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eli lederman
Miami Gardens, Florida — texas tech quarterback behren morton Walking is out of the boot and fully practicing ahead of the No. 4 Red Raiders College Football Playoff quarterfinal against the No. 5 seed this month. oregonthe veteran passerby told reporters on Tuesday.
Morton spent the back half of the season playing through injury due to a hairline fracture in his right fibula. Speaking at Orange Bowl media day at Hard Rock Stadium, Morton cited the advantage of the Red Raiders’ 26-day layoff since the Big 12 Championship Game and said he expects them heading into Thursday’s matchup with Oregon (12 p.m. ET, ESPN) feeling healthy and better prepared to play than any time since mid-October.
“This whole bowl preparation has been really good for me,” Morton said. “I’ve basically been 100 percent in practice as far as team reps. I haven’t really been able to do team reps all season. … Just getting the body back to playing football again – it’s been a long time since I’ve had a chance to do that.”
Morton has thrown for 2,643 yards on 67% passing with 22 touchdowns and 4 interceptions in 2025. His improved health marks a significant development for Texas Tech ahead of the program’s first CFP appearance, which comes after the 12-1 Red Raiders stormed into the regular season while leading the nation in scoring margin (410).
Morton said he spent seven to eight weeks this season in a walking boot and played in “a lot of pain” after injuring his right foot in the 42–17 win. kansas On 11 October. He missed only two games in October before returning to start each of the Red Raiders’ last five contests, leading Texas Tech to its first outright conference title since 1955, despite an injury that limited his mobility and kept him out of most practice activities the first week of December.
“Being in a boot all week, not practicing, then taking the boot off on Saturday and playing, it wasn’t fun at all,” Morton said, adding that coach Joey McGuire allowed him to practice one day before the Big 12 title game. BYU,
Morton said he stopped wearing the boots after the conference championship game and has been an almost full participant in Texas Tech’s Orange Bowl preparations this month. Ahead of the showdown with Oregon and the nation’s 10th-ranked scoring defense, he described increased comfort and confidence after three weeks of practice and regular reps.
“It makes a big difference,” he said. “…I’m feeling a lot better, moving around, lifting weights, sitting again, all these things I haven’t been able to do for the last few months. Getting to do that again.”
with backup quarterback Will Hammond Due to a season-ending knee injury, Morton’s status remains as a potential liability. More than two months since he is closer to full strength, Morton not only now believes he is in a better position to further dominate in the CFP Quarterfinals.
“I feel like the offense goes up a lot when I’m healthy,” he said. “We have a lot of playmakers though. That makes my job easier. If I can get them open and get the ball to them quickly, I think we can be pretty explosive.”
