One of the newest members of the 2022 class for the Red Raiders is Tyler Legacy running back Bryson Donnell.

The Red Raiders already have a deep and talented running back room, and Donnell will only add to that once he arrives on campus.

That is a big change from where Tech was just a short few years ago, when they were relying on guys like the often-suspended Da'Leon Ward or lowly recruited Desmond Nisby to carry the load.

Today we take a look at how the running back room has changed in the three years since head coach Matt Wells and running back coach DeAndre Smith arrived in the 806.

Ward was a highly ranked prospect, bordering on 4-star talent. He came in and was productive right away, rushing for 428 yards and three touchdowns as a true freshman. However, he was constantly in and out of the lineup due to different issues throughout his time at Texas Tech.

He missed the entire 2017 season. He returned in 2018, but only received 79 carries on the year.

Before the 2019 season he transferred to Stephen F. Austin, where he's racked up 736 rushing yards in his two seasons as a Lumberjack.

Ta'Zhawn Henry was a long time TCU commit but got dropped by the Horned Frogs leading up to signing day. He ended up choosing Texas Tech over Oregon State.

Henry was a fan favorite, he would often go on social media and encourage recruits to commit to Texas Tech.

As a freshman under Kliff Kingsbury, Henry made his mark with 341 rushing yards and eight touchdowns. His production as a sophomore was not too far off, in fact he increased his yards per carry from 4.0 in 2018 to 4.5 in 2019.

After the season Henry elected to transfer to Houston, where after sitting out in 2020 he is set to debut this season.

Thompson was a great find by Kliff Kingsbury and former assistant coach Emmett Jones. Thompson was not highly recruited, but at the time Tech had just lost the commitment of Devin Brumfield to Utah and needed a bigger, more powerful back to come in as a part of the class.

Nowadays Thompson is the starter and lead back of this talented room, though he will have plenty of competition for snaps.

Tahj Brooks was one of Matt Wells' first huge recruiting wins in the 2020 class.

If you remember, Tech hosted 15 official visitors in that late June weekend, but Brooks actually came alone the week before for a mid-week official visit. He would end up committing shortly after, and then the floodgates opened.

Brooks flashed as a true freshman, scoring four touchdowns and was a key performer in Tech's upset win over West Virginia with some tough runs in the 4th quarter.

Texas Tech got really lucky with Xavier White. An under-recruited prospect from Monterey HS in town, White went JUCO for a season but still was not receiving the recruiting interest he wanted.

He chose to walk on at Tech as a receiver, and impressed in limited action before suffering an injury. He switched positions to running back, and averaged an eye-popping 7.0 yards per carry in 2020 on 62 rushes.

White has great speed and his experience as a receiver helps him catch balls out of the backfield.

Chadarius Townsend was one of the top recruits in the country when he signed with Alabama, but they didn't know what to do with him. He was a quarterback in high school and the Crimson Tide tried him out at running back, receiver and defensive back but he couldn't find a consistent home.

Tech had a big need for a running back last year after Henry's departure and they went out and got their guy.

Townsend didn't get much of an opportunity though, rushing only 18 times in 2020. Reports are new offensive coordinator Sonny Cumbie is excited about Townsend though, so look for his role to increase this season.

Cam'Ron Valdez was one of the prizes of the 2021 class and also one of the highest rated high school prospects to sign with Tech in several years, choosing the Red Raiders directly over Big 12 rival Oklahoma State.

Blazing fast and tough as nails, Valdez will look to crack the rotation as a true freshman.

As mentioned above, Donnell just announced his commitment to Texas Tech earlier this week.

He took official visits to both Texas Tech and Colorado before deciding on the Red Raiders. He also held offers from Arkansas, Houston, Kansas, Purdue and others at the time of his commitment.

When Matt Wells and his staff arrived in Lubbock there were only two scholarship backs on campus - SaRodorick Thompson and Ta'Zhawn Henry.

There was a need for an immediate impact player and they went out and got Utah's Armand Shyne.

Shyne had some solid moments in a Tech uniform but injuries limited him to only eight games. He finished his only season in Lubbock with 374 rushing yards and three scores.

Chux Nwabuko III was actually committed to Kliff Kingsbury and the previous staff as a preferred walk-on, but after the coaching change kept his commitment to Texas Tech.

His main duties so far have been as a punt returner where he's returned 16 punts for 94 yards in two seasons. Also a solid receiver out of the backfield with great speed, look for him to continue factoring in on special teams moving forward with the potential to get a few snaps offensively as well.