As if Saturday night’s 37-16 loss against Washington State wasn’t tough enough, more bad news is hitting the Texas Tech football team. Left guard Vinny Sciury, who had to leave the game on a cart, has been ruled out for the rest of the season due to a knee injury.
This information was confirmed on Monday when Texas Tech issued its official injury report for week three. This is a major setback for a team already struggling with significant issues along the offensive line.
Sciury was arguably the top Red Raider offensive lineman. The senior transfer from Toledo had participated in 41 college games, including 35 consecutive starts across both Toledo and Texas Tech.
Now, the Red Raiders face the challenge of reorganizing the offensive line once again. On the week-one depth chart, Dylan Shaw and Holton Hendrix were noted as potential backups to Sciury.
Neither option is ideal. Shaw is merely a redshirt freshman who didn’t see any playing time last season and hasn’t taken any significant snaps this year.
In contrast, Hendrix, a true freshman from Lubbock’s Cooper High School, was rated as a 3-star prospect and ranked as the No. 715 player in the nation in the class of 2024.
Neither of the freshmen appears ready to take on a starting role in the Big 12. Therefore, Texas Tech will likely move either Caleb Rogers (who has started two games this season at right tackle) or Davion Carter (who has also started at right guard) to left guard.
Shifting Carter to the left side may be the most logical choice, as he has been recognized as a versatile and smart player, making him a strong candidate to fill Sciury’s spot.
Rogers has trained at both tackle and guard this offseason, but the coaching staff notes that the senior prefers playing on the right side.
This is merely speculation regarding the team’s adjustments moving forward; head coach Joey McGuire may address this in his upcoming press conference. However, it’s clear that Sciury’s injury will significantly impact the Red Raiders.
He becomes the third Red Raider ruled out for the entire season, joining edge rushers Dylan Shaw and Joseph Adedire.
Additionally, nine Red Raiders are listed as “questionable” for the matchup against North Texas. This list includes RB Tahj Brooks, DBs Maurion Horn, Brenden Jordan, C.J. Baskerville, and Bralyn Lux, OL Sterling Porcher, and LBs Harvey Dyson III and John Curry.
This is not the news Texas Tech fans wanted to hear on a Monday following such a tough loss. Unfortunately, this is the situation that McGuire and his team must navigate as they prepare to face North Texas on Saturday.
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