The good vibes around Raiderland didn’t last long. Just over 24 hours after the Texas Tech football team beat West Virginia 52-15 on Saturday to finish the 2024 regular season 8-4, the reality of the transfer portal era appears to have robbed the Red Raiders of the highest-ranked player to ever sign with the program.
Sunday evening, it was widely reported by multiple sources that true freshman wide receiver Micah Hudson, a former 5-star high school recruit and a high school All-American who was part of the Red Raiders 2024 recruiting class has decided to enter the transfer portal when it opens on December 9.
Thus ends a frustrating and disappointing chapter in Texas Tech football history. Unfortunately, it means that barring an unlikely change of heart, we’ll never see Hudson realize his massive potential while wearing Scarlet and Black.
It seemed as if Hudson’s time in Lubbock was cursed from the moment he arrived. Though he was an early enrollee who arrived on campus in January, he had to miss the vast majority of the Red Raiders’ offseason program as he recovered from knee surgery.
As a result, Hudson was unable to pick up the entire playbook as fast as he needed to in order to have a full grasp of the offense and play multiple wide receiver positions as the coaching staff envisioned. Because he was reduced to playing one position, he was slotted in behind junior wide receiver Caleb Doulas on the depth chart.
Thus, the opportunities for Hudson to get on the field were limited. With Douglas finishing the regular season second on the team in catches (55) and receiving yards (762) as well as being tied for the team lead in receiving touchdowns (6), the coaching staff was reluctant to take him off of the field.
That meant that Hudson only saw action when Tech utilized a package that featured five receivers or when games were in garbage time. In all, he finished the year with just 8 receptions for 123 yards and no touchdowns. That’s far from reaching the expectations that Texas Tech fans had for Hudson after head coach Joey McGuire repeatedly called him a “generational talent” in the offseason.
Because of the offseason hype, which was largely driven by McGuire, fans were beyond excited to see Hudson in action this year. But as the season progressed and he didn’t see any extended playing time, a large portion of the Red Raider populace was confused and frustrated by Hudson’s lack of opportunities leading to almost weekly complaints about his usage (or lack thereof).
Now it appears that his time as a Red Raider will be limited to less than one calendar year. That is not the way most fans hoped that Hudson’s career in Lubbock would play out but it is what many began to fear would become a reality as the season progressed and he saw scant playing time. At least now, everyone can stop fretting over the Micah Hudson saga as we know that he is headed elsewhere.
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