HOUSTON, TX – The penthouse suite in the Big 12 was left vacant when Oklahoma and Texas bolted for the Southeastern Conference. Without those two, the Big 12 became a league of parity, not power. The cannibalization inside the conference made for great television for hardcore fans, but it also robbed the league of a true national title contender. It was a conference of very-goods, not greats. 

Texas Tech set out to change that in the offseason as the Red Raiders sprayed cash around the transfer portal to load up for a wide-open Big 12 race. They fortified the trenches with a handful of talented defensive linemen, led by defensive tackle Lee Hunter and edge rusher David Bailey. Tech also improved the offensive line and the secondary. 

The spending spree raised eyebrows and caused some undergarments to wad across the country as the bluebloods acted like the judge in “Caddy Shack” when Rodney Dangerfield joined. Like in softball, the Red Raiders loudly and unapologetically crashed the party and didn’t care about appearances. The goal is to win, not make friends. 

Tech wants to be the next Clemson or Oregon, not the next Utah or Kansas State, and that means embracing the role of the villain. The aim of the Red Raiders is higher than just taking over the Big 12, but reaching those goals requires taking over the Big 12. They traveled to Utah and ran away from the Utes in the fourth quarter two weeks ago. They walked into Third Ward on Saturday night and steamrolled the previously undefeated Houston Cougars with relative ease. 

New money isn’t always spent with care. Tech has the resources, but not everyone believed that Joey McGuire, James Blanchard, and company knew how to spend it. The transfer portal isn’t what it was a few years ago because revenue sharing is allowing more and more teams to keep their top talents. But the early returns suggest that McGuire & Co. hit big and that their bet paid off in Year 1. They are clearly the class of the Big 12. That doesn’t mean Texas Tech will waltz to a championship, but it means they can. 

This is new territory for the program. Tech hasn’t won an outright conference championship since the 1950s as members of the Border Conference. Even the Mike Leach years never resulted in a conference championship because Oklahoma and Texas were always in the way. There felt like a glass ceiling in West Texas and that Tech was too isolated to consistently recruit and compete in college football. And then the rules changed. The transfer portal and NIL make it possible for the Red Raiders to punch above their weight class. 

Tech is the new bully of the Big 12. The new Texas or Oklahoma. The one with all the money and what comes with that – possibilities and jealousy. Tech’s ceiling is now the floor and championships are the only measuring stick. And opposing teams and fan bases will want nothing more than to knock them off their oil-stained pedestal. The Red Raiders should embrace their new role as the hunted. Embrace the hate, just like Texas did on the way out of the Big 12. 

Tech’s emergence is good for the Big 12. Conference perception is determined more by the top of the conference than the bottom. No one knocks the Big Ten because of Purdue or Rutgers. No one cares that Kentucky stinks when claiming the SEC is the best conference in America. Many peg the Big 12 as the fourth best conference in the country because the ACC is more top-heavy thanks to Florida State, Miami, and Clemson. Maybe the Big 12 is better top-to-bottom but show me the national contender. 

That argument can no longer be made. Texas Tech is every bit the contender as those teams. Not just in 2025, but beyond. One five-star is committed to the Red Raiders in the 2026 cycle. Two more are already pledged for the 2027 class. 

This isn’t a flash in the pan. This is the new reality. Maybe everything does run through Lubbock. At the very least, the Big 12 sure does.