For Texas Tech football fans from the generation that began following the program in the 2000s, it’s now our birthright to see teams with elite offenses. However, in recent years, especially since the end of the Pat Mahomes era, Tech has fielded some mediocre offensive units, at least by this program’s standards.

The program has not ranked in the top 10 nationally in total offense since 2017, the first year after Mahomes left. Additionally, Tech’s average offensive ranking nationally has been 45th over the past four seasons.

Last year, Tech finished only 64th in the country in yards per game, largely due to injuries to the quarterback. And more importantly, the usually pass-happy Red Raiders finished only 63rd in the country in passing offense.

It may still seem like the elite offense is the flagship of this program, but in reality, the Red Raiders still have a lot to prove on that side of the ball. Here are five burning questions the 2024 offense will need to answer this fall.

There is no bigger problem that has prevented the Red Raiders offense from being elite than the play of the offensive line. Last year, that unit was decent at blocking runs but struggled greatly in pass protection, as Tech finished only ninth in the conference in sacks allowed per game at 1.8, despite the Red Raiders running the ball more than throwing it.

This year, Tech has completely reshuffled the deck at that position group, as only one starter from last year, Caleb Rogers, will return. What’s more, he likely won’t even play the same position he played in 2023.

However, just because the line has new players doesn’t necessarily mean it will be better. Sheridan Wilson, the projected starter at center, and Ty Buchanan, the projected starter at right tackle, will be making their first start at the college level.

Meanwhile, Tech is counting on transfer from a Group of 5 Conference program, Vinny Sciury (who played at Toledo last season), to fill in at left guard. We also don’t yet know if former JUCO recruit Dalton Merryman or Middle Tennessee State transfer Sterling Porcher will be the man to fill the important left tackle position.

The point is that none of these players were blue-chip talents and none were all-conference players at the Power 4 level, so we can’t just assume that new faces will bring improvement. Until we see positive results on the field, we can only wonder how much better the O-line will be this year.

One thing we know for sure is that Tech will be fielding one of the best running backs in the country in Tahj Brooks. However, it is questionable whether he will have to do all the running work alone again this season.

Last year, Brooks carried the ball 290 times, 238 more than anyone else on the team.

The fact is that Brooks won’t have to do that much work again this year, but is anyone else on the roster ready to take that burden off his shoulders?

Junior reliever Cam’Ron Valdez has only 76 runs in his career, and despite appearing in 10 games in 2023, he only received 52 runs.

The other option behind Brooks appears to be freshman Cam Dickey. While he is physically ready to compete in the Big 12, is he mentally ready to handle all the tasks a running back must handle, including pass protection?

Brooks proved last year that he can be a real workhorse, but asking him to do that again this year is like playing with fire, which has Texas Tech fans wondering if anyone else on the roster is willing to take on the burden of the running game for him.

Last season, Tech’s wide receivers were mediocre at best. Tech’s best receiver, Xavier White, managed just 556 yards.

Additionally, no receiver on the roster was a game-winner. In this group, which consisted primarily of possession receivers, no player caught more than two passes with an average of over 14.3 yards per catch.

This year, Tech is counting on newcomers like transfers Josh Kelly and Caleb Douglas and true freshman Micah Hudson to make big plays when they have the ball. Additionally, they’re hoping that returning players like Coy Eakin and Drae McCray will be more reliable options and allow the team to make big plays.

We also have to remember that a healthy Behren Morton at quarterback will help the offense become more explosive in the passing game. Now that his shoulder is healed, he should be able to drive the ball down the field more effectively, and that could also help the Red Raiders’ passing attack become more lethal. Regardless, more will be asked of the players Morton throws to this year.

There has been a lot of talk about the talent the Red Raiders have in the tight end room this year. However, that has been said about this position group for several years, and yet statistically we have not seen the tight ends be a huge factor.

Now, it must be said that the offensive line’s recent problems have forced the tight ends to help with pass blocking more than anyone would have liked. That’s one of the reasons why OC Zach Kittley hasn’t been able to put his tight ends on the field.

This year, the hope is that the line can do a better job without additional help. That’s because Tech has some athletic tight ends who need to participate in the passing game as receivers rather than blockers.

Jalin Conyers, who transferred from Arizona State, Johncarlos Miller, who transferred from Elon, and Mason Tharp are all big, athletic targets who can dominate in the passing game, so 2024 has to be the year Tech finally gets something meaningful from the tight ends.

We all know the questions surrounding Behren Morton’s health, but do we know he’s ready to be an elite QB in the Big 12, even if he stays on the field 100% for an entire season?

The simple truth is that we simply don’t know what Morton will do at quarterback. He’s only started 12 games in his career with the Red Raiders, and he hasn’t been fully healthy for any of those games.

In 2022, he suffered a high ankle sprain in his first career start at Oklahoma State. Then, last year, he sprained his throwing shoulder in his first significant appearance of the year, the game at West Virginia, when he had to replace the injured Tyler Shough.

So what does a healthy Behren Morton look like? Will he be as dynamic and creative as we expect given his natural talent? Or will he be reckless and prone to turnovers because he tries too much?

Hopefully the first scenario will come to pass and not the second. But what an unleashed and healthy Morton really looks like remains to be seen.