Texas Tech Red Raiders have a QB problem. Will Behren Morton remaining as the signal caller in Lubbock for his third year? A new hire may tip the scales. For many head coaches, hiring a relatively unknown offensive coordinator always comes with risks. But Joey McGuire knew Mack Leftwich was special. What McGuire did next was calculated. Even though he wanted to protect his senior starter. He also wanted to create a real QB competition.

That meant two things: getting Behren Morton healthy and giving his backup all the first-team reps in spring ball. Not exactly a conservative move in today’s QB transfer carousel. “I was at lunch yesterday and they were asking. Some guys were asking about Behren and asking about Will and I said, you know, the great thing is Behren has played so many snaps and he’s got a high football IQ,” McGuire said on Tech’s own What’s Next! podcast. “So, he picked Mack’s offense up really quick. So, the first day he got to run it on air in June, man, it was just like he had been running that offense for years.”

Behind the scenes, the staff focused on getting Morton’s shoulder fixed. It had hampered him the last two seasons. Draining velocity from his deep ball and limiting his mobility in the pocket. By late spring, Morton was healthy, confident, and fully entrenched in Leftwich’s tempo-heavy attack. “The benefit that we had, we were able to get his shoulder fixed, give him a lot of confidence in physically where he’s at,” McGuire said. “But we were able to give Will every single snap with the first team in the spring, which only increased his confidence in this offense.”

It was a sneaky-smart move. By pulling Behren Morton out of the fire early and letting Will Burns, his top backup, handle all the live spring reps, Joey McGuire both preserved Morton’s health and raised the ceiling of the QB room. “We’re really lucky in that room,” McGuire said. “I mean, really, that entire room. We got five guys in that room and they’re all, they are so close. They’re fun to be around. Mitch, a transfer, he played in the ACC. Him and Behren have become really, really close. Chub is our high school guy, and Philip, our local guy. They’re our two high school guys that we brought in. They’ve done a really good job ’cause they came in during the winter. They were early grads, so they’ve got a good grasp on what we’re doing.”

The QB room is built around Leftwich’s offense, which ranked 4 nationally in scoring a year ago. For Morton, the jump is as much about staying upright as it is staying sharp. Last season, he finally made it through a full campaign by starting 12 games. The most of his college career. He delivered 3,335 passing yards, 29 TDs, and just 8 INTs. He looked more decisive in the red zone and more confident in his pre-snap reads. Now, with a healthy shoulder and full command of Leftwich’s playbook, expectations are quietly rising.

There are still landmines in the roster, mostly on the offensive line and in the secondary. Joey McGuire revealed at the team’s media day that several key players will miss early-season time. Safety Chapman Lewis and LB Justin Horne, both recovering from ACL injuries, won’t return until mid-October. Colorado transfer lineman Cash Cleveland (foot) is out until early September, while tackle Ellis Davis (back) should return later that month. WR Tyson Turner is waiting on X-rays for a collarbone issue. Several other safeties remain sidelined heading into fall camp. So if Behren Morton and company can stay healthy, and the protection holds just enough, the Red Raiders could quietly be building toward something big in 2025.

Putting the Behren Morton worries to rest

Mack Leftwich has no time for any doubts lingering in the Big 12 about Morton’s standing as Texas Tech’s top QB. While national analysts seem eager to slot Morton somewhere in the middle of the conference’s hierarchy, Leftwich is buying stock, not selling it. “Now that he’s kind of off the IR and has been able to be out there and be with the guys,” Leftwich said, “he’s a really great processor, you know. He can see things, he can operate, he gets the ball where it needs to go quickly.”

This was a full stamp of approval. Leftwich, who’s only been in Lubbock a short time, already sees what NFL scouts have been buzzing to coach McGuire about for the past year. Morton’s return to form is as much about mental command as it is physical recovery. “He’s a great leader and guys really respond well. He’s a very talented thrower of the football. He puts the ball where he wants to very naturally and it was good to see him push the ball down the field accurately.” It’s that combination of leadership, touch, and vision that makes Morton more than just a placeholder. Texas Tech’s QB1 is still him.