Patrick Mahomes put up gaudy numbers during his time at Texas Tech, but he never received a vote for the Heisman Trophy. No Red Raider has ever won college football’s biggest award, and you have to go back to 2008 to find any of the program’s stars who received a vote. That year, Graham Harrell finished fourth behind Sam Bradford, Colt McCoy and Tim Tebow, earning 13 first-place votes. His top receiver Michael Crabtree finished fifth.
Texas Tech has a solid offense in 2025, but it is the defense that has truly made Joey McGuire’s team a College Football Playoff contender. David Bailey entered the week leading the FBS in sacks with 11.5, Romello Height has six sacks of his own and cornerback Brice Pollock is one of the Big 12’s top ballhawks with four picks. But it is linebacker Jacob Rodriguez who is the heart and soul of the defense, and Mahomes wants to see him as a Heisman finalist.
Following a 29–7 statement win over previously undefeated BYU, Mahomes was ready to amplify the growing calls from Lubbock for Rodriguez to suit up and head to New York in a few weeks…