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Texas vs Texas Tech: Two vastly different approaches to roster building

Eric Nahlinby:Eric Nahlin•07/05/25
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Steve Sarkisian (Dale Zanine-Imagn Images)

Anybody blaming teenager Felix Ojo for taking $5.1MM for three years from Texas Tech is a lunatic. Conversely, anyone thinking Texas Tech’s decision to give him that amount was sound, is also a lunatic. 

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All the jokes about Texas Tech and the town of Lubbock aside, Ojo will be set for life if he wasn’t so young. He could still be set for life but that takes the ability to budget in ways teenagers don’t typically have. Regardless, that’s a big number that should remove the financial stresses associated with adulthood if football doesn’t work out to a richer degree. 

But, what is Tech thinking? Yes, Ojo is a great prospect, especially based on his upside. He is the NFL template for left tackle, but he’s not Kelvin Banks from a readiness standpoint—meaning, at what point will Tech start receiving a justifiable return on its considerable investment? It likely won’t be as a true freshman where Ojo will be adjusting to the college game. For all his gifts, he’s still pretty raw. Put simply, Tech is going to pay Ojo a lot of money to develop. There’s the possibility Ojo is more similar to Cameron Williams than he is to Banks. Now, I do not expect Ojo to have the same struggles Williams did in year-three, but there will be struggles, even playing in the NFL talent barren Big 12. 

I can understand fan frustrations for Texas losing out on Ojo, but it’s important to keep perspective. On the same day Texas lost Ojo, it gained John Turntine. Turntine is not Banks, either, but he’s much more closer in his readiness to play early, even accounting for his need to add weight. Turntine also didn’t run a rev-share driven recruitment. I don’t know what number Turntine got, but it’s assuredly not in the same ballpark as Ojo’s. At least not yet. If Turntine elevates to starting left tackle he will be compensated fairly. Example: Trevor Goosby has three career starts and he’s definitely not hurting for money.

Steve Sarkisian is taking a much different approach than Texas Tech. He wants a balanced roster with very little dead capital. I do think Tech got their approach right, to some degree, during their very expensive portal window. Portal players are expensive, but you know what you’re getting with them. They plug immediate needs. Sort of like getting softball pitcher Nijaree Canady for $1MM. But, they can also lead to roster imbalances.

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That was in reference to Tech’s roster imbalances being exposed in Game 3 of the Softball World Series that Tech lost to Texas (granted, getting there was a great accomplishment for Tech). Replace Canady with Ojo and I see future roster imbalances for Tech. This approach will help them win more in the Big 12, but they will struggle when facing a much more balanced team. Teams like the ones Steve Sarkisian has built. Hell, maybe even against a team like the one Rhett Lashlee is building.

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