Texas Tech Football: 50 Greatest Red Raiders of all time

Feb 22, 2014; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Texas Tech Red Raiders defensive tackle Kerry Hyder speaks at the NFL Combine at Lucas Oil Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Pat Lovell-USA TODAY Sports

No. 40 – Kerry Hyder (Defensive Tackle 2009 – 2013)

The next player on the list of greatest Texas Tech players in history was a defensive tackle that left everything he had on the field every week.

One of the biggest over-achievers in program history, Kerry Hyder left Lubbock as one of the most respected players to ever take the field for the Red Raiders. Though undersized for a defensive tackle at only 290-pounds, Hyder was named a 2012 and 2013 all-Big 12 selection by multiple media outlets.

Hyder arrived on campus as an unheralded freshman from Austin, Texas but after red-shirting his true freshman season, he became a mainstay on the Texas Tech defensive line.

No. 91 never let up, which often put him in the perfect place to make critical plays as in the clip below.

Hyder developed into a highly skilled player who could dominate opposing offensive lineman, as he does on this play from the same gave versus Iowa State. Watch how Hyder dismisses the lineman with ease on his way to the quarterback.

Hyder was signed as an undrafted free agent with the New York Jets after the 2014 NFL Draft, and spent the year on the team’s practice squad. Despite playing for three different head coaches (Leach ’09, Tuberville ’10 – ’12, Kingsbury ’13) and five different defensive coordinators, Hyder showed as much improvement during his career as any player in recent memory thus earning him a spot on the list of the 50 greatest Red Raiders of all-time.

Next: LaAdrian Waddle