No. 3 – Defensive Back Justus Parker
There are people in life that just seem to be fortune’s favorite son. They always find themselves where the action happens. They always are in position to save the day. They are incubators of good karma.
On the Texas Tech defense, that guy is junior Justus Parker. Like Howard, Parker was a player with few options out of high school and as a result, he spent his freshman season at Incarnate Word in San Antonio.
But after walking on and redshirting in 2016, Parker forced his way on to the field last year, eventually earning a scholarship. He became invaluable to the Texas Tech defense mainly because he was able to give David Gibbs what he covets most, turnovers.
Last year, Parker intercepted four passes, forced four fumbles and returned a fumble for a touchdown while recording 34 tackles. And his turnovers frequently came at crucial moments like in Austin when his 4th-quarter pick set up Texas Tech’s game-winning TD drive.
If there has been a criticism of Parker, it has been consistency. David Gibbs has discussed his desire for Parker to be more of a complete player who makes more routine plays on a more frequent basis.
But Parker’s penchant for coming up big in big moments is special. In the high-scoring world of the Big 12, turnovers are essential for any defense to force and last year, Texas Tech was sixth in the nation with 29.
It felt like Justus Parker was in the middle of half of those takeaways and he must continue to be a catalyst for the defense this fall.