LUBBOCK, TX — Texas Tech senior defensive lineman Skyler Gill-Howard has been named the Big 12 Defensive Player of the Week following his standout performance in the Red Raiders’ dominant win over Kent State, the conference announced Monday.
Gill-Howard recorded four tackles in just 17 defensive snaps during Saturday’s 48-6 victory, including a key third-down stop for a one-yard loss in the first quarter. Most of Texas Tech’s starters, including Gill-Howard, exited the game by halftime with the Red Raiders holding a commanding 48-0 lead.
The highlight of Gill-Howard’s day came midway through the second quarter, when he intercepted a batted pass from Kent State quarterback A.J. Holmes Jr. and returned it 55 yards for a touchdown. The defensive score extended Tech’s lead to 38-0 with 8:35 remaining in the half and marked both his first career interception and first career touchdown.
Texas Tech's Defense against Kent State
(Credit: texastech.com)
He is the first Texas Tech defensive lineman to return an interception for a touchdown since Adell Duckett did so against SMU in 2003. The last interior lineman to record a pick was Quincy Ledet Jr., who notched one during last season’s win at Arizona.
Gill-Howard becomes the first Red Raider to earn Big 12 weekly honors this season and the first defensive player to be recognized since linebacker Jacob Rodriguez was honored on Nov. 4, 2024, following a road win at Iowa State. He is also the first interior defensive lineman in Texas Tech history to receive a Big 12 weekly award since the university joined the conference in 1996.
Iowa State’s Tamatoa McDonough shared this week’s defensive honors. A full list of weekly award recipients can be found at Big12Sports.com.
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