The Athletic ($) has a roundtable of the biggest winner, impact players, etc., for the Big 12 with Texas Tech and UCF getting the most credit for their excellent classes:

Olson: We’ve got to give some love to UCF. The Knights just signed their highest-rated class in school history, a group that ranks No. 35 nationally and No. 3 in the Big 12. Gus Malzahn and his staff were able to lock up seven blue-chip signees, led by defensive back Jaylen Heyward, tight end Kylan Fox and wide receiver Bredell Richardson.

I’m not at all surprised the Knights were able to assemble a class like this during their first year in their new league. Malzahn was in his first year on the job when this program earned its Big 12 invite in 2021, and there’s no question Power 5 status has an impact on the way in-state and regional recruits look at the program. Getting these four-star commits on board and, more importantly, holding onto them through signing day is an impressive feat.

Williams: Texas Tech. On the heels of a darkhorse-to-disappointing season in 2023, Joey McGuire added a top-25 high school class, headlined by five-star receiver Micah Hudson and blue-chip quarterback Will Hammond. The Red Raiders have one of the most transparent and well-organized NIL situations in the country, which no doubt helps, but credit to McGuire and his staff for getting back to the program’s roots by prioritizing in-state recruiting and development: 20 of Tech’s 21 high school signees are from Texas.

Credit to BYU as well, which at No. 45 nationally has the best composite ranking of the Kalani Sitake era. Second-year defensive coordinator Jay Hill deserves credit as well. The Cougars jumped more than 20 spots in the national rankings, up from 66th for the 2023 class.

Morales: To me it came down to Texas Tech and UCF. Shocker as both teams were top three in the conference in the recruiting rankings, but I have to go with the Red Raiders. For the reasons that Justin just mentioned, but also what separates them from UCF is that they signed five players who were rated above the Knights’ top-ranked recruit.

Inside The Red Raiders’ Jarrett Johnson talked recruiting with Mike Roach at 24/7 Sports.

Red Raider Sports’ Justin Apodaca previews the outfield (there are games this weekend and please don’t ask me if I’ll have a post up or be ready for it) and the most interesting spot may be center field (but make sure and check out the rest):

Tech’s competition has gotten extremely interesting over the spring as many expected Gage Harrelson to be the go-to starter for the Red Raiders.

However, the shortstop and walk-on quarterback Will Burns has taken significant reps in center field, and by all accounts has been a legitimate defender that may have the chance to take the position from Harrelson, shifting Harrelson to a corner.

Harrelson’s offensive contributions in 2023 earned him a Big 12 All-Freshman team nod and a Collegiate Baseball Foundation Freshman All-America nod as well. A .324 batting average with 22 extra base hits while playing significantly in both right and center field.

While it’s expected that Harrelson will start in center on opening night, this could be an extremely interesting position to watch going forward.

A couple of posts/tweets. Congrats to Dadrion Taylor-Demerson, Myles Cole, and Tyler Ownes for getting invites to the NFL Combine!

Next Stop: Indianapolis 😤

We will have @DadrionT, @mdoc55 and @tylerkowens representing us at the NFL Scouting Combine later this month!#WreckEm pic.twitter.com/tGP7YZBhUE

— Texas Tech Football (@TexasTechFB) February 13, 2024

Big Monday. Big Crowd. Big-time Environment.

And Lubbock’s favorite hype man, @calebrogers76! 🧯️#WreckEm pic.twitter.com/OYcd9obQsL

— Texas Tech Football (@TexasTechFB) February 13, 2024

The Lady Raiders are in action tonight to host Oklahoma State with tip-off at 6:00 p.m. for their Pink Game for cancer awareness. This is a big game because Oklahoma State is just 4-8 in conference and Texas Tech is 5-7, so getting a win against a lesser opponent at home is big.