Talking season is over
August 26, 2025 | Football
LUBBOCK – Ben Roberts, Johncarlos Miller II and Reggie Virgil each took a sigh of relief after finishing their local media availability on Tuesday afternoon knowing the next press conference they do will come after a game is finally played.
"I feel like we've already said everything we can say," Roberts said before entering the press conference room. "Just really excited and ready to start the season."
Storylines fuel the spectacle. There's no doubt about that. Narratives increase attention and drive connections with fans. Over the past month, beginning with the first practice on July 30, Texas Tech football players and coaches have stepped in front of cameras and recorders almost on a daily basis to preview the season. Questions prompt them to talk about their backgrounds and roles, the progression of the team and the momentum the program is experiencing. It's all important, but the three players who responded to questions on the dais at the last local media availability before the season begins are ready to take the field and write their own story.Â
"It's game week and time to play," Miller said. "We're ready to let our play do the talking now. It's not about the potential of this team anymore. It's what we actually do on the field now."
"I'm ready to get out there," Virgil said. "I'm ready to prove I belong here and that I can help our team win. I'm ready for everyone on our team to showcase their ability. It's all been just on paper until now. There's been a lot of talk, but we've been putting in the work. It's been a long time of working towards this in the spring and summer. I'm just ready to play football with this amazing team we've built."
For about 40 years, Don Williams has covered Texas Tech football. First with the University Daily (now the Daily Toreador) and ever since as a sports writer at the Lubbock Avalanche-Journal. He's seen and written about it all over that time, both on and off the field. He was there on Tuesday, just like he has been throughout fall camp reporting on the team before returning to his laptop to write stories about almost every newcomer along with reports detailing position battles, injuries, scheduling and big-picture items fans crave.Â
"Everyone has been looking forward to this season since December and January since there has been so much buzz about the level of talent that Tech brought in," Williams said. "From a media perspective, this offseason has been interesting because there's so many new personalities to learn about. So many backgrounds and stories to tell in a short amount of time. For most of my time covering the team, the new guys were the freshmen. You'd learn their stories, but they wouldn't become prominent players until two or three years down the road. Now you have 22 new players who will all make an immediate impact. You're learning about players on the fly in a sense. They're not going to be redshirting and toiling away behind the scenes."
During the press conference, Miller was asked by Nathan Giese from the Avalanche-Journal about the most important aspect of Saturday's season opener and then about the outside talk. "To have fun," he said. "We play this game to have fun. To bring the life to Lubbock and of course get the 'W'. Everyone is coming there for a great experience in the Jones." Miller, a senior tight end from Greensboro, North Carolina, started his career at Elon before joining the Red Raiders last season. He scored three touchdowns and was praised for his run blocking ability. "This morning in our seasonal leaders group chat, coach McGuire sent us a video of him dancing and talking about it being game week. Even though we're about to go to war this Saturday, it's still fun. We're a process-oriented team. All the work we've put in through fall camp and the work we're putting in this week. Today, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday leading into the game is going to prepare us."
Preseason coverage throughout the country lends itself to optimism. That's in every sport at every level. There's no denying the fact that this season makes it even easier to boast confidently for those reporting on the Red Raiders. The team enters this season ranked No. 23 in the Associated Press Top 25 – the first time being ranked since 2018 and the first preseason ranking since 2008. In his latest column, posted on Tuesday morning before the press conference, the headline read: Those who love an underdog won't love Texas Tech football this year. "The ol' Red Raiders decided to be the Los Angeles Dodgers and the New York Yankees of college football's off-season," he wrote. The column highlights an off-season that gained national recognition, flipping a narrative he's written about countless times.
"The preseason storyline is so different than past Texas Tech teams because for most of the 100 years it has embraced the underdog role," Williams said. "Fans, coaches and players embraced being a team that had less resources and was viewed as not as talented in a lot of cases. This team is different. With the reputation of how they got here this season, even outsiders are viewing Texas Tech as a dark horse contender to make the playoffs and in the mix to win the Big 12 championship. That's a different role than most of us have ever experienced here. Tech has all of sudden switched roles. It's a team that if you don't already have a vested interest, you might be rooting against them."
Virgil's first question at the press conference was about his emotions going into the season opener. It'll be his first season with the Red Raiders, signing in the off-season after three seasons at Miami (Ohio) where he recorded 41 receptions and nine touchdowns last season.
"I just get excited," he said. "This group is really talented but we also all work extremely hard. Talent and adding in the work ethic could be really special."
During his press conference, Roberts echoed those thoughts. A junior linebacker from Haslet, Roberts is entering his fourth season at Tech. He earned Big 12 Defensive Freshman of the Year in 2023 and started every game as a sophomore last year. Roberts recorded a team-high 107 tackles as a redshirt freshman and had 83 last season. A veteran player within the program, he understands the spectacle that will be in Jones AT&T Stadium on Saturday night and the potential within the locker room.
"It's extremely important to me," he said. "We have an opportunity to make history here and I think that this is the team that can do it."
Fans can watch the trio of players and head coach Joey McGuire's full press conferences on TexasTech+.
