This is something I haven’t seen. The Matador Club is what’s announcing any and all transfers that are incoming, and so if you don’t follow them on X/Twitter and do that sort of thing, then that’s what you should do. Thus far, two players have been added:
+ OT Hunter Zambrano (6-5/305): Zambrano is from Illinois State, missed most of 2024, but was a preseason All-American. Zambrano was the 23rd best player in the transfer portal according to ESPN ($):
Scout’s take: Zambrano has some of the better physical tools of any FCS offensive lineman in the portal. He has good size and length at left tackle, but his agility is more suited for right tackle at the FBS level. He demonstrates good feet and hands in pass protection and is technically sound but needs to show improved bend and explosion in the run game to transition to a higher level and be effective. — Tucker
Illinois State LT Hunter Zambrano is a Sunday player all day.
With his light, feathery feet, Zambrano consistently cuts off defenders from attacking on the outside track. He also has a nasty demeanor that OL coaches will love.#FCSFootball #NFLDraft #SmallSchoolScouting pic.twitter.com/LZUTRufaVu
— Bryan (@BGauvin23) July 24, 2024
+ S Cole Wisniewski (6-4/218): From North Dakota State, also missing all of 2024 with an injury in August, he had 92 tackles in 14 games in 2023 and as noted below had 8 picks in 2023 while earning FCS All-American honors. Wisniewski was ranked as the 40th best player in the portal by ESPN (same link as above).
Scout’s take: Wisniewski might be making the jump from FCS, but he has played in many big games and in arguably the toughest conference in FCS. He brings experience and a versatile skill set having worked at linebacker and safety in his career. He can play in the box and defend the run aggressively but really broke out as a player with the move to safety last season, where he displayed good instincts, range and ball skills. — Tucker
North Dakota State transfer Cole Wisniewski has ballhawking safety skills & not afraid to be physical.
Earned FCS AA honors in 2023 after recording 92 tackles and tied Missouri Valley Conference and NDSU single-season records with 8 INT.
Missed 2024 season with an injury. pic.twitter.com/jkfOCUR7mK
— Jacob Davis (@JacobScottDavis) December 9, 2024
Texas Tech football announced that Garret McGuire will be the running backs coach with Kenny Perry moving over to just be the special teams coordinator and will also remain on the offensive staff. McGuire spent two years at Nebraska as the wide receivers coach and Nebraska had two top-25 recruiting classes.
“We’re excited to add Garret to our staff here at Texas Tech,” head coach Joey McGuire said. “He knows the culture we have established and is familiar with our offensive philosophy, making him a natural fit to our staff. He will also be instrumental in our recruiting efforts, especially in the state of Texas.”
Lubbock Avalanche-Journal’s Don Williams has the salary breakdown of Big 12 programs via USA Today Sports and the assistants only trailed Utah and Oklahoma State for salaries (as Don notes, paying assistant coaches a lot of money does not equal success). This article also notes that new offensive coordinator Mack Leftwich made just $350,000 last year and would guess he’ll increase that amount significantly.
Lubbock Avalanche-Journal’s Don Williams has the details on new defensive coordinator Shiel Wood’s contract, a 3-year deal that will pay $1.2, $1.25, and $1.3. Wood was making $750,000 at Houston this past year.