Texas Tech prevents Notre Dame from poaching GM in major win for Joey McGuire
What a surprise for the Red Raiders.
Not so fast, Marcus Freeman. For a little while now, there’s been plenty of speculation that Notre Dame was getting ready to poach Texas Tech football general manager James Blanchard away from Lubbock. It was set to be a massive loss for the Red Raiders.
However, some great news has come in for head coach Joey McGuire and his staff: Blanchard isn’t going anywhere. According to 247Sports’ insider Matt Zenitz, Blanchard indeed will be sticking around with Texas Tech and he has told Notre Dame thanks, but no thanks:
Texas Tech general manager James Blanchard, who had been targeted for the Notre Dame GM job, has decided to stay at Texas Tech, sources tell @CBSSports/@247Sports.
At Texas Tech, Blanchard has become of the nation’s most respected college front office figures.… pic.twitter.com/qX7xbyA7EN
— Matt Zenitz (@mzenitz) February 7, 2025
Texas Tech GM James Blanchard has reportedly spurned Notre Dame to stay in Lubbock
According to FootballScoop, Blanchard will be receiving a raise and more years added on to his contract with Texas Tech. Freeman and Co. worked their magic to try and get Blanchard to jump ship, but McGuire clearly made it a priority to keep him around.
This makes sense, as Blanchard is widely considered a rising executive around college football circles. On top of that, he has been with McGuire in Lubbock since the start, which is why the veteran head coach wanted to make sure the university did everything possible to keep him.
Blanchard is adored by the Texas Tech fanbase and the thought of him leaving for South Bend sure didn’t set well with a lot of people. Thankfully, that’s not going to happen and Blanchard will continue to be McGuire’s right-hand man for the long haul. You better believe this is considered a massive win for McGuire and Tech as a whole.
Blanchard is a rockstar in this business and he’s going to keep rocking TTU gear with pride. He’s also going to continue making a strong impact with the recruiting efforts for this team too, as Tech is getting ready to make plenty of noise next campaign and beyond.
