Big 12 Media Day snuck up on me. Totally forgot it was yesterday. Thankfully, I’m not in charge. The best thing about Big 12 Media Day is that they utilize ASAP Sports so you can read entire transcripts of things.
+ Big 12 Commissioner Brett Yormark
+ Big 12 Coaches and Players
+ Head Coach Grant McCasland, Donovan Atwell, JT Toppin,& Darrion Williams
I’ll crib some of the quotes from McCasland:
GRANT McCASLAND: It was definitely an interesting off-season. I had more people offer to be part of our basketball team than ever before (smiling). Took us a little while to put this roster together.
I mean, you win with returners. Especially in this league who has had dynamic players in the Big 12, these guys to my left are the reason why it will be great.
Starting with JT Toppin, the five-for-five topic seems to be consistent. But is JT going to be healthy and win is the only question I get asked more.
He’s here today so everybody can ask him yourself (smiling).
I love these guys. We have a staff that’s all together again. They’ll tell you the key to our strengths are our returners, then the staff we have put together. I think we’ve got the best staff in college basketball. Every day we get better because we have the right people in the building.
Q. Grant, there’s a lot of experience sitting on that stage right now. How much of a luxury is that when you get into the wars that is the Big 12?
GRANT McCASLAND: Yeah, these guys know it’s a long season. There isn’t a part of it you don’t appreciate. I think all these guys appreciate every opportunity they get to compete. I don’t care if it’s in practice. JT would tell you going through the injuries, Darrion has gone through his share of ’em, then Donovan has been as consistent of a player that we’ve ever had at Texas Tech.
You just know that you have to be at your best every day. I mean, you can’t pick a day that you’re like, I’m going to be all right, kind of let it…
These guys approach it like it’s their last day to play basketball every time they play. The young guys see the intensity at which you have to approach a scouting report against a Division II team in a scrimmage is just as important as playing in a game in the Big 12 and how do you have that approach every day. That’s what these guys have meant to our program. Their experience tells us you got to compete every time you get an opportunity with everything you have.
New year. Higher expectations.
TTW series is back tomorrow!
#WreckEm | @galaxyhq https://t.co/QoNXYzXo61
— Texas Tech Basketball (@TexasTechMBB) October 21, 2026
Darrion Williams: Seemingly more mature than most of us.
The boomerang transfer talks returning to Texas Tech with @GaryParrishCBS at Big 12 Media Days.
Watch the full chat: https://t.co/0AHwv34nmV https://t.co/52kb2nzM0F
— Eye On College Basketball Podcast (@EyeOnCBBPodcast) October 21, 2026
Both Texas Tech head coaches and players sit down with ESPNU:
I did listen to this video with Jon Rothstein and it was good to hear McCasland discuss the roster decisions and how that all worked out. I don’t have time to summarize so you get the AI summary below, but this is worth a listen.
JT Toppin’s Recovery & Future
Injury & Impact: McCasland reflected on the tough moment of losing star player JT Toppin to a season-ending ACL injury last year when the team was 19–7 [04:06]. He praised Toppin’s mental growth and discipline during his 60-day post-surgery recovery, noting he changed his diet and sleeping habits to accelerate his return [08:06].
Current Status: Toppin is currently ahead of schedule with leg strength and individual skill development, but the team is ramping him up slowly and has no set timetable for when he will return to full live practices [09:05].
Eligibility: McCasland noted that due to age-based eligibility legislation, Toppin would have otherwise redshirted this season, but the new rules allowed him to preserve his eligibility [10:20].
Roster Management & 2022 Class Eligibility
The “Fifth-Year” Uncertainty: Texas Tech has multiple players from the 2022 class (such as Jamaichel Stillwell, Darien Williams, and Donovan Atwell) seeking an additional year of eligibility [11:57]. McCasland defended the program’s approach, emphasizing that these decisions were strategic, transparent, and built around players who genuinely care about the university rather than a “money grab” [14:51].
Chemistry & Fluidity: While acknowledging the chaotic nature of potential roster shifts and legal battles regarding eligibility, McCasland draws parallels to dealing with standard player injuries and believes the strong team culture will keep players connected [17:00].
New Personnel & Expectations
Depth & Guard Play: Aside from Toppin, McCasland highlighted key new additions and returners—such as Cruz Davis, Dre Lawhorn Gibbs, and transfer Dearan Dennis—who bring much-needed athleticism and competitive guard play [19:44].
Defensive Identity: A primary focus for the upcoming season is returning Texas Tech to its elite defensive roots by becoming more disruptive and forcing more turnovers, which McCasland noted has shown promising signs in early scrimmages [26:41].
Tough Non-Conference Schedule
Texas Tech continues to test itself against top-tier programs, featuring a home game against Illinois, a matchup against USC at Dickies Arena in Fort Worth, the Players Era Festival featuring Louisville, and a game against Duke at Madison Square Garden right before Christmas [23:45].
Links
Lubbock Avalanche-Journal’s Nathan Giese: When could JT Toppin return to action for Texas Tech basketball? ‘Very, very soon’
There’s still no official timeline for when Toppin will return to the floor. During the team’s first week of practice, McCasland said he won’t ask Neal when Toppin will be available. Rather, he’ll let the rehab process play out and go from there.
Lubbock Avalanche-Journal’s Stephen Garcia: Big 12 commissioner talks future of CFP, Protect College Sports Act
“First of all, nothing’s been done yet with the CFP. It’s only speculation,” Yormark said. “Nothing’s final. So, I don’t want to get too much into details there, but tentpole events for us matter. Our (football) championship has been very valuable. Our basketball tournament, both men’s and women’s, has been very valuable.
“If there’s a point in time where change is made, we will look to backstop those events with other events. We’re in the event business. It drives a lot of fan engagement and excitement. We’ll see what happens in the future, but those are big moments for us, and for some reason if that one goes away, we’ll replace it with something different.”
Lubbock Avalanche-Journal’s Nathan Giese: There’s a wrinkle to Texas Tech basketball’s 2026-27 schedule it can’t avoid
“Originally we were trying to figure out how we could make a conditional game pending that result of the Players Era game,” McCasland said, “but at this point, we’ve just decided we’re going to play however the result of Players Era is and that’ll be it. We won’t play the additional (game).”
McCasland said in order to have that conditional game, Texas Tech would need to buy out somebody else from a team playing at home, then agree to a date to play the 32nd game in Lubbock, and the other team that gets bought out would wind up with 31 games instead of 32.
Red Raider Sports’ Shelby Hilliard: Texas Tech’s Gerlich, Bristow & Collins Talk New Roster, Same Standards at Big 12 WBB Media Days
Gerlich, now entering her seventh season as the helm in Lubbock, she believes that success helped attract players who wanted to contribute to what Texas Tech was building.
“We recruited kids that saw that team and that saw the success, and not just that team, but previous teams and saw the build, and they wanted to be a part of that. So I feel like it’s just a continuation of what we’ve already done.”
Red Raider Sports’ Lane Selph: Grant McCasland and Texas Tech’s star trio open up on pivotal offseason, expectations ahead of 2026-27 season
“These guys to my left are the reason why we’ll be great,” McCasland said. “We’ve got a staff that’s all together again, and they’ll tell you the key to our strengths are our returners, and then the staff that we have put together.” McCasland continued, “I think we got the best staff in college basketball, and every day we get better because we’ve got the right people in the building.”