How Texas Tech can get the most out of Will Hammond and Thomas Castellanos

Joey McGuire and the Texas Tech staff have the unique opportunity of getting Will Hammond back and settled into game rhythm. They also have the task of getting transfer QB Thomas Castellanos acclimated to their system. [Sign up for RedRaiderSports now and get a full year for just $29.99, only $2.49/month!] How McGuire and the Red Raiders manage the two quarterbacks could have a lasting effect on what the offense is able to accomplish when the going gets tough. Hammond's preparation habits earned a world of praise from McGuire. 'We're lucky with him because he's a film rat, I guarantee he's probably watched Oregon State in that Houston game there, four or five times,' McGuire told the media Monday. 'He's a guy that loves preparing. He's in here, Tommy does too, Kirk (Francis) does too. The young guys are learning that but those three guys that are vet quarterbacks so they spend a lot of time with Mack (Leftwich), Lindsey Scott. Whenever Mack's in a meeting, Lindsey does a lot of stuff with those guys.' As Hammond continues to get used to being in the game again coming off his knee injury, McGuire says he wants to see more down field passing. Hammond was efficient in the opener, starting the game 14-for-14, but being able to push the ball further can make all the difference in the game. 'He's really efficient. Going back and looking at the film, we probably should have pushed the ball, like even if we don't complete it, just push the ball down the field a little bit,' McGuire continued. 'We talked about that about taking some shots down the field. 'There were a couple times there were bigger plays that he came off and checked the ball down. It's us getting those calls out to really get him to understand. More than just calling the play and him going through his progressions, like hey we're going to take a shot on this play so let's go take a shot.' Then there comes the case of Castellanos. In his first Texas Tech game, after having spent less than a week on campus, he logged one snap – a handoff to J'Koby Williams which led to a touchdown. Texas Tech's red zone inefficiencies played a role in why Castellanos did not feature more, which McGuire hopes to see corrected. 'I think he's feeling better and better and now he gets another week to work it so I think we'll see him,' McGuire said. 'He definitely had more of a package the other night. A lot of it was in the low red zone and lot of the times we got stuck was not in the low red. I do think the more he gets comfortable, we'll see him at different times of the game.' Being the oldest quarterback in the room, Castellanos has picked up on the offense quickly. He's also putting in extra work with offensive coordinator Mack Leftwich and assistant quarterbacks coach Lindsey Scott Jr. 'He has spent a lot more time one-on-one with Lindsey and Mack than just in the quarterback room to try and get a grasp,' McGuire said. 'He's a smart kid. If you look at, he had Gus' (Malzahn) offense at UCF and at Florida State, then he had the Boston College offense. This is Mack's offense and the Red Raiders' offense, so he's picked it up. What you want out there is a confidence whenever he comes in to play and the wheels are not totally turning and he's trying to process everything as we're getting out there to snap the football. 'The package that we had to go into it, he would've been really comfortable because there's going to be a lot of zone read and power and just different things that you're going to do with a dual threat quarterback and put the ball in his hands.' Join the conversation with other Red Raiders on the Inside The Double T forum. Subscribe today to get the most in-depth Texas Tech sports and recruiting coverage. Follow us on X: @RedRaiderSports Like and follow us on Instagram @rrs_rivals & like us on Facebook.