Texas Tech Baseball Coach Remains Optimistic After 0-3 Start

Red Raiders head coach Tim Tadlock says "this group's going to be just fine" despite tough opening weekend losses.

Published on Feb. 17, 2026

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The Texas Tech baseball team went 0-3 at the Shriner's Children College Showdown in Arlington, Texas, dropping games to Oklahoma, No. 23 Vanderbilt, and No. 7 Arkansas. Despite the tough start, head coach Tim Tadlock remains optimistic about his team's potential, praising their competitive spirit and noting the strong individual performances from several players.

Why it matters

Texas Tech is looking to build on its recent success, having made the NCAA Tournament in 2022 and 2023. While an 0-3 start is not ideal, Tadlock's positive outlook and the team's ability to battle back against a ranked Arkansas squad suggest the Red Raiders have the talent to compete at a high level this season.

The details

In the final game against Arkansas, Texas Tech fell behind 4-1 going into the 9th inning before staging a furious four-run rally to take a 5-4 lead. However, the Razorbacks scored one in the bottom half to tie it, then won it in the 11th. Despite the tough loss, Tadlock praised his team's competitiveness, saying "we created some traffic" and that there were "a lot of good things" from the weekend.

  • The Texas Tech baseball team went 0-3 at the Shriner's Children College Showdown over the weekend of February 16-18, 2026.
  • Texas Tech will look to bounce back with a road game against UT Rio Grande Valley on Tuesday, February 17, 2026.
  • Following the UTRGV game, the Red Raiders will play their first home games of the season against the Albany Great Danes in a four-game series starting on Friday, February 21, 2026.

The players

Tim Tadlock

The head coach of the Texas Tech baseball team, who remains optimistic about his team's potential despite the 0-3 start to the season.

Kyeler Thompson

A junior for Texas Tech who was the star of the weekend, going 7-for-12 at the plate with a triple and an RBI.

Robin Villeneuve

A senior for Texas Tech who was second on the team with three hits while also picking up a pair of walks and a stolen base.

Linkin Garcia

A freshman for Texas Tech who had two hits and two walks in the first action of his young career.

Caden Ferraro

A Blinn College transfer who also picked up a couple hits for Texas Tech over the weekend.

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What they’re saying

“Yeah, I mean we created some traffic. You just described it. We got a big hit there, big two-out hit there at the end. Again, extremely proud of the way the guys competed through the day. Obviously you want to come out on the right side of it but you guys can see, there's a lot of good things today. We ran a lot of good arms out there, a lot of really good things. This group's going to be just fine.”

— Tim Tadlock, Head Coach (World Baseball Network)

What’s next

The Red Raiders will look to bounce back with a road game in Edinburg, TX as they face UT Rio Grande Valley on Tuesday, February 17, 2026. Following the UTRGV game, Texas Tech will play its first home games of the season against the Albany Great Danes in a four-game series starting on Friday, February 21, 2026.

The takeaway

Despite the tough 0-3 start, Texas Tech head coach Tim Tadlock remains optimistic about his team's potential this season. The Red Raiders showed fight in their close loss to a ranked Arkansas squad, and several players had strong individual performances, suggesting the team has the talent to compete at a high level as the season progresses.