Wreck'Em Red
Fansided

Texas Tech football: All-time West Texas Red Raider team

By Matthew Conner

7 OCT 1995: TEXAS TECH LINEBACKER ZACH THOMAS CELEBRATES AFTER INTERCEPTING A PASS AND SCORING THE WINNING TOUCHDOWN DURING THE RED RAIDERS 14-7 WIN OVER TEXAS A&M AT JONES STADIUM IN LUBBOCK, TEXAS. MANDATORY CREDIT: AL BELLO/ALLSPORT
7 OCT 1995: TEXAS TECH LINEBACKER ZACH THOMAS CELEBRATES AFTER INTERCEPTING A PASS AND SCORING THE WINNING TOUCHDOWN DURING THE RED RAIDERS 14-7 WIN OVER TEXAS A&M AT JONES STADIUM IN LUBBOCK, TEXAS. MANDATORY CREDIT: AL BELLO/ALLSPORT /
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Mandatory Credit: Al Bello/ALLSPORT
Mandatory Credit: Al Bello/ALLSPORT /

LB: Zach Thomas, Michael Johnson, Thomas Howard

Leading the way for the West Texas Red Raider defense is the greatest linebacker and arguably the greatest overall player in program history, Zach Thoms from Pampa.  One of five men in the program’s ring of honor, he ranks 5th in program history with 390 tackles in a career that spanned from 1992-95.

The 2015 College Football Hall of Fame inductee was a two-time Southwest Conference defensive player of the year and a finalist for the Butkus Award, given to the nation’s best linebacker.  In his senior season, Thomas led Tech to a share of its second Southwest Conference title and an appearance in the Cotton Bowl.

Another dominant West Texas linebacker, Michael Johnson, followed his high school head coach Spike Dykes from Midland to Texas Tech and from 1984-87, he was one of the top LBs in the SWC.  His 393 career tackles rank fourth in Tech history and his 154-tackles 1987 season is the fourth-most prolific season ever from a Red Raider defender.

Lubbock native Thomas Howard was one of the best outside linebackers to ever wear the Double-T.  Playing for the Red Raiders from 1974-76, Howard was part of a rugged Tech defense and as a senior, he was named a first-team All-American as he helped Tech to one its most successful seasons of all time.

These three linebackers are easily among the best to ever play the position for the Red Raiders.  All had a propensity for making huge plays, especially Thomas, whose 1995 pick-six in the waning seconds to beat Texas A&M in Lubbock is one of the most iconic moments in program history.

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