Much will be made of the competitions over the next four weeks amongst wide receivers and cornerbacks, but a few of the more intense battles are sure to be waged along the offensive line.
"We've got a competition up front too," offensive coordinator Neal Brown said on Tuesday. "Tony Morales will push Deveric Gallington (at center), and we've got some interesting battles on the inside with LeRaven (Clark) and Alfredo (Morales) (at right guard), and between Brian Thomas and Beau Carpenter (at left guard)."
One sophomore, three redshirt-freshmen, and two fifth-year seniors will fight for three spots.
There are 50 FBS starts between the two veterans, and one start between the four youngsters -- but don't let that fool you into thinking there can't be any uprisings before September 1st.
We know there's likely to be a first-year starter at the right guard position, with RS-FR LeRaven Clark and RS-FR Alfredo Morales opening camp as the two primary candidates.
On the other side, SOPH Beau Carpenter is trying to stave off SR transfer Brian Thomas at left guard.
Thomas comes to Texas Tech by way of Texas A&M where he was a two-year starter, but he wasn't in Lubbock for the spring or summer off-season programs and is behind the proverbial eight-ball from a conditioning standpoint.
"[His conditioning is behind] a lot," Brown said. "He's not anywhere close to where he needs to be. When he's practiced the whole time he's looked as good as anybody -- minus (LaAdrian) Waddle -- on several plays, and then there's some times after he goes for several reps and there's a significant difference."
Carpenter made his only career start in 2011 against Iowa State, and is considered to be the front-runner at this point. Although, it wouldn't be surprising to see Brian Thomas work his way into shape and find his way into the conversation at right guard if Clark and A. Morales aren't satisfying Brown and new offensive line coach Chris Thomsen.
Big 12 experience is hard to come by and that's something Thomas has over almost everyone involved.
I expect one of the most compelling competitions to be seen in the middle of it all, between SR Deveric Gallington and RS-FR Tony Morales at the center position.
Gallington has that aforementioned and highly valued experience, making 25 starts for Tech over the past two seasons, but only one of those starts came at center.
Tony Morales, meanwhile, is one of the most promising young offensive linemen on campus and also a guy that seems to have that certain ornery streak that's a highly sought-after trait for those in the trenches.
He's also got a few skins on the wall from his prep days in Arlington (TX), where he was a U.S. Army All-American and rated as a top 5 center nationally by Rivals and Scout recruiting services. After suffering a season-ending knee injury before really getting started last fall, you can bet he'll be motivated to get on the field in 2012.
Gallington is no wide-eyed daisy himself after being tossed into the fire at center against Oklahoma last year -- and performing more than admirably. If he can cut down on the knuckle-balls to Seth Doege, he'll have a good opportunity to cement his starting role.
Coach Brown and Coach Thomsen have many long conversations ahead of them over the next four weeks, but both are likely very comfortable in the knowledge that these Fall Camp battles should produce a credible two-deep by the time Northwestern State comes to town next month.
Find anything you've missed from Double T 104-3's Fall Camp coverage right here, and keep checking back for updates as we count down to kickoff on September 1st.
