Sends Pointed Message As Texas Tech Drama Reignites
Brendan Sorsbys departure from Texas Tech still lingers as one of the more uncomfortable storylines around the program, and it has started to surface again with BYU in the mix. The former Red Raiders quarterback admitted to placing thousands of bets, including on teams he played for, which led to an NCAA suspension and ultimately ended his time with the team. It is the kind of episode that leaves a mark far beyond one roster spot, especially when the conversation circles back to accountability and what a program has to absorb when a players choices turn into public fallout.
BYU defensive tackle Keanu Tanuvasa weighed in with a message that stayed focused on responsibility, while also making clear he was thinking about the bigger picture around both Sorsby and Texas Tech. He said he wanted the best for Sorsby as an individual and for the Red Raiders as a team, even as the possibility of seeing Texas Tech again later this season hangs in the background. If that rematch comes, the stakes would be even higher with a Big 12 Championship meeting in play, and Tanuvasa did not hide that he would welcome the chance to line up against them again. [Read more 🡒]
Brett Yormark Had A Tense Response To Texas Tech Frustration
Big 12 media days in Frisco brought a familiar kind of friction to the surface for Texas Tech, as local media personality Sean Dillon pressed Commissioner Brett Yormark on what many around Lubbock see as uneven treatment of the Red Raiders. The exchange centered on two sore spots, the tortilla tossing incident and the Brendan Sorsby situation, both of which have fed the sense that Texas Tech has been on the wrong end of the league conversation.
Yormark did not spend much time entertaining the grievance, saying he was being misquoted and steering the discussion back to the leagues bigger picture. He framed the Big 12 as moving ahead with 16 programs and made clear he wanted the focus on the upcoming 2026 college football season instead of revisiting the controversies that have lingered around Texas Tech. [Read more 🡒]