The Big 12 champions have an interesting take on how dumbbells are supposed to be used in the weight room. Or do they?
What drove the Texas Tech Red Raiders to the Big 12 Championship this past season?
Was it the fiery coaching staff led by fourth-year man Joey McGuire and his pair of rising-star coordinators? Or was it the oil-fueled commitment to NIL and transfer portal opportunities that funded an elite defensive line?
Perhaps it was partly due to Texas Tech's new state-of-the-art facility on the south end zone of Jones AT&T Stadium, which recently welcomed the addition of a "football resort" fit with everything a player could need to help mental and physical preparation.
It's in this impressive facility where McGuire's team lifts weights and deploys an interesting training philosophy that has turned heads online.
College football reporter Adam Breneman took a trip here to Lubbock to see what the Red Raiders were all about, and in his tour of the facilities, offensive lineman Sheridan Wilson explained that the team does not use any dumbbells lighter than 40 pounds.
"We're not gonna be weak," Wilson said.
The star lineman explained how strength and conditioning coach Lance Barilow urges for any dumbbell exercise to be done with least the 40-pounders, even if it's something as isolated and challenging as shoulder raises.
"That's how it is," Wilson laughed.
Breneman's visit, as part of his All-American Tour across college campuses, showed what seemed to be the proof in the pudding. He couldn't spot a single dumbbell lighter than 40 pounds across the facility.
But ... there's a "but.''
"The 40-pound dumbbell thing ended up being pretty funny; look how many comments Adam got on the story!'' McGuire tells RedRaiderRoundtable.com in an exclusive interview. "But the truth is this: We have 5-pound to 35-pound dumbbells in our building, too - we just don’t have them in that particular area.''
McGuire then noted that even football luminaries like J.J. Watt have chimed in with criticism of "the 40-pound dumbbell plan that isn't.
"It just shows you how many people want to criticize without knowing all the information,'' McGuire chuckled, adding, "If J.J. wants to come work out in our weight room I'll sure save him a spot!''
Some of the confusion is understandable, considering that Wilson put on quite a show as he pointed to a sign that spreads across the wall of the weight room featuring a mantra that the Red Raiders embody during their training.
"There is no substitute for strength, and there is no excuse for the lack of it."
When it comes to strength, Texas Tech sure wasn't lacking in 2025. The Red Raiders rolled through the Big 12 en route to the program's first conference title in over 50 years.
As a result, numerous contributors on the defensive side - like elite prospect David Bailey and fifth-place Heisman Trophy finisher Jacob Rodriguez - will be picked in the upcoming NFL Draft, which begins in Pittsburgh on April 23.
McGuire and the Red Raiders have also reloaded for 2026 with another stellar transfer class that features coveted recruits like top-rated quarterback Brendan Sorsby, edge rusher Adam Trick and All-Conference linebacker Austin Romaine.
Texas Tech is out to prove that the 2025 season was anything but a fluke, and this hard-nosed mentality to lifting heavy - but not only heavy - might be a defining trait that helps McGuire's program become a national contender.